Tuesday, September 10, 2024

How Harris Should Handle Trump’s Debate Lies

 NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 06: Former U.S. President Donald Trump sits in the courtroom during his civil fraud trial at New York State Supreme Court on November 06, 2023 in New York City. Trump is scheduled to testify in the civil fraud trial that alleges that he and his two sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump conspired to inflate his net worth on financial statements provided to banks and insurers to secure loans. New York Attorney General Letitia James has sued seeking $250 million in damages. His sons testified in the trial last week and his daughter Ivanka Trump is scheduled to testify on Wednesday after her lawyers were unable to block her testimony.  (Photo by Jabin Botsford-Pool/Getty Images)

It’s going to be impossible for Harris to call out every lie Trump makes during the debate. That would take up all her speaking time. But here’s a thought on something she could say.

After Trump tells his first obvious whopper, which will probably be less than five minutes in, she could start her next response by simply looking at him for a few seconds then turn her eyes to the camera and say:

Have you noticed that whenever Donald Trump is on trial, he makes a big deal about wanting to testify, but he never does? That’s because when you testify in court you have to tell the truth.

It’s not illegal for Donald Trump to lie in his Truth Social posts, or in his fundraising emails, or at rallies, or in interviews or commercials. It’s not even illegal for him to lie to you in this debate. But it is illegal to lie in court, and he knows that, which is why he never testifies. That’s something to keep in mind as you listen this evening. If we had to swear in before this debate, my opponent wouldn’t be here.

Now, to address the question you asked …

And speaking of questions, here's a few Trump should be asked...

By Doyle McManus

Los Angeles Times

Election violence

The big question for Trump isn’t about policies, it’s whether he will encourage his followers to resort to violence if he loses, as they did on Jan. 6, 2021. Trump has refused to commit to accepting the result of the election, and says he believes Democrats can win only if they cheat. When he was asked whether this year’s campaign could lead to violence, he said: “It depends. It always depends on the fairness of the election.”

Jan. 4, 2022

Here’s a question that follows up on those statements:

At a debate with Joe Biden in 2020, you were asked if you had a message for extremist militias. You told the far-right Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by.” Three months later, they stormed the Capitol, and you praised them as patriots.

Do you want to take this opportunity to tell your followers that violence has no place in our political system?

Abortion

You have taken credit for the Supreme Court decision that struck down Roe vs. Wade and said states should decide their abortion laws.

But you have also said Florida’s law banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they are pregnant, is too harsh.

Since the Supreme Court decision, 14 states have banned abortion under almost all circumstances. Five of those states outlaw abortion with no exceptions for rape, incest or the health of the mother. Are you OK with that? Would you do anything to protect women’s reproductive freedom in those states?

Climate change

Scientists say we just had the hottest summer on record. Phoenix has sweltered through more than 100 days of the temperature topping 100 degrees.

But you have called climate change a hoax. In an interview two weeks ago, you said people who worry about climate change are “fools” and that it’s just “weather.”

Do you believe climate change is a serious problem? When you’ve been asked that before, you have said you favor clean air and clean water — but that’s not the question. As president, what would you do to protect us against escalating climate change?

Child care

Last week, in New York, you were asked what you would do to lower the cost of child care. You said: “It’s a very important issue…. Child care is child care… You have to have it…. So we’ll take care of it.”

That seemed pretty vague, so here’s a chance for what golfers call a mulligan: Do you know how much childcare costs these days? And what specifically would you do to lower those costs?

Tariffs

You’ve insisted that raising tariffs on imports from China won’t increase costs for American consumers. But when you raised tariffs on washing machines in 2019, their prices went up by almost $100, according to the conservative Heritage Foundation. Prices went up not only on washers imported from China, but on American-made machines as well.

Consumers ended up paying more. Why will this time be any different?

 

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