Kamala Ate Trump For Lunch
The debate was a performance, and Kamala Harris played the hero, Donald Trump the villain. Harris emphasized hope and a presidency "for all Americans," and Trump simply could not keep up.
By Jeremi Suri
More than 2500 years ago, Sun Tzu advised his king that the secret to winning wars was not having the largest army or the bravest soldiers, but making the enemy fight on terms favorable to you. You want to fight your war. Kamala Harris did that in Tuesday’s debate. She controlled the stage from start to finish. Despite his bombast and bluster, Donald Trump appeared old, angry, and unhinged. He was on the defensive all night. As he raised his voice and made more outrageous claims, he looked like a loser. Harris told Trump that Vladimir Putin would “eat you for lunch;” she was the one who did so on this occasion.
It started with Kamala Harris walking across the stage to Trump’s podium, to shake his hand, The former president was already on the defensive, awkwardly receiving this gesture with a limp outstretched arm. Then Harris gave her first answer, describing her plans for an “opportunity economy” (including a child tax credit) and criticizing Trump for benefiting only the wealthy: “his plan is to do what he has done before, which is to provide a tax cut for billionaires and big corporations, which will result in $5 trillion to America's deficit.” Trump responded by defending his proposed tax cuts and tariffs, but he had little time to explain his larger economic vision or undermine Harris’ proposals. He was arguing on her terms, not his.
This continued as Harris cleverly brought up COVID and the health failures of Trump’s administration. The questions then turned to abortion, and Harris held Trump’s feet to the fire for appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade and applauding their actions. She spoke movingly of the suffering this repeal has caused for women and their families. Trump equivocated when asked if he would support an abortion ban and then tried to change the subject. He was obviously cornered and uncomfortable. His eyes rolled and he stared at the moderators, as Kamala looked confidently into the screen. Her face showed clear disbelief when Trump made obviously incorrect claims about some states allowing mothers to kill babies after birth. (That is murder and illegal in every state.)
Harris then laid her first of many traps, baiting Trump into a defensive and inaccurate defense of his rallies
“I'm going to actually do something really unusual and I'm going to invite you to attend one of Donald Trump's rallies because it's a really interesting thing to watch. You will see during the course of his rallies he talks about fictional characters like Hannibal Lecter. He will talk about windmills cause cancer. And what you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom. And I will tell you the one thing you will not hear him talk about is you. You will not hear him talk about your needs, your dreams, and your, your desires. And I'll tell you, I believe you deserve a president who actually puts you first.”
The smoke started to come out of Trump’s ears and he lost control. He responded with the anger of a man exposed for the weakness he tried to hide:
“People don't leave my rallies. We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics. That's because people want to take their country back. Our country is being lost. We're a failing nation.”
Evidently frustrated, Trump then tried to turn to immigration, but his rising temper led him to make a shrill, cartoonish claim – one that will be re-played to his embarrassment for the rest of the campaign.
“Our country is being lost. We're a failing nation…What they have done to our country by allowing these millions and millions of people to come into our country. And look at what's happening to the towns all over the United States. And a lot of towns don't want to talk -- not going to be Aurora or Springfield. A lot of towns don't want to talk about it because they're so embarrassed by it. In Springfield, they're eating the dogs. The people that came in. They're eating the cats. They're eating – they're eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what's happening in our country.”
Moderator David Muir tried to stop the bleeding by offering a monotone fact-correction
“I just want to clarify here, you bring up Springfield, Ohio. And ABC News did reach out to the city manager there. He told us there have been no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community.”
But the damage had been done. Trump’s most frequent refrain for the rest of the debate was about a “failing country.” He had nothing positive to offer. No hope. No plans, even after nine years of railing against the Affordable Care Act, he admitted. The former president spent the entire debate responding to Harris’ criticisms of his character and positions by saying, essentially, “she’s worse.” And his counter-charges were often vague and obviously untrue.
As Harris needled Trump, she also rose above the fray in her best moments: “what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country. One who believes in what is possible, one who brings a sense of optimism about what we can do instead of always disparaging the American people.”
Trump never got out of the mud. He had nothing to offer in the debate except more vitriol. He closed with condemnations: “What these people have done to our country, and maybe toughest of all is allowing millions of people to come into our country, many of them are criminals, and they're destroying our country. The worst president, the worst vice president in the history of our country.”
Those were Trump’s last words. He emphasized destruction; Harris promised to bring the country together again by “understanding the aspirations, the dreams, the hopes, the ambition of the American people.” She looked into the camera and pledged to be “a president for all Americans.”
The debate was a performance, and Kamala Harris played the hero, Trump the villain
Harris carried herself with a sense of purpose, optimism, and confidence. She was assertive and disarming, smart and personal. From beginning to end, she pushed Trump to be disagreeable and resentful, outraged and vituperative. He was the stinker at the party, the old man ranting in response to his younger peer’s proposals. He was plainly unlikable. Did anyone watch the debate and like him more?
That is what matters most – whose performance is more moving for the audience. Harris clearly won on that, and she diminished Trump, making him look like a tired re-run.
Will it matter? The debate might convince some independents and disaffected Republicans to swing Harris’ way. It will surely encourage Democrats and raise doubts for some Republicans.
Most of all, the debate performances will help frame the two intense remaining months of the campaign. Kamala Harris comes out of the debate as the hopeful slayer of a big, bad bully. She looks capable, formidable, and ready to go. She looks like a winner. Trump does not. He looks like a sad man who had his lunch taken from him…by a bright new kid.
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Jeremi Suri holds the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He is a professor in the University's Department of History and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. Professor Suri is the author and editor of eleven books on politics and foreign policy, most recently: Civil War By Other Means: America’s Long and Unfinished Fight for Democracy. His other books include: The Impossible Presidency: The Rise and Fall of America’s Highest Office; Liberty’s Surest Guardian: American Nation-Building from the Founders to Obama; Henry Kissinger and the American Century; and Power and Protest: Global Revolution and the Rise of Détente. His writings appear in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN.com, Atlantic, Newsweek, Time, Wired, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, and other media. Professor Suri is a popular public lecturer and comments frequently on radio and television news. His writing and teaching have received numerous prizes, including the President’s Associates Teaching Excellence Award from the University of Texas and the Pro Bene Meritis Award for Contributions to the Liberal Arts. Professor Suri hosts a weekly podcast, “This is Democracy.”
Great work! I’m a Republican who will be voting for her along with my entire family. 💪🇺🇸 I just wrote a piece yesterday that you might find interesting. I’ll link it below. It’s a pretty quick read.
https://open.substack.com/pub/donovanwashere/p/why-its-time-to-stop-hitting-snooze?utm_source=app-post-stats-page&r=13lrsx&utm_medium=ios
Disagree - It was just Trump being the turd we all know he is, nothing more nothing less. I did not think Kamalaicide was very good, she is just toaded the company lie of B.S. good or bad but NO change - not a American outsider looking in to the looking glass. Kamalaicide is just another Zionist like Genocide Joe. Search and view: [ Al Jazeera People and Power 2024/2/22 titled: Palestine Transfer ] https://www.aljazeera.com/program/people-power/2024/2/22/palestine-transfer