Kamala Harris 'ate Trump's lunch' on presidential debate stage
The much-anticipated presidential debate between US V-P Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump happened in Philadelphia on Tuesday night.
(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on 9 September 2024 shows, L-R, US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaking at a Labor Day event at Northwestern High School in Detroit, Michigan, 2 September 2024 and former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaking at a town hall moderated by Fox News broadcaster Sean Hannity at the New Holland Arena in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on 4 September 2024. Picture: AFP
Africa Melane is joined by Brooks Spector, US policy expert and associate editor at the Daily Maverick. They discuss the Kamala Harris and Donald Trump presidential debate.
Listen below.
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Last night's presidential debate between former US President Donald Trump and Vice-President Kamala Harris was a high-stakes clash as the pair met on stage in Philadelphia.
It was the first and possibly the only time the two will participate in such a debate ahead of the 5 November election.
Experts say Harris got off to an uneasy start but then rattled the billionaire businessman with a series of barbs over the 90-minute face-off.
Spector says it was clear Trump was trumped.
"I'm gonna call it plainly. She ate his lunch."
- Brooks Spector, US policy expert/associate editor - Daily Maverick
"She provoked him into going into wild excesses and the very kinds of bizarre conspiracy theories that his advisors and coaches undoubtably told him 'whatever you do, don't say that'."
- Brooks Spector, US policy expert/associate editor - Daily Maverick
One of Harris's sharpest barbs came when she told the audience, "World leaders are laughing at Donald Trump."
"She looked like she was presidential and he looked, in the words of at least one commentator, over the hill and old and whiney and complainy."
- Brooks Spector, US policy expert/associate editor - Daily Maverick
But Spector says it wasn't a total flop for the former Commander-in-Cheif, conceding that he managed to get in one or two good shots.
"She [Harris] never really successfully and fully and completely provided a useful explaination for the withdrawal from Afghanistan several years ago."
- Brooks Spector, US policy expert/associate editor - Daily Maverick
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.