Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill from the NBC News Politics team.
In today’s edition, we explain how panels of undecided voters in Arizona and Pennsylvania reacted to the debate. Plus, Donald Trump was portrayed more like the incumbent than his opponent on Tuesday night, writes senior political analyst Chuck Todd.
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Undecided voters are looking at Harris after the debate — but not committing
By Emma Barnett, Alex Tabet, Kate Snow and Jacob Soboroff
Several members of the small portion of voters who remain undecided in the 2024 election were swayed by Tuesday’s debate — but at the same time, it may take longer than the debate to fully make up their minds.
Several Arizona voters previously expressed interest in the Democratic nominee on an NBC News panel after being debated by both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. All three undecided voters gathered for a similar exercise on the Philadelphia campus remained on the fence, with Harris watching from two and Trump from one, and the debate drawing a generally bleak assessment: “Manipulated.” “Lie.” “Alone.” “Same old, same old.”
Undecided Pennsylvania voters from Bucks County felt more certain to be disappointed with one candidate than interested in another.
Lynn Kelleher, a registered Republican who voted for Trump in 2016 and for the Libertarian candidate in 2020, believes this election comes down to a choice: “Do you vote for your pocketbook or do you vote for your morals?”
“I think Kamala had a good debate,” he said. “I feel better about him than Donald, but I’m still not 100%.”
Hannah Reed, an independent who backed Trump in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020, said she wants to like Harris but doesn’t think she has “actual policies that will work.”
But after hearing Trump talk about abortion on the debate stage, Reed said he might not vote for Trump — but he’s still not sure who he’s voting for.
In Arizona, Denise Lewis wrote her name in for both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, frustrated by the options presented. Entering the debate, the Scottsdale resident planned to write himself again. After the debate, he’s now considering voting for Harris, but not on the full board.
“I would like to know more. As we’ve talked about before, this is Trump who’s been campaigning for so long, and now Harris is finally in the spotlight,” Lewis said.
Harris avoids some big questions, but Trump’s lack of control is costing him
By Chuck Todd
Tuesday’s discussion was quite familiar in many ways. Like our politics for the past nine years, all the debate revolved around one person: Donald Trump.
By any conventional measure any political veteran of any political stripe would take, no one would swear Trump had a good night. He broke all the basic pre-debate advice any candidate would receive. Don’t take the bait, don’t focus on yourself, don’t be superficial, remember to talk about your opponent and his plans, talk about your strengths and avoid your weaknesses.
Trump was just a poor negotiator on Tuesday, and he allowed himself to be seen and portrayed more official more than his opponent. Sure, he’s always been a poor debater, but his ability to be a force of nature has helped him overcome what would turn a more ordinary politician off course.
It wasn’t until Trump’s final statement that he effectively tried to tie Kamala Harris to President Joe Biden’s administration. But this isn’t the first time Trump’s performance has been deemed potentially disqualifying by any conventional measure — only about half the country has continued to get behind him. Many see him as their voice against D.C. and the elite, and many of those voters have learned to compartmentalize his lack of personal appeal by trying to focus on the things they like during his tenure.
But if you tune into this discussion to learn more about Harris and what he will do as president, I feel like you’re in for a treat. Not only did Trump fail to directly link Harris to the Biden years, but the questions. And Harris certainly took every opportunity to deflect many of the questions directed at him or the Biden-Harris administration back at Trump.
His strategy was pretty clear: Avoid specifics about Biden’s record and his role, avoid his shift in position between running for president in 2019 and running for president today, and turn every question and every answer into a dig or a jab. Trump.
And it worked. How do we know? Because Trump was chasing every shiny object he offered.
More discussion results
🗞️ The best stories of the day
- 🤝 They meet again: After clashing on the debate stage, Harris and Trump came face-to-face again and shook hands again at a ceremony in New York to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. More →
- ⏰ Closing Show: House Speaker Mike Johnson, who is expected to shut down at the end of the month, has delayed a government funding vote by pulling the bill from the floor amid opposition from his Republican colleagues. More →
- 📫 Final countdown: Alabama was the first state to begin mailing of newsletters For the 2024 general elections. Meanwhile, election officials across the country have accused the US Postmaster General of failing to adequately prepare for the election. More →
- 🚫 Strong decision: Biden’s opposition to a Japanese steelmaker’s takeover bid for US Steel could test relations with a key ally. More →
- ⚽ A megadonor acts: Billionaire Ken Griffin, one of the biggest contributors to GOP politics, has donated a “significant amount” to help US Soccer fund new men’s national team coach Mauricio Pochettino, The Athletic reports. More →
That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – send us an email politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
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