The emotions of nervous Democrats range from cautious to "extremely anxious" over their presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, who is set to engage in a "catastrophic or monumental" debate against Republican nominee Donald Trump on Tuesday night, The Hill reported.
Harris has given just one interview, with Democrat-friendly CNN and running mate Tim Walz by her side, her convention speech was canned, and her public appearances have been tightly scripted since replacing President Joe Biden as the nominee in late July. It all adds up to anxiety over a candidate who's untested.
"We were already moved on from the convention at the convention because of the anxiety of what this debate could actually turn out to look like. People are extremely anxious about her performance," Democrat strategist Ray Zaccaro told The Hill. "There’s a sense of real caution about expectations on her performance."
Said a Democrat senator: "Yeah, I’m nervous. She’s not tested. I think she is going to be as well-prepared as anyone could possibly be, and they’ll go over every foreseeable scenario."
Even Trump said he doesn’t "know what to expect" because Harris has "changed all of her policies over the years."
Tuesday night’s debate in Philadelphia is the only one scheduled between the two so far. Harris has been holed up in Pittsburgh practicing with Karen Dunn, a former adviser to Hillary Clinton, and Philippe Reines, who has played the role of Trump, even wearing a power suit and red tie, according to The Hill.
The debate is also the first since Biden’s performance against Trump in June that led to Harris being here as the nominee in the first place.
"She has to get past this debate. It shouldn’t matter as much as it’s going to matter, but it does," a strategist told The Hill.
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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