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OrlandoDem2

(2,185 posts)
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:35 AM Sep 7

Trump is hard to debate because he doesn't debate. He rambles, lies, and ignores the question.

Kamala needs to say things like

“I’m afraid in his advanced age he doesn’t understand the questions.

“He didn’t answer. He rambled. Let me answer for you.”

“No one knows what he means but I can respond to the question for the American people”.

8 years later and we better learn how to “debate” Trump. He has brought down many skilled orators and smart people (even if we greatly disagree with their politics). It’s theater to him. It’s not an intellectual exercise. She has to guard against demanding questions from the moderator and defend her flank against his stupidity! Kamala will have her hands full.

38 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Trump is hard to debate because he doesn't debate. He rambles, lies, and ignores the question. (Original Post) OrlandoDem2 Sep 7 OP
Exactly make him look like an idiot and that's easy to do TommieMommy Sep 7 #1
She needs to CONSTANTLY. make Fun Of Him. Not enough to be called Mean Trueblue1968 Sep 7 #36
"It's very sad that no one in the Trump family or campaign is getting Mr. Trump the care he obviously needs." tanyev Sep 7 #2
If the audience is ignorant cultists it doesn't matter what you argue onandup Sep 7 #3
She can always say, "I can't respond to all the lies my opponent just told in 1 minute, but let me respond to a few" or Silent Type Sep 7 #4
All Kamala Harris has to do is say to the Moderators after tRump responds to a question .... ProudMNDemocrat Sep 7 #5
OMGosh!! Alliepoo Sep 7 #11
Leave out the part about "Do your damn jobs for once" and I'd agree. wnylib Sep 7 #22
And point out the numerous Logical Fallacies that TSF employs. no_hypocrisy Sep 7 #6
She needs to establish epreic01 Sep 7 #27
Harris can respond with, "I notice that 'Don' didn't answer your question", or correct his lie. Squaredeal Sep 7 #7
It's hard to debate a Gish Galloper, which is what he is. Liberal In Texas Sep 7 #8
The media legitimizes his debate tactics by claiming "he won" when GoodRaisin Sep 7 #9
Chris Hayes did a segment where he showed Trump's answer to reporter or interviewer's question. CrispyQ Sep 7 #10
That makes me think. What if at the end of his rambling, she says " just to remind the American people, the question was rainin Sep 7 #23
That would be the right way to handle that situation, which I believe willI crop up. CrispyQ Sep 7 #25
Good idea. GoodRaisin Sep 7 #32
Yes, they will sanewash his responses and tell us what he means getagrip_already Sep 7 #29
Exactly. She's up against him AND the media. GoodRaisin Sep 7 #33
Trump's in deep trouble gulliver Sep 7 #12
Shouldn't spend time refuting every lie, but pick out the most egregious lie Martin Eden Sep 7 #13
I don't think she should point out Trump's lies Jersey Devil Sep 7 #14
Use the old Rope a Dope geo1 Sep 7 #15
It's not really a debate kacekwl Sep 7 #16
It's a "debate" like... Gaytano70 Sep 7 #18
Is it possible that once this is all over and Kamala and Tim are safely in the WH... Girard442 Sep 7 #17
TV "debates" only benefit TV and they are not debates. Hermit-The-Prog Sep 7 #19
Which is why Kamala should just use it as a 45 minute stump speech with ColinC Sep 7 #20
Good points, but scratch #1. It's ageist. Sogo Sep 7 #21
To trump and his group, lying is winning. I don't mind mentioning his lies in general , but pointing out his wiggs Sep 7 #24
Somewhere at the beginning of the debate... llmart Sep 7 #26
If her mic is muted, what if she taunted him the whole time calling him tiny fingers and weak rainin Sep 7 #28
Hope her security detail is ready when he lunges for her. polichick Sep 7 #30
Afterward, the Pundits will know what to focus on ThoughtCriminal Sep 7 #31
I like... lame54 Sep 7 #34
Personally I am heartily sick of people talking about "debating" Trump & how he "wins" ... Hekate Sep 7 #35
and that problem is compounded by the fact only Democrats are required to discuss policy or explain anything Takket Sep 7 #37
These moderators bdamomma Sep 7 #38

Trueblue1968

(17,755 posts)
36. She needs to CONSTANTLY. make Fun Of Him. Not enough to be called Mean
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 05:57 PM
Sep 7

But in a way that will make his head explode !!!!!!!!

tanyev

(43,980 posts)
2. "It's very sad that no one in the Trump family or campaign is getting Mr. Trump the care he obviously needs."
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:38 AM
Sep 7

Silent Type

(5,490 posts)
4. She can always say, "I can't respond to all the lies my opponent just told in 1 minute, but let me respond to a few" or
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:39 AM
Sep 7

something similar.

