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Proof that Trump lost the debate

Remember two and a half months ago (has it only been that long?) when Biden lost the debate against Trump? The reason we knew he lost was because Democrats were saying it. There were also excuses for his poor performance, like "he had a cold," but the main discussion was about replacing him at the top of the ticket. I don't remember anyone saying he won. There were a few articles about how if you ignored his weak, barely audible delivery and awkward pauses, and focused on his actual words, he was very detailed in contrast with Trump's bombast and fire hose of lies. But overall, Democrats were admitting he lost.

The same thing is happening now on the Republican side. Of course, the hard-core MAGAs are saying Trump won, but he could have pulled his pants down and taken a dump right on stage and they'd still say he won. But outside the cult, they're admitting he lost. The proof is that they're giving excuses for his performance, like "the moderators were biased" or "Harris got the questions in advance" or my favorite, "Harris' earrings were actually earbuds and someone was feeding her the answers" (maybe Pete Buttigieg or Barack Obama?). No one ever makes excuses for the winner, just the loser. Even Trump knows he lost, because he felt the need to come out right after and handle the spin himself. His excuse was that the moderators fact-checked him, but not Harris. Of course, she didn't say anything as outrageous as Haitian immigrants are eating the fine house pets of Ohio, a meme currently making its way around the right-wing internet, and one JD Vance is doubling down on.

Whether this debate moves the needle at all remains to be seen. Winning a debate isn't winning an election. Electoral-vote.com has a summary here:

https://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2024/Items/Sep12-1.html
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Republican Karl Rove says Trump got ‘crushed by a woman he called dumb as a rock’ during ‘train wreck’ debate

Veteran Republican strategist says Trump’s ‘furious’ performance ‘catastrophic’ whereas Harris was ‘calm, confident, strong and focused on the future’


Source: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-harris-debate-karl-rove-verdict-b2611340.html

Writing in The Wall Street Journal, Rove says the former president’s performance was “far worse than anything Team Trump could have imagined” and Trump was “visibly rattled” as Harris “launched rocket after rocket at him.”

. . .

Going deeper, Rove writes that Trump was bested by his emotions when he must have known Harris would try and get him to lose his cool.

“He took the bait almost every time she put it on the hook, offering a pained smile as she did,” Rove said. “Rather than dismissing her attacks and launching his strongest counterarguments against her, Mr Trump got furious.”

. . .

Offering his opinion of Trump’s demeanor, Rove says: “It matters how debating candidates carry themselves. There, it was no contest. Ms Harris came across as calm, confident, strong and focused on the future. Mr Trump came across as hot, angry and fixated on the past, especially his own.”

. . .

“But there’s no putting lipstick on this pig,” says Rove. “Mr Trump was crushed by a woman he previously dismissed as ‘dumb as a rock’. Which raises the question: What does that make him?”