Members of the ABC television crew, including moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis, pose for photos following a presidential debate hosted by ABC between Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, and Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S., September 10, 2024. REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Dear Commons Community,

Kamala Harris was the biggest winner on Tuesday night as she delivered a forceful performance in her debate with Donald Trump, but it also was a good night for Democratic party leaders who helped engineer her campaign and the ABC News debate moderators.

Trump, meanwhile, found himself constantly on the defensive and struggling to rebut Harris. President Joe Biden also came in for plenty of criticism, as did the now infamous Project 2025 by the Heritage Foundation.

Here is a list of winners and losers from the matchup between Trump and Harris in Philadelphia courtesy of USA Today.

Tony

————————————————————————–

Winners

Kamala Harris

Harris came into the debate trying to get under Trump’s skin, and she often succeeded. She prompted angry responses from him on everything from his rally crowds to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The debate largely was fought on ground chosen by Harris, with the vice president repeatedly baiting Trump into prickly rebuttals of her critiques on his record. Harris was under pressure to prove she could perform on the biggest stage. She delivered a poised performance that could help extend the early energy around her campaign. She also ended the night securing perhaps the most prized celebrity endorsement of 2024: Taylor Swift.

Nancy Pelosi and Democratic leaders

Pushing Biden out of the presidential race was a painful, awkward and difficult process for Democrats that risked dividing the party for an uncertain payoff. Harris’ performance offered validation that the pain was worth it for Democrats to get a candidate who could deliver a much more forceful and coherent message than Biden. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was a driving force in that process, and now looks prescient, as do other Democratic leaders in the House and Senate who kept the pressure on Biden.

Debate moderators

Fact checking a debate in real time isn’t easy. ABC News moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis handled it deftly, offering calm but forceful corrections to Trump’s claims about abortion, crime and immigrants without being overly combative and disrupting the flow of the contest. Trump is a challenge for any debate moderator, and some partisans may be upset that he was repeatedly fact checked. But Muir and Davis ensured their millions of viewers received accurate information.

Policy discussions

There were big questions about how much Trump would stick to policy, and whether he could avoid personal attacks on Harris. But there was plenty of substance in this debate. Trump didn’t even bite when the debate moderator asked about his previous comments questioning Harris’ racial identity, avoiding the question. Instead, the debate probed the candidates’ views on everything from abortion to economic policy and foreign affairs. Trump touted his policy proposals related to tariffs, tax cuts and immigration. Harris called for restoring the abortion protections once enshrined in the now-overturned Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision. There wasn’t much that was new for those who have been closely watching the campaign, but it could help define the candidates for anyone who hasn’t been paying close attention to the race.

Losers

Trump

Ever since Harris entered the race, Trump has been under pressure from his own allies to stay focused on policies and not delve into personal attacks. In particular, Republicans believe Harris is deeply vulnerable on the economy and inflation. Trump tried to hit on his favorite themes of the economy and immigration Tuesday, but often found himself veering off message and responding to Harris’ criticisms. He was on the defensive throughout the debate, with long stretches devoted to him rebutting Harris’ comments about his rallies, his response to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, how he is viewed by foreign leaders and other critiques. Trump’s responses were angry, rambling and went on tangents that took him far off course from favorable political ground.

Joe Biden

The lame duck president who dropped his reelection bid under pressure from Democrats continues to be an object of scorn from Republicans and Trump, who blasted his record on the debate stage. Although Harris often defended aspects of the Biden administration’s record, she also tried to distance herself from him as polls continue to show low approval ratings for his economic stewardship and other issues. “Remember this, she is Biden,” Trump said at one point, prompting Harris to declare: “Clearly I am not Joe Biden, and I am certainly not Donald Trump.” Harris pivoted to touting her own policy proposals as she tried to separate herself from Biden.

Heritage Foundation and Project 2025

The preeminent conservative think tank has become a preeminent pain in Trump’s behind this election cycle after laying out a bunch of policy ideas for a second Trump administration that could give many voters pause. The proposal calls for aggressively overhauling the federal government, including making it easier to fire civil servants and eliminating the Departments of Education and and Commerce. It also suggests banning pornography and says marriage should be “biblically based,” which could target same-sex marriage. Harris mentioned Project 2025 early in the debate, prompting Trump to disavow it, as he has in the past. “I have nothing to do with Project 2025,” he said. Yet many individuals close to Trump had key roles in creating the plan.

Election deniers

After long saying the 2020 election was stolen, Trump has attracted attention and criticism from his right flank in recent weeks for comments suggesting otherwise. He recently said he “lost by a whisker.” Asked about that Tuesday, Trump claimed he was being sarcastic and continued to claim there were problems with the election, falsely stating “there’s so much proof.” But even Trump didn’t say to have the heart for an extended defense of his election fraud claims. “You know what that doesn’t matter because we have to solve the problem that we have right now,” Trump said. “That’s old news.”