Donald Trump has lashed out at rival Kamala Harris ahead of their much-anticipated first debate, set to take place on Tuesday night.
Getting some jabs in early, the former president launched a string of attacks on the vice president on his Truth Social site. For her part, Harris hit back by sharing some critical posts about Trump and releasing a campaign video on X (formerly Twitter) branding him a “liar.”
The debate on ABC will be the first since President Joe Biden went head-to-head with the Republican in June. The disastrous performance by the Democrat led to calls for him to step aside from his own party; he later bowed out of the race and endorsed Harris. Both campaigns have been jostling for top position with Harris performing well in the polls although her initial honeymoon period appears to have ended. Analysts have been speculating what topics are likely to be on Tuesday’s agenda and how the pair will appeal to audiences.
CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP
In the meantime, both candidates have been slamming the other online in the run-up to the debate.
Newsweek has reached out by email to representatives for both Trump and Harris for comment.
Trump has been particularly active on his Truth Social site over the past 24 hours as he gears up for the debate. He kicked off with an attack on Monday, posting: “Bernie Sanders just said that Kamala only changed her Marxist policy positions for the Election — She’ll change back very quickly!” He added: “Bernie Sanders really threw Comrade Kamala Harris under the proverbial ‘BUS.’ Essentially said, very clearly, that she is a total phony. Once a Marxist, always a Marxist!”
Trump posted details of a poll suggesting he could win 63.8 percent of the popular vote share, compared to Harris’ 36 percent, and reposted news of him taking the lead in a poll by The New York Times. However, he did not provide details on the NYT poll’s exact findings, which put his lead at 48 percent and Harris at 47 percent.
Trump followed up by sharing a post by Mark Levin, with the caption: “Kamala Harris is the most dishonest candidate for president ever.”
Trump also shared a clip of Fox News pundits discussing the upcoming debate, and noted that: “Charlie Hurt [said]: ‘Donald Trump is probably the greatest political debater we’ve ever had in American History…'”
He shared another clip of a Fox News broadcast, with the caption: “MELANIA TRUMP WARNS ABOUT REALITIES OF LIFE UNDER THE BIDEN-HARRIS ADMIN.”
Then he shared an image from the @TrumpWarRoom account, reading: “Kamala *CLAIMS* her plan would bring down costs. What? Prices have risen by over 20% under Harris […] If Kamala could lower prices, why hasn’t she done it already?”
Trump went on to share a further clip from Fox News, with the caption: “Senator Ted Cruz: ‘[Kamala] is trying to run as the change candidate. She’s trying to treat Donald J. Trump like he’s the incumbent president and that’s utterly disconnected from reality. She is the current administration.'”
He followed up with a clip of Harris saying that Haitian migrants needed support with a “temporary protected status” due to the conditions in their home country, and captioned the clip: “Here is Border Czar Kamala Harris bragging about bringing them to our Country.”
He then shared a string of posts criticizing the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying: “THE HOUSE REPORT ON AFGHANISTAN IS DEVASTATING TO COMRADE KAMALA HARRIS & SLEEPY JOE!”
Later, he wrote: “Comrade Kamala Harris goes to an ultra Left Wing, Trump Hating, spice shop, which I hear has terrible, overpriced product, and calls for ‘unity.’ As people begin to realize that she is a Marxist, FAR MORE LIBERAL than Crazy Bernie Sanders, or even Elizabeth ‘Pocahontas’ Warren, her poll numbers are beginning to crash. Who are they going to put in next? How about a Biden comeback?”
JEFF KOWALSKY/AFP via Getty Images
He posted a series of links to critical news articles about Harris and various memes about her, before saying: “To help seniors on fixed incomes who are suffering the ravages of Comrade Kamala Harris’ inflation nightmare—I’m promising NO TAX on SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS!”
Then into the early hours of Tuesday morning, he posted more clips from Fox News, with the latest an item about her “radical record.” Trump captioned the clip: “FLASHBACK—COMRADE KAMALA.”
Meanwhile, Harris’ own X page within the past 24 hours had nowhere near the number of posts Trump had added on his Truth Social page. But there were still several posts from her; a mix of her policy proposals, as well as some missives warning against Trump.
She shared a new campaign ad, with the caption: “Take it from the people who worked for him: Donald Trump is a danger to our troops, our security, and our democracy. He should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States.”
Take it from the people who worked for him: Donald Trump is a danger to our troops, our security, and our democracy.
He should never again stand behind the seal of the President of the United States.
Watch our new ad: pic.twitter.com/LWiyK1sfnm
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) September 9, 2024
She then posted about Trump’s views on abortion, with a clip of her giving a speech explaining her views. She captioned the clip: “Donald Trump has made his stance on reproductive freedoms clear. To put it bluntly: He doesn’t trust women.”
She followed up with posts about her policy aims, including a bid to “restore reproductive freedoms,” helping ensure small businesses in rural areas and cities “have resources to turn their dreams into reality,” and pointing out her record on healthcare including how she “helped cut prescription drug costs.”
Her latest post, on Monday afternoon, was a campaign video focusing on Trump. She captioned the ad: “Donald Trump has a real problem with the truth.” The video shared a series of clips of Trump making claims about his record in government and ran fact checks alongside them. The video ends with the word “lies” superimposed over an image of Trump’s mouth, as a narrator says: “Here’s the truth: Donald Trump has been and always will be a liar.”
Given the war of words already taking place between the two presidential candidates on social media, Tuesday’s TV debate is expected to be fiery, although there are a series of rules designed to govern behavior, such as muted microphones for each politician when the other is speaking.
