Harris admits it: Wants open debate mics to sting Trump like Pence – Washington Examiner
Kamala Harris is gearing up for her debate with Donald Trump and is advocating for open microphones to ensure she can effectively respond to interruptions and inaccuracies. Her campaign suggests this format will allow her to showcase her skills as a prosecutor, addressing Trump’s “constant lies” in real-time. This approach is reminiscent of her memorable moments during the 2020 vice-presidential debate with Mike Pence, where she famously interrupted him while asserting, “I’m speaking.” Acknowledging skepticism about her intentions, Harris has now confirmed that she indeed hopes for a similar dynamic in the upcoming debate, aiming to capitalize on Trump’s interruptions to her advantage. Her campaign emphasized her readiness to tackle Trump’s rhetoric, framed as a commitment to direct engagement with voters.
Harris admits it: Wants open debate mics to sting Trump like Pence
For weeks, the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris has argued that the battle for always-on microphones at next week’s debate with former President Donald Trump was so that she could show her prosecutorial chops.
Skeptics instead said she was hoping for a replay of the “I’m speaking” moments she had in the 2020 debate with then-Vice President Mike Pence when he interrupted to make a point, an event heralded in liberal media circles as a victory for the Democrat.
Now, Harris is admitting the skeptics were right.
“Do you remember this?” she said in a new fundraising email showing one of her “I’m speaking” video moments.
“The vice president is preparing to go head-to-head with Donald Trump in just one week. She’s ready to deal with Trump’s constant lies and interruptions in real time,” the note to supporters requesting a donation of up to $250 said.
ABC News, which is hosting next week’s debate, and the Trump campaign have said the fight over open microphones is over and that they will be shut off for the candidate not speaking. Team Harris, however, is still pushing for them to be turned on.
The media have focused on Trump’s debating style with women and is poised to attack him as a bully as they did when he hovered near his 2016 debate challenger, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
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While annoying to some, the media lapped up Harris’s retort to Pence in their 2020 debate.
“Harris’ prosecutorial debating style has typically fared well in creating off-the-cuff, and sometimes viral, moments on the national stage the last several years, whether she was debating former Vice President Mike Pence behind a plexiglass, pandemic-era partition or sharing the stage with almost a dozen other Democrats. She could be hoping to create more notable moments at next week’s debate,” Wednesday’s Philadelphia Inquirer wrote.
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