And assuming the debate will be on split-screen, bet she's working on appropriately mocking facial expressions to show when trump says stupid stuff and lies, which will be most of the time.

ProudMNDemocrat

(18,408 posts)
5. All Kamala Harris has to do is say to the Moderators after tRump responds to a question ....
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:42 AM
Sep 7

As she points to tRump..."You asked him a direct question and all he gave in response was LIES! Do YOUR DAMN jobs for once!" Then answer with the time she has left.

Rest assured, the ABC moderators will take notice.

I can dream.

wnylib

(23,613 posts)
22. Leave out the part about "Do your damn jobs for once" and I'd agree.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:33 PM
Sep 7

Last edited Sun Sep 8, 2024, 04:46 PM - Edit history (1)

Attacking the moderators like that is counterproductive. But dismissing everything Trump says as lies or gibberish is a good move. Then she can move on to her own articulate responses.

Most likely the moderators will ask Harris for a response to something Trump says, so she can choose, if she wants to, anything worth countering with facts and say that the rest was such gibberish that it's not worth wasting her time on. She can make him look foolish, old, and out of touch. I want to hear her say that he didn't answer the question and just rambled nonsense.

no_hypocrisy

(48,041 posts)
6. And point out the numerous Logical Fallacies that TSF employs.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:45 AM
Sep 7

Gish Gallop. Irrelevancy. Appeal to Authority. Hasty Generalization. Overgeneralization. False Comparison. Appeal to Emotion. Ad Hominem.

20 Types of Logical Fallacies and Examples (scroll down)
https://www.campusexplorer.com/student-resources/logical-fallacies/

epreic01

(140 posts)
27. She needs to establish
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:53 PM
Sep 7

Early in the debate that she will not waste the American peoples time responding to lies and conspiracy theories. This debate is not about me or Donald Trump. It is about the American people and who is ready to lead our country forward with clear eyes and a steady hand.

Squaredeal

(494 posts)
7. Harris can respond with, "I notice that 'Don' didn't answer your question", or correct his lie.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:48 AM
Sep 7

Then she can proceed to answer the question.
If Trump decides to call her by her first name, no mater if he intentionally mispronounces it or not to try to belittle her, she should just call him Don to give it right back and put him in his place. It would really rile him too.

Liberal In Texas

(14,169 posts)
8. It's hard to debate a Gish Galloper, which is what he is.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 10:49 AM
Sep 7

A Gish Galloper doesn't stop talking and keeps changing the subject to not let the other side refute the lies.

In the case of this debate coming up, the closed mics for the side not supposed to be talking might be a good thing.

GoodRaisin

(9,380 posts)
9. The media legitimizes his debate tactics by claiming "he won" when
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 11:06 AM
Sep 7

he didn’t answer a single question and lied every time he opens his mouth.

CrispyQ

(37,578 posts)
10. Chris Hayes did a segment where he showed Trump's answer to reporter or interviewer's question.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 11:11 AM
Sep 7

It was a long rambling answer & when he was finished, Chris said, "Now, here was the question." He played back the question, which was about climate change, & not one thing Trump had said was about climate change. But of course there was no pushback from the questioner.

rainin

(3,104 posts)
23. That makes me think. What if at the end of his rambling, she says " just to remind the American people, the question was
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:36 PM
Sep 7

about climate change and don wasn't able to focus long enough to answer the question that was asked. Maybe next time he will " Then proceed to give her answer

CrispyQ

(37,578 posts)
25. That would be the right way to handle that situation, which I believe willI crop up.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:41 PM
Sep 7

He's deteriorating rapidly since his "debate" with Biden. It's beyond shameful that most of the media isn't making this at least as much of an issue as they did with Biden.

getagrip_already

(16,908 posts)
29. Yes, they will sanewash his responses and tell us what he means
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:55 PM
Sep 7

And of course they will point out how tsf appeared strong and imposing while at the same te saying kamala was weakly responding and avoiding answering the question.

They might as well post it now.

