What next for Harris and Trump after their first televised debate?
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Donald Trump could do something ‘drastic’ as he scrambles to recover from his poor performance against Kamala Harris, who will be trying to capitalise on the momentum of her debate success.
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In brief…
- Kamala Harris made light work of Donald Trump in their first televised debate, but the election is still months away.
- Harris has already tried to control the narrative by challenging Trump to a second debate.
- Trump might do something drastic as he tries to recover from his poor performance, The News Agents say.
Does Donald Trump believe everything he says?
What’s the story?
Kamala Harris wiped the floor with Donald Trump in their first TV debate on Tuesday night, according to many viewers and political experts.
The spectacle will likely bring a sharp burst of energy to Harris’ campaign, which stalled slightly following the weeks of high flying after she replaced Joe Biden and had her name up in lights at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
But memories are short when it comes to politics, so what will Harris do to keep the momentum going?
And how does Trump come back from this humiliating performance, which has even been slammed by his own fans at Fox News, who blamed ABC moderators for Trump’s loss.
These are the questions Emily, Jon and Lewis ask on today’s episode of The News Agents.
Is Donald Trump acting like a 'grandpa' after the debate?
What does Trump do next?
Trump is going to dominate headlines over the coming days, Jon points out.
Lewis agrees, saying last night’s debate puts the spotlight back on Trump and raises questions about his own fitness for office like the first debate did for Joe Biden.
While he might like attention, the news coverage is unlikely to be the favourable kind Trump was hoping for.
So Jon predicts that the Republican will “do something dramatic”, something like a “sacking of the campaign chief”.
Someone has to “take the rap for the lousy performance”, he says.
Emily asks: “Are we waiting for someone close to the Trump team to either walk the plank, or just say I'm done here and say ‘I tried to do the prep, and he didn't listen”?
Or, Jon says, there'll be some “wacko announcement” that will come out in the hopes of derailing Harris’ post debate glow.
“He will do something, I'm convinced of it”, Jon adds.
What does Harris do next?
According to Lewis, Trump’s poor performance allows her to “get away with some of the vagaries about her own policy platform.”
The vice president has sometimes come under scrutiny for not being more explicit about particular policies and getting an easy ride after replacing Joe Biden.
He adds: “It gives her a bit of momentum just at the moment that she was stalling.”
So how does she keep this going?
Lewis says: “This is not really about the debate as such, it's about the [media] narratives which emerge from the debate.”
And Harris’ team already appears to have attempted to control the narrative in two ways, Lewis says.
One was announcing Taylor Swift’s endorsement, which Lewis says was certainly coordinated.
The other was challenging Trump to a second debate straight away, which “gives the impression that they won and that they're confident about it”.
Lewis adds: “I personally think her post convention strategy has been flawed in the sense of keeping her quite hidden away, not doing interviews and allowing Trump to dominate the airwaves consistently, has been a mistake.
“Whether they readjust that strategy or actually now double down on it, because they think that they've got this success from the debate and they don't need to do, which I actually think would be a mistake.”
What next?
There are currently no more debates scheduled before the election at this point.
The campaigns previously agreed to just two debates — the one hosted by CNN on June 27 and the other by ABC News this week.
But just hours after the ABC News showdown, the Harris campaign challenged Trump to another debate in October.
They wrote in an email: "Under the bright lights, the American people got to see the choice they will face this fall at the ballot box: between moving forward with Kamala Harris, or going backwards with Trump.
“That’s what they saw tonight and what they should see at a second debate in October. Vice President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?”
Listen in full on The News Agents
