9/8/24

By Aditi Jha

The first debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will be this Tuesday at 8 p.m. CST. Ahead of the debate and the general election, there are a few things to keep in mind. It will be hosted by ABC News at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The debate will be 90 minutes and moderated by ABC anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis. There will be two commercial breaks and no audience. Candidates will have two minutes to answer questions, make rebuttals, and deliver their closing statement. They are also allowed to use another minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses. Trump will deliver the final statement because he won the coin toss. Candidates' microphones will be muted when it is not their turn to speak (a contested issue). "Vice President Harris, a former prosecutor, will be fundamentally disadvantaged by this format, which will serve to shield Donald Trump from direct exchanges with the Vice President," the Harris campaign wrote in a letter to ABC News on Wednesday. "We suspect this is the primary reason for his campaign’s insistence on muted microphones." Trump has recently campaigned in North Carolina and Wisconsin, and he told "Good Morning New Hampshire" last week that he's been "preparing all [his] life for this debate," adding "I have meetings on it. We talk about it, but there's not a lot you can do." Recently, Harris has been campaigning in Pennsylvania, where she said that "it's time to turn the page on divisiveness. It's time to bring our country together, chart a new way forward." This debate is essential, and the stakes are incredibly high. Harris maintains a lead in the polls nationally by 1 to 3 percent, but her lead will need to be closer to a definitive 4 or 5 percent to win the Electoral College votes (Hillary Clinton lost with a 2 percent lead in popular vote whereas Joe Biden won with 4 percent). Harris's biggest battleground-state lead is Wisconsin (2.7 percent) and Trump's biggest is Arizona (2.1 percent). Both candidates have campaigned in Pennsylvania and Georgia but polls have found no clear leader in those states. Harris has been doing better in terms of funding; in August, she raised $361 million in comparison to Trump's $130 million. In total, she now has $404 million to spend on her campaign from now until Election Day in comparison to Trump's $295 million. A New York Times poll reported that while 91 percent of polled voters said they know everything they need to know about Trump, only 72 percent said they know everything they need to know about Harris, so good performance is crucial for her, whereas voter view of Trump isn't likely to move. CBS will be hosting a vice presidential debate between Tim Walz and J.D. Vance on October 1, which will be held in New York City.

That's the news for today. Stay safe!