In an interview on Sunday morning on NBC News’ Meet the Press, Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, warned that former President Donald Trump “may not win” the 2024 presidential election if he fails to focus on policy in his campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris.
When asked by host Kristen Welker about Trump’s inability to “stay on message” during rallies and speeches, but continuing his personal attacks against Harris, Graham replied, “[Former] President Trump can win this election. His policies are good for America. And if you have a policy debate for president, he wins. Donald Trump, the provocateur, the showman, may not win this election.”
The Trump ally continued: “I’m looking for [the former] president in the last 80 days to define what he will do for our country to fix broken borders, to lower inflation. The numbers that Americans are living with under Harris-Biden are terrible…50 percent increase in gas prices, mortgage rates are through the roof and grocery bills are really high. That’s what I would focus on. Policy. Policy is the key to the White House.”
During a campaign rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, Trump veered off-script to make an unexpected claim about his appearance compared to that of Harris, his Democratic challenger.
“I say that I am much better looking. I’m a better-looking person than Kamala,” he declared to the crowd, responding to a critique he had read from a Republican commentator.
According to Trump, the commentator suggested that one of Harris’ greatest assets in this election was her attractiveness. “She said, ‘Kamala has one big advantage that she’s a very beautiful woman,'” Trump recounted, before dismissing the notion with his own assessment of their relative appearances.
The former president has crafted a variety of unflattering nicknames for Harris, including “Kamabla,” “Lyin’ Kamala,” and “Laffin Kamala.”
Newsweek has emailed the Trump and Harris campaigns for comment Sunday morning.
On Thursday, Trump said that he’s “entitled” to personally attack Harris because he doesn’t “have a lot of respect for her.”
Speaking with reporters at a news conference at his golf club at Bedminster, New Jersey, the former president was asked if he believed his “strategy” of attacking his political opponents was working in his reelection campaign.
“I’m very angry at her, that she weaponized the justice system against me and other people,” the former president responded. “I think I am entitled to personal attacks. I don’t have a lot of respect for [Harris]. I don’t have a lot of respect for her intelligence, and I think she’ll be a terrible president.”
Despite his continued claims, there has been no evidence to suggest that President Joe Biden or Harris have turned the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Trump or any of their political rivals.
Republican pollster Frank Luntz and other conservatives have warned that such comments could further damage Trump’s already precarious standing with women voters. Luntz described the gender gap between Harris and Trump as a “chasm,” citing recent polling data that shows a significant disparity in support between male and female voters.
“Trump is actively going out of his way and insulting his way…and it’s not a [gender] gap, it’s a chasm. We’ve never seen this before,” Luntz said in an interview with CNN on Saturday. He went on to explain that Trump’s personal attacks against Harris are particularly damaging, stating, “Don’t insult your opponent on how they look, how they speak, women can’t stand that.”
Even some of Trump’s former advisers are cautioning against this approach. Kellyanne Conway, who served as a senior consultant on Trump’s 2016 campaign, recently appeared on Fox Business to discuss the race. She advocated for a different strategy, saying, “The winning formula for President Trump is very plain to see. It’s fewer insults, more insights, and that policy contrast.”
The warnings from his allies come as Harris, who entered the presidential race nearly 100 days before November’s election after Biden stepped down from the race on July 21, has been performing better in most national aggregate polls than Trump.
Four different poll aggregators show Harris now leading Trump in the crucial swing states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Harris also appears to be climbing in other close races as well, such as Arizona and Nevada, which could offer other potential pathways to the White House.
On Sunday, Welker prefaced her interview with Graham by playing a clip of former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in a recent appearance on Meet the Press taking Trump to task over his personal attacks against Harris. Haley, who ran against Trump for the Republican nomination, but has since endorsed him, also wants the former president to stay focused on issues like immigration and the economy.
Graham said himself, and Trump’s allies, should hit the campaign trail on his behalf “rather than just give advice.”
“My view is that me and Nikki need to go to Georgia. We’re giving advice on TV to [former] President Trump, but he’s got a lot of critics, and he’s got a lot of advisers. But to Nikki Haley and [Ron] DeSantis and [Glenn] Youngkin, and all of these great people we’ve got…let’s get together and actually campaign for the guy rather than just give advice.”
