(NewsNation) — Both major parties marked a monumental night in the 2024 election cycle, as their November matchup of Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump sparred in a much-anticipated debate.
NewsNation’s Dan Abrams and Chris Stirewalt joined Chris Cuomo to discuss some of the hottest debate topics: Did the moderators favor one candidate? Did Harris and Trump accomplish what they set out to do?
Trump vs. Harris debate overview
In the muted mic debate, the pair blamed each other for the nation’s economic issues, traded jabs about immigration policy and shared their differing viewpoints on abortion.
In closing statements, Harris harkened toward the future and promised to be a president for the people, while Trump used his two minutes to reiterate that he believes the Harris-Biden administration is “the worst” in U.S. history.
Cuomo pointed to Trump’s “witheringly negative view of this country,” with Abrams saying Trump grew “increasingly negative” as the night wore on.
Though it’s much less clear who came out on top, NewsNation’s analysts can agree on a few things.
Kamala Harris ‘definitely had a better night’: Dan Abrams
Abrams and Cuomo agreed that Harris’ hopeful rhetoric is more likely to sway undecided voters.
“What were the hopes and the expectations going in? I think she definitely had a better night than him,” Abrams said.
While Trump’s messaging about the Biden administration’s lack of accomplishments or follow-through could have landed, Abrams said his negativity clouded that point.
Harris, Abrams said, “successfully triggered him” by calling him weak and pointing out that some of his closest advisers are no longer by his side.
Conservative commentator Scottie Nell Hughes and