Trump and Harris agree to September 10th ABC debate - Watch Along Starts at Post 431

Just Hope Harris’ prep team differs from Joe’s.

The debate is on.

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J. Trump will face off in a televised prime-time matchup on Sept. 10, ABC News said on Thursday, setting up the latest crucial moment in an already unpredictable presidential campaign.

Limited giftlink:

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/08/08/us/harris-trump-election?unlocked_article_code=1.BU4.1nUZ.gz5k2CI5o6-f&smid=url-share

Any changes/capitulations?

Trump must think he can bluster over her. I wonder if he thinks he has something on her that he’ll surprise her with.

So basically Trump does a complete about-face on the subject of debates as soon as he sees his poll numbers start to plummet. Now he wants no fewer than three debates. Clearly an act of desperation.

What amazes me is that Trump just assumes that everyone will just forget that as recently as a few days ago he was trying to weasel out of any debate with Harris, saying debates weren’t necessary because “everyone knows me”, and in any case he couldn’t debate on “fake news” ABC because he was suing them. He’s right about one thing – his acolytes really do have the memory of a goldfish.

This is what I posted in the other thread (which I assume has been abandoned):

This is gonna be The Feel-Good Hit of the Summer! Comedy Gold!

I predict he bails beforehand.

He already tried to bail. That was the whole “I’ll debate her but only on Fox News and they have to hold the debate at one of my rallies and I get to bring my lucky blankie” tweet. He’s stuck now.

I think he’ll come up with “reasons” and excuses to bail out. He can still claim he was willing and agreed to everything Harris wanted… but couldn’t make it. Sorry!

Then claim he won the debate he didn’t attend.

Isn’t Trump’s sentencing due around that time? (I forget when it is except a vague notion it is near that time). Seems he could latch on to that (maybe).

Poor Trump running scared. Ok, ok, I’ll do the debate after all!
Ha ha. What an idiot.

September 18, the Wednesday of the week following the debate.

I don’t think his ego will let him back down to a female. A black female. A black/Asian female. A black/Asian/DEI female. A black/Asian/DEI/female who is not “really” black and only pretends to be…but still DEI.

How can he not knock that one out of the park?

I hear he’s asked for three debates now. He’s scared. He should be, justice awaits should he lose.

It seems an attempt to regain the initiative. Harris will not want three debates but now he is making her the one who seems to be backing off if she refuses.

He becomes the man again and she is the timid woman (in his and his followers’ minds). I wonder how Harris will respond?

Trump wants a debate on Fox really badly. I hope Harris rips him a new one no matter the venue. In any case, I look forward to their debate(s).

I’m confident that she will on Sep 10, though I think it’s important that they have the same mic cutoff policy that they did in the Biden debate (it was nice watching Trump’s pie-hole flapping with no sound coming out because his time was up!). Just as with the actual election, Trump will try to cheat and bully his way to victory, so the rules have to be strictly enforced.

As a matter of principle, Harris should refuse to debate on Fox News, while offering to debate on any of ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, or CNN. It would underscore the point that Fox is neither fair nor reliable, and would avoid moderators or venues that would put Harris at an unfair disadvantage (Trump’s original proposal for a debate on Fox would have had Bret Baier and some other nutjob, both Fox hosts, as moderators). If Trump tries to claim – as he undoubtedly will – that all the nation’s television networks hate him and only Fox News treats him “fairly”, that claim should be duly noted and left for voters to draw their own conclusions.

I certainly agree with that!
(I was disappointed when I learned that Obama did some kind of Super Bowl halftime interview with Bill O’Rielly.)

As a matter of principle, she shouldn’t give up deeply held beliefs just because they are unpopular.

Whether she agrees to a particular debate isn’t a matter of principle. It should just be a matter of whether she thinks it would give a bump in the polls.

I believe Trump wants more debates because it is much more likely to work in his favor.

Trump does not do deep preparation for a debate. He engages in a Gish Gallop spewing all sorts of nonsense which is impossible for his opponent to address.

Further, Trump just needs one win, one good zinger, to energize his base. Harris has to play a perfect game the whole time. Much, much more difficult for her.

I have no doubt she is light years ahead of Trump on any stage. She is far, far smarter. But that will not matter if Trump just lurks behind her and has more opportunity to blather his bullshit.

And, lest we forget, he wasn’t nearly as bad against Biden in the debate as we expected. I mean, he was bad but he clearly did good enough. Not sure how he pulled that off (I’m guessing drugs but I cannot prove that).

“You’ve already cost Fox $787.5 MILLION dollars, Donald. Is this your way of throwing them a bone??”