If it’s excitement you’re seeking, conservatives and liberals, Election 2024 has thus far delivered. Let us count the ways: There was the attempted assassination of the GOP candidate that came within a hair’s breadth of success. Then, following a disastrous debate performance, the Democrats unceremoniously kicked their candidate to the curb and installed a widely unpopular vice president almost by fiat. Next, a man with the last name Kennedy suspended his campaign to unite with former President Donald Trump. And finally, on Sept. 10, in the City of Brotherly Love, the Republican and Democratic candidates clashed in a presidential debate. Whew! And we still have two months to go before Election Day.
It now appears that Kamala Harris did herself a heap of good on debate night – at least, that’s the preponderance of opinion in the 24 hours since the televised contest. Snap polls are giving the vice president a thumbs-up for her measured and disciplined performance. Perhaps the positive vibes are a result of her being someone – anyone – other than President Joe Biden. Or maybe it was overperforming and overcoming low expectations.
Throughout all these ups and downs, Liberty Nation News consulted a focus group of conservatives on their reaction to the campaign's major events. Even before the two candidates took the stage for their verbal sparring contest, some of the participants were beginning to get anxious. “This election has me so worried,” wrote one woman. Another opined, “People are so easily misled. That’s what scares me.” But our gal from the Suncoast of Florida was pumped for all the action. “Yeehaw, I feel like I'm getting on a bucking Bronco.” As it turns out, their women’s intuition was spot on.
One of the first salvos indicating it might be a tough night for Trump came from our Ohio native, who said simply, “She was well prepped.” This was a common theme as things got underway.
LNN’s focus group includes a retired librarian who picked up on Harris’ bumpy start: “She’s nervous and, as of yet, she has not answered the question [regarding whether Americans are better off today than they were four years ago]. She sounds as if she’s just rehearsing what she's been told to say. She is clever and does not respond except for a script she's been coached on.” The newest member of our group is a 23-year-old who switched political sides after she concluded that “progressives were lying” about Joe Biden’s cognitive health and a host of other issues. Echoing the librarian, our GenZer pointed out: “She avoided the question on ‘Are Americans better off than they were 4 years ago.’ It feels very disingenuous, as if she is pulling the curtain and hiding the reality of the economy from viewers.”
Conservatives Pick Up on ABC News Bias
Several members of the focus group were quick to pick up on a heavy left-wing bias coming from the ABC News moderators. Another Floridian commented, “They are not asking her about her policies. They are helping her. Jake Tapper and Dana Bash did a better, and fairer, debate. It feels like three against one.” Our young voter noticed this as well: “It's insane seeing how the moderator is only fact-checking Trump. They had better fact-check her on her misquoting Trump, saying, ‘There were fine people on both sides.’” But they never did.
A New York businessman who winters in Palm Beach felt that Harris had the edge right from the get-go. “Trump seemed surprised by Harris' commanding handshake entrance, and it felt like he was playing catch up most of the night until his powerful closing.” Then he added:
“Harris did what she had to do by effectively building somewhat of a foundation on sand, but she came across as surprisingly focused and confident. She was able to convey her message and attack her opponent with the help of the moderators, sounding just intelligent enough.”
A woman from the suburbs of Georgia focused on Trump’s substance. “He is really on point. I hope the independents see this.” Several people took note of Trump’s content, which they felt was better than Harris’. Our New Yorker summed it up quite well when he wrote, “She prepared diligently and got an A for effort, C for substance. Trump gets a C for effort (He appeared to lack enough preparation) and a B+ for substance. In my humble opinion, Trump needs to be the clear winner of the next debate to win the election.”
Finally, there is something called the “authenticity factor,” which gauges whether people are buying your act or can sniff out a phony. This is where the vice president runs into trouble. At times during Wednesday night’s debate, Harris tried to climb the hill of authenticity only to have the ball roll back down – a la Albert Camus’ famous work, The Myth of Sisyphus – when she came off as too studied.
Oddly, the Harris campaign has asked for a second debate, though the standard political strategy is to sit on one’s lead. It makes one wonder if internal polling isn’t giving the numbers needed to defeat Trump. Maybe the Harris team believes a second bite at the debate apple will demonstrate that Harris’ performance wasn’t just a one-off. Negotiations between the two candidates are underway, but perhaps the former president is tired of being outnumbered and won’t agree to another matchup.
So now you’ve heard some troubling news for conservatives regarding the debate in Philadelphia. But here’s the dirty little secret courtesy of Futurity.org: “When it comes to vote choice, research has generally suggested little impact from watching debates. Debate viewers tend to be among the most politically engaged and thereby likely to have their minds made up well before the debate.”
Already, Reuters sees this trend in a focus group it convened. Ten undecided people participated in the experiment. Following the debate, six said they would now either vote for Trump or were leaning toward backing him. Three said they would now back Harris, and one was still unsure how he would vote. Trump may have had a rough night on the debate stage, but in the end, it won’t really matter.
