Topline
Vice President Kamala Harris at a packed rally in Atlanta on Tuesday pushed former President Donald Trump to agree to debate her, quipping: “If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face,” as the competition between the presumptive Democratic nominee and Trump heats up.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally, Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Atlanta.
Key Facts
Harris criticized Trump for appearing to backpedal on agreeing to participate in another presidential debate after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, saying the momentum in the race is shifting and “there are signs Donald Trump is feeling (it) … you may have seen he pulled out of the debate in September.”
“He won’t debate, but he and his running mate sure seem to have a lot to say about me,” Harris continued on stage, adding that some of what they’re saying is “plain weird”—an insult Democrats and Harris have latched on to recently when describing the Republican ticket.
Harris continued by saying that she hopes Trump changes his mind, adding, “as the saying goes, if you’ve got something to say, say it to my face.”
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What We Don’t Know
Whether Trump and Harris will actually debate. Harris has expressed openness to debating the former president and said she intends to hold the Sept. 10 date Biden and Trump agreed to, but Trump has been less consistent in his remarks about debating. Last week, he said he hopes to debate Harris, but on Monday he was less committal, saying he could “make a case for not doing it.”
What To Watch For
Trump and his running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, will hold a rally Saturday at the same venue where Harris held her rally Tuesday: the Georgia State University Convocation Center.
Big Number
2. That’s how many points Trump leads Harris by in a national head-to-head contest, according to RealClearPolling’s average as of Tuesday evening. Harris has tightened a number of the leads Trump had on Biden, and her favorability among American voters rose significantly since she declared she was running, while Trump’s has fallen, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday.
Key Background
Back in May, Trump agreed to debate Biden twice: Once on June 27—which was ultimately the debate performance that led to Biden dropping out of the presidential race—and once on Sept. 10. After Biden ended his reelection bid and Harris took over as presumptive Democratic nominee, Trump told reporters he “would be willing to do more than one debate” with Harris—but wouldn’t commit and suggested he may want to change the terms of the debate, including who hosts it. A Trump campaign spokesperson also said at the time it “would be inappropriate to schedule things with Harris because Democrats very well could still change their minds,” taking a jab at the party over Biden stepping down. The Sept. 10 debate is scheduled to be hosted by ABC News, though Trump said he would prefer it be hosted by Fox News. Shortly after he made that comment, Fox News offered to host a debate and work with the two campaigns to discuss the format of the debate.
Tangent
Aside from being non-commital on debating Harris, Trump has also targeted the vice president with personal attacks—including mocking her laughter—which critics say are sexist. In an excerpt of his interview with Fox News’ Laura Ingraham which aired Tuesday night, Trump said if Harris became President, foreign leaders would “walk all over her. She’d be so easy for them. She’ll be like a play toy…They look at her and they say, ‘We can’t believe we got so lucky.’” The former president then turned to the camera and said: “And I don’t want to say as to why. But a lot of people understand it.”
Further Reading
Israel and Hamas. Previously, she has covered a range of topics from Donald Trump’s legal battles to Taylor Swift’s path to becoming a billionaire. She joined Forbes in April 2022 and is based in Colorado. Prior to joining Forbes, Bohannon covered local news and spent time at the Fort Collins Coloradoan and the Arizona Republic. She graduated with a degree in journalism from Creighton University and has an MA in investigative journalism from Arizona State. Follow Bohannon for continued coverage of pop culture, politics and updates on the war in Gaza.
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