GoodRaisin

(9,380 posts)
33. Exactly. She's up against him AND the media.
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 02:58 PM
Sep 7

They will whitewash him and critique her. We’ve been down this road before and it’s always the same trolls waiting under the bridge.

gulliver

(13,303 posts)
12. Trump's in deep trouble
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 11:44 AM
Sep 7

His performance in the debate with Biden was abysmal, shifty, lying, bragging. His acting skills were not half what they were in 2016. Fear, bitterness, and age have caught up with him.

Martin Eden

(13,216 posts)
13. Shouldn't spend time refuting every lie, but pick out the most egregious lie
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 11:46 AM
Sep 7

And absolutely NAIL him for it, so that everyone watching knows it's an easily disprovable lie.

Then address the voters, especially Republican voters. Say that when he boldly lies to you about important matters like that, nothing he says can be trusted.

Jersey Devil

(10,013 posts)
14. I don't think she should point out Trump's lies
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 11:56 AM
Sep 7

except maybe to briefly state "his answer was full of lies". Instead, she should concentrate on presenting her own ideas and opinions so that voters can get to know her better. Everyone knows that Trump constantly lies, even his own supporters, so pointing out that he lied about this or that accomplishes nothing. The impression that should be made is about her ideas and how helpful they could be.

geo1

(78 posts)
15. Use the old Rope a Dope
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 12:02 PM
Sep 7

Yes, let that idiot blabber, flail, and fling his crap, then land concise blows. I'd be willing to bet that the microphone mute argument was strategically orchestrated by the Harris campaign. (Please don't throw me into that briar patch!) I'd sure want that clown on mute while I was answering questions. I feel very confident that Kamala, Tim, and their campaign people know what they need to do to win this election. We need to concentrate on doing our part to help get out the vote.

Girard442

(6,323 posts)
17. Is it possible that once this is all over and Kamala and Tim are safely in the WH...
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:07 PM
Sep 7

...we could drive a stake through the heart of the idea of political debates? They have become a joke.

A really lame joke.

wiggs

(7,988 posts)
24. To trump and his group, lying is winning. I don't mind mentioning his lies in general , but pointing out his
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:38 PM
Sep 7

inability to answer, his incompetence, his ignorance, his limited command of issues, his incoherence, his victimhood and narcissism, the fact that much of his cabinet and staff think he's a moron or unfit...those will get under his skin. And those are questions, along with his age, that are recently 'in the air' for public discussion. However obvious and clear his limitations have been to DUrs and others for years, the issue with his disordered and increasingly limited brain is new to many.

There's no one on earth who hasn't heard him lie. Not new.

llmart

(16,137 posts)
26. Somewhere at the beginning of the debate...
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:44 PM
Sep 7

I'd like to see her work in this statement:

"I would like to congratulate my opponent on finally admitting that he lost the 2020 election to President Biden."

Keep that info out there.

rainin

(3,104 posts)
28. If her mic is muted, what if she taunted him the whole time calling him tiny fingers and weak
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:54 PM
Sep 7

I heard part of the reason President Biden struggled in the beginning was trump was constantly talking in his ear. trump believes he's god so he'd go ballistic if she disrespected him like that. Hahahaha That would be awesome

ThoughtCriminal

(14,199 posts)
31. Afterward, the Pundits will know what to focus on
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 01:58 PM
Sep 7

They will say nothing about Trump's rambling, word-salad, non-answers, but will spend hours analyzing the part where Harris needed to clear her throat midway though a detailed foreign policy answer.


Hekate

(93,494 posts)
35. Personally I am heartily sick of people talking about "debating" Trump & how he "wins" ...
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 05:06 PM
Sep 7

Trump. Does. Not. Debate.

He spews a firehose of sewage, which no so-called moderator cares to stop, and which overwhelms his opponents who have no opportunity to respond in any meaningful way.

That is not a debate.


Takket

(22,356 posts)
37. and that problem is compounded by the fact only Democrats are required to discuss policy or explain anything
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 05:59 PM
Sep 7

drumpf hangs on simply by the media just shrugging off everything he says as drumpf being drumpf.

bdamomma

(65,124 posts)
38. These moderators
Sat Sep 7, 2024, 06:07 PM
Sep 7

are they going to let him just lie about things and not say that's not true what you are saying to the felon?????

Are they going to put the country first before their profits????? Ha, I don't think so. I really don't even want to even listen or hear that POS felon. He's a criminal. But I must stand with my candidate for President . VP Harris.

I will be here of course; you guys are my like-minded intelligent people!!

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