Republican pollster Frank Luntz on Monday spelled out why he firmly thinks the upcoming presidential debate between Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump — on Sept. 10 ― is “everything” when it comes to the 2024 election.
Luntz, during a discussion with CNN’s John Berman, also suggested questions that Trump could ask to maybe confound Harris ― such as on inflation, how to bring it down and “most importantly” using former President Ronald Reagan’s line of, “Are you better off today than you were four years ago?”
“If he asks that question plainly, he will be successful. I don’t believe he has the ability to do so,” Luntz said in an interview highlighted by Mediaite.
The ABC News-hosted debate will see Harris and Trump side by side for the first time. Voters will keenly listen not just to what they say but also focus on their body language, said Luntz.
“Is there contempt? Does someone fold their arms? Do they look at the individual when they’re speaking? Do they seem presidential in their approach?” Luntz said viewers will be taking note of those things.
“For Trump, can he keep quiet? Can he actually listen to a response or does he have to respond to everything?” the pollster continued. “For Harris, does she seem open-minded? Does she seem willing to take in information, not just project?”
The Debate's Importance
A Republican pollster believes that the upcoming debate between Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will be “everything” when it comes to setting the stage for the 2024 US presidential election in November.
Frank Luntz appeared on CNN, where he was asked what the presidential candidates had left to do in the final stretch between now and the election.
“The debate is everything,” Luntz said.
CNN anchor John Berman then asked him to elaborate.
“Everything,” Luntz repeated. “When the voter sees side by side the two candidates and they listen to what they say, not just the answers, it’s the body language. Is there contempt? Does someone fold their arms? Do they look at the individual when they’re speaking? Do they seem presidential in their approach?”
Debate Rules and the Impact of Live Microphones
The upcoming debate has been scheduled for September 10 in Philadelphia.
There has been some recent controversy over the debate’s rules, as the Trump and Harris campaigns disagreed over microphones. Harris’s campaign wants the microphones to remain live throughout the debate, which is a departure from previous debate rules.
The Associated Press obtained the debate rules from a senior Trump official, which reportedly said there would be no live audience, no written notes and that the mics would be muted when the other candidate is speaking.
The Harris campaign told the AP that they are still discussing the mic issue with ABC.
“It’s interesting that Trump’s handlers keep insisting on muting him, despite the candidate himself saying the opposite,” Harris spokesman Ian Sams told the AP. “Why won’t they just do what the candidate wants?”
If the mics are live, Trump will have the opportunity to interrupt Harris and potentially derail the debate, a point Luntz highlighted during his CNN segment.
“For Trump, can he keep quiet? Can he actually listen to a response, or does he have to respond to everything,” Luntz said. “For Harris, does she seem open-minded? Does she seem willing to take in information not just project?”
Trump's Strategy
Trump recently said he didn’t care if the mics were muted, and went on to talk about his disdain for ABC News.
“Each of them has different goals for that debate, but each one, in the end, has to prove that they’re ready, not just for that moment, but voters are thinking ‘who do I want to represent me two years from now, three or four years from now?” Luntz continued.
As for Harris, Luntz said the vice president would have to show the public that she has improved since her 2020 Democratic primary debate - where she was panned.
“She has to prove she has the capability to do it and Trump has to prove that he doesn’t treat her rudely, obnoxiously, because he lost a lot of female voters in 2020 who would have voted for him over policy but would not vote for him because of his persona,” Luntz said.
Luntz's Advice to Trump
Pollster and political communications expert Frank Luntz previewed the upcoming debate between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris by slamming the Trump’s “persona” and ability to communicate clearly on CNN Monday.
Anchor John Berman elicited Luntz’s analysis by asking him “What is left to do” in the 64 days left before voters go to the polls.
“Oh it’s- the debate is everything. Everything. When the voters see side-by-side the two candidates and they listen to what they say, not just in the answers, it’s the body language,” replied Luntz without hesitation. “Is there contempt? Does someone fold their arms? Do they look at the individual when they’re speaking? Do they seem presidential in their approach? For Trump: Can he keep quiet? Can he actually listen to a response or does he have to respond to everything? For Harris: Does she seem openminded? Does he seem willing to take in information, not just project? Each one of them has different goals for that debate, but each one, in the end, has to prove that they’re ready, not just for that moment, but voters are thinking, ‘Who do I want to represent me two years from now, 3 or 4 years from now?'”
