Debate Dynamics: Strategies and Stakes

The Washington Roundtable revisits Vice-President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump’s past debate performances and considers how the candidates might approach next week’s showdown. “Trump doesn’t do subdued self-defense,” Evan Osnos says. “He’ll come back furious and basically do a lot of the work for [Harris] of showing, to borrow one of his favorite adjectives, what a ‘nasty’ guy he is. I think that could be pretty effective for her.” Plus, where the fund-raising race stands with Election Day only two months away.

This week’s reading:

• “Can Red-Baiting Save Trump’s Flailing Campaign?,” by Susan B. Glasser
• “How Kamala Harris’s Coalition Changes the Race for Congress,” by Isaac Chotiner
• “Do Celebrity Presidential Endorsements Matter?,” by Tyler Foggatt

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