OPINION:
You could see where this was headed from the start when ABC debate co-host David Muir asked Vice President Kamala Harris the question Ronald Reagan asked Americans to ponder when he debated Jimmy Carter in October 1980: “Are you better off than you were four years ago?”
A confident Ms. Harris would have answered yes, despite knowing the polls show a majority of Americans would answer no. Ms. Harris pivoted to a personal story and pivoted again to how much more she would “invest” (code word for spend) while again trashing “billionaires” as Democrats like to do in their promotion of envy, greed and entitlement.
What viewers saw was a version of the “new Nixon.” Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the self-proclaimed “democratic socialist,” was right when he suggested that Ms. Harris has moved more to the center to win votes, but if elected will return to her “progressive” ways.
Overnight conversions may have some credibility in religion, depending on one’s consistency, but in politics, they look like pandering to voters. How many times have we seen politicians run one way and govern another?
Let’s start with the optics. It was good that they shook hands at the start, but Ms. Harris was far more positive, energetic and optimistic than Mr. Trump, who regurgitated his familiar grievances about the 2020 election, which he lost, but still can’t accept the fact.
Mr. Trump never looked at Ms. Harris and maintained a dour expression. Ms. Harris sometimes appeared condescending and occasionally had an expression you would have if you found someone sad and pathetic. Mr. Trump never smiled. Ms. Harris did.
As for substance, Mr. Muir and fellow moderator Linsey Davis sometimes fact-checked Mr. Trump, but never Ms. Harris. They especially did not ask Ms. Harris if she still wants to impose price controls on everyday items such as food and gasoline, even though controls have never worked. That was a missed opportunity.
There were no questions about the record $35 trillion debt or Mr. Trump’s suggestion of an outside auditor to trim the size and cost of the federal government. Other than eliminating the Department of Education, where would he begin? And since Social Security and Medicare are the main drivers of the debt, how would they reform these programs before they run out of money?
Mr. Trump scored on Afghanistan and the unwieldy 2021 withdrawal in which 13 U.S. service members were killed. Ms. Harris scored when Mr. Trump talked about crime being up, much of it, he said, because of immigrants. She retorted that it’s “so rich coming from someone who has been prosecuted for national security crimes” and found guilty of 34 felonies, with more trials involving national security possibly to come.
Mr. Trump got in the “I’m talking” line he thought Ms. Harris wanted to use against him, along with the “are you better off” zinger borrowed from Reagan. Ms. Harris scored by accusing Mr. Trump of cuddling up to dictators who flatter his ego.
I thought Ms. Harris was weak on Israel and the Gaza Strip. She repeated the stale line about a “two-state solution,” which is a solution for Israel’s enemies who have vowed to destroy the Jewish state. Mr. Trump claimed, without evidence, that Ms. Harris “hates Israel.” Mr. Trump scored when he pointed out Ms. Harris’ many flips on issues, most of which are recent, including doing away with private health insurance, causing one to question her sincerity.
Mr. Trump closed by asking the obvious question: Why hasn’t Ms. Harris done in the last 3½ years what she promises to do if elected president? Ms. Harris closed with another obvious statement: “We have different visions for the future.”
That’s why there should be a second debate. A top Harris campaign official seemed to agree to one in October. The public deserves to hear more. I’d call this one a plus for Ms. Harris in terms of image and a plus for Mr. Trump on issues — in other words, a draw.
• Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book, “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (Humanix Books).
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