WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Askume) – Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump will face off in their first televised debate on Tuesday, a high-stakes clash that could hurt the incumbent while giving the winners an advantage in the final sprint to election day .
For Harris, the demonstration in Philadelphia is a chance to lay out her priorities and show her strength in the face of opponents who undermine her intelligence and launch racist and sexist attacks on her.
Trump will have a chance to try to erode some of Harris’ momentum in a race that has been tough since she became the Democratic nominee in July.
Most polls show Harris holding a slight lead nationally and in most battleground states, but Trump is nowhere close to winning the November 5 election.
The debate could have a huge impact, and it could be the only debate for them. President Joe Biden dropped out of the race after a poor performance in June. However, in 2016, Hillary Clinton was considered the winner in all three debates with Trump, but she went on to win the election.
Here’s what to look out for in this important televised event:
Change candidate
In an election pitting a former president against a current vice president, both candidates have, somewhat paradoxically, portrayed themselves as “change-making” candidates who would disrupt the status quo.
Harris sought to take credit for the Biden administration’s accomplishments rather than bemoan its missteps, while also suggesting that her presidency would mark a new beginning for the country.
Despite serving four years in the White House from 2017 to 2021, Trump has once again established himself as a rebel against the Washington establishment.
But more than Harris, he has demonstrated his experience on the world stage, promising, for example, that he can end the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza and protect the country from nuclear-armed North Korea or Iran.
Get Personal
Since Harris became the candidate, Trump has questioned the authenticity of her heritage and launched a series of personal attacks in speeches and social media posts, ignoring requests from aides and allies to focus more on her policies.
If he repeats these attacks on the debate stage, he could alienate undecided voters, especially those who doubt his presidential qualities.
During the 2016 debate with Hillary, Trump would often get angry at her, interrupting the moderator, pointing at him, and insulting him. In 2020, he used the same tactic against Biden, leading Biden to say, “Can you shut up?” after Trump interrupted him multiple times.
So far, Harris has largely ignored Trump’s personal attacks. Some viewers will worry about how she will respond if Trump brings bullying to the debate stage.
To create the sharpest contrast with Trump, he must show that he will not be dragged into the pit with Trump.
Opportunity
The debate was a chance for Harris to establish her political identity to the millions of Americans watching.
Harris is not as well-known as recent Democratic presidential candidates before her, which could be a huge asset in an election in which voters have repeatedly said they are tired of Biden-Trump rematches.
Harris, the former California attorney general, will have a platform to showcase her prosecutorial skills. She could try to hold Trump accountable for his actions after the 2020 election, including accusing him of inciting a group of followers to attack the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, as a last-ditch effort to stay in power.
His courtroom experience may enable him to counter Trump’s falsehoods more effectively than Biden could during the June debate.
For Trump, this debate provides the best opportunity yet to claim that Harris is not ready to run the country and that he is a better choice for the job.
Trump is likely to attack Harris over the Biden administration’s border security policies, which failed to stop record numbers of migrants from entering the US earlier this year, and his belief that high consumer prices are making things harder for the middle class.
He may continue to try to blame her for the chaotic withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in 2021, raising questions about whether a candidate whose campaign relied on “joy” and “vibe” is ready to be commander-in-chief.
Disadvantages
For months, Democrats have argued that Trump has authoritarian tendencies and is a threat to democracy. Harris could repeat this line of attack and stress one of his weakest political issues, his opposition to abortion.
She could highlight her role in appointing judges to the US Supreme Court who helped eliminate constitutional protections for the procedure and warn that women’s reproductive rights would be further curtailed during a second Trump term.
Harris’ aides and advisers have said she plans to focus on what her team says are Trump’s failures on the US border wall, infrastructure and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Harris is also likely to attack Trump’s economic policies during his tenure, saying he passed a massive tax cut for businesses and opposed raising the minimum wage.
She could try to link them to Plan 2025 , a plan developed by the conservative Heritage Foundation that critics say would be an abuse of executive power. Trump has tried to distance himself from those plans .
She may raise Trump’s conviction in a porn star hush-money case earlier this year and the sexual assault allegations against him.
At the same time, Trump could remind viewers of liberal policies that Harris supported during the 2020 presidential campaign but now denies, including eliminating private health insurance and supporting the so-called Green New Deal, a massive clean energy plan.
Harris will need strong answers on these fronts if she wants to win over independent and undecided voters. She has been content to outline most of her approach to the presidency. Trump — and the host — may force her to show more nuance.
Progressives will also be watching whether Harris disagrees with Biden on key issues such as the Gaza conflict and whether she is willing to put more pressure on the Israeli government to reach a ceasefire.