“That’s why [Joe] Biden had to step aside when he did. And that’s the challenge for Harris right now. You know, she did not do well in her presidential debates. She did not shine. And now she has to prove she has the capability to do it,” he continued. “And Trump has to prove that he doesn’t treat her rudely, obnoxiously, because he lost a lot of female voters in 2020 who would have voted for him over policy, but would not vote for him because of his persona.”
“You know, one of the things I’ve never understood about Donald Trump is they really push this notion, ‘Oh, he doesn’t do debate prep. He doesn’t do-,’ He does debate prep. We know he does debate prep. He may not do formal mock debates in a room. Or maybe he does and we just don’t know,” observed Berman. “But why do you think it’s so important for him to project this image of ‘I don’t care that much?'”
“Because in 2020, he was told by Governor Chris Christie, ‘Chill out. You don’t have to go for the jugular. Let President Biden speak, at the time Vice President Biden, and he’ll hurt himself.’ And Trump couldn’t do it, he couldn’t lay off. He just had to go,” answered Luntz. “And if I was advising the campaign right now, which I do not, I’d say to him that silence in some cases is the best language. That’s silence, because he has questions that he can ask that she can’t answer. Why did inflation get so high under your administration? What exactly are you going to do if your policies caused it? What can you do to solve it? And most importantly, are you better off today than you were four years ago? It’s not my question, that was Ronald Reagan’s question. If he asked that question plainly, he will be successful. I don’t believe he has the ability to do so.”
Luntz's Assessment of Harris
During an appearance on CNN, anchor John Berman asked Luntz what is left for Harris and Trump to do with fewer than 70 days until the election.
“The debate is everything,” Luntz said.
“Everything?” Berman questioned.
“Everything,” Luntz responded in remarks highlighted by Mediaite. “When the voter sees side by side the two candidates and they listen to what they say, not just the answers, it’s the body language. Is there contempt? Does someone fold their arms? Do they look at the individual when they’re speaking? Do they seem presidential in their approach?”
The high-stakes Sept. 10 debate between Harris and Trump in Philadelphia is right around the corner.
It’s one of the first times Harris will be able to present her policy platforms to voters and challenge Trump in real time as she makes gains in polls nationwide.
There’s been much debate about the rules of the upcoming event. The Harris campaign is pushing for microphones to remain on when the other person is speaking, potentially giving way for viewers to see Trump interrupt the vice president.
In recent days, questions have been raised about whether Trump will show up to the debate. If he does, attention will be focused in part on the way he acts toward Harris.
“For Trump, can he keep quiet? Can he actually listen to a response, or does he have to respond to everything,” Luntz said on CNN. “For Harris, does she seem open-minded? Does she seem willing to take in information not just project?”
“Each of them has different goals for that debate, but each one, in the end, has to prove that they’re ready, not just for that moment, but voters are thinking ‘who do I want to represent me two years from now, three or four years from now?” he continued.
Luntz also argued that Harris must prove to voters she has improved since her 2020 Democratic primary debate.
“She has to prove she has the capability to do it and Trump has to prove that he doesn’t treat her rudely, obnoxiously, because he lost a lot of female voters in 2020 who would have voted for him over policy but would not vote for him because of his persona,” Luntz said.
The Stakes of the Debate
“The debate is everything,” Luntz said on CNN News Central.
“If I was advising the campaign right now, which I do not, I’d say to him that silence in some cases is the best language … because he has questions that he can ask that she can’t answer,” he said.
He shared some suggested questions for the Republican nominee.
“Why did inflation get so high under your administration? What exactly are you going to do if your policies caused it? What can you do to solve it?” Luntz suggested.
“And most importantly, are you better off today than you were four years ago? It’s not my question. That was Ronald Reagan’s question,” he continued. “If [Trump] asked that question plainly, he will be successful. I don’t believe he has the ability to do so.”
Harris's Campaign
Harris has been busy on the campaign trail with her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), and had her first sit-down interview with Walz by her side on CNN last week.
Trump successfully debated President Joe Biden on June 27, which led to calls for the president to step aside as the Democratic presidential nominee in the 2024 election. Harris entered the race with Biden’s endorsement and launched her presidential campaign on July 21. Biden campaigned for Harris on Sept. 2 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and gave a speech on the opening night of the Democratic National Convention.
