It started as they appeared in front of the audience.
Vice President Kamala Harris crossed the stage to former President Donald Trump’s place, extended her hand and introduced herself.
A visibly flustered Trump shook her hand.
Harris’ assertive move was one that set the tone for the next 90 minutes, as Harris staked his claim to be the nation’s next president with his body language as much as with his words.
And during that period, he repeatedly got under Trump’s skin, sending him to angry displays where he struggled to stay on topic and focused on sometimes baffling anecdotes.
“They eat dogs, people who come in, cats. They eat food, they eat the pets of the people who live there,” Trump said. Citing an unsubstantiated claim about Haitian immigrants in response to immigration. “This is what is happening in our country and it is a shame.”
Trump spent most of the night leaning forward, hands on the lectern, brooding. He didn’t look at Harris, pointing the finger at his Democratic opponent without turning his head even when he made a scathing comment about him.
This was one of the clearest signs that Trump was getting angry the first debateIt started with Trump talking about the economy, one of his main campaign topics.
Harris occasionally tilted or shook his head in disbelief, smiled incredulously, and at one point looked directly at Trump, placing his hand on his chin in an exaggerated gesture to indicate he was listening to a tall tale. His expression became one instant meme on social media.
While Trump bragged about how he won the 2020 election and got more votes than any other candidate, Harris said he lost and was fired by 81 million people.
“Obviously he’s having a hard time processing it,” she said.
Overall, Harris’s performance was a dramatic shift from what Democrats saw from President Joe Biden in the June debate, which was seen as a disaster for him and set off a party revolt that pushed Biden out of the 2024 race. Then Biden repeatedly looked off camera, sometimes appearing lost and sometimes struggling to complete a sentence.
Apparently, Harris learned from this controversy: the cameras are always on, and body language is a critical way to communicate with the audience. Harris’ decision to walk up to Trump and shake his hand came after he, like other Democrats, watched Trump use his physical strength to project dominance in the 2016 debate against Hillary Clinton.
On several other occasions, Harris made a point to look directly into the camera while delivering his answers. It was his attempt to emphasize the message that Trump is all for himself and tried to turn the page.
But Trump also began to give flustered answers — and was visibly agitated. This includes Harris condemning Trump, saying world leaders laugh at him and America and always take him seriously. Trump later announced his support for Hungarian Viktor Orban.
Even some Republicans regretted Trump’s actions at the end of the debate. One Republican donor called him “wild, out of control” and said Harris was adept at “pushing his buttons.”
“Trump is so angry that he can’t get his message across. He’s cool, calm and able to provoke him,” he said. I was stressed when I heard that. Anyone looking the other way is stressed and upset. “Maybe they are very familiar with Trump’s anger.”
A Republican operative offered a more nuanced response, saying Harris himself did not provide clear answers.
“He’s taking his bait — it’s a missed opportunity, but he’s not responding to price cuts and border protection,” he said.
As another Republican, Harris’s comments may turn off some voters.
“Trump was strong and measured in the first 30 minutes. He let the moderators’ fact-checking get under his skin for the next 30 minutes,” he said. “And he came back strong after the commercial break. Kamala’s facial reactions on the split screen surprised people.”
Trump also complained about the size of Harris’ rallies, accusing him without evidence paying people to participate.
At one point, Trump glared at Harris when he tried to speak with his microphone muted.
“I’m talking now,” Trump said, referring to what Harris told then-Vice President Mike Pence in the 2020 election. – Does this sound familiar?
One Democrat who criticized Biden’s debate performance had a starkly different view of Harris.
“Kamala Harris may have the best performance by a Democratic presidential candidate since Bill Clinton. I’ve never seen Trump backpedal like this,” said Democratic strategist Pete Giangreco. “It was a straight whip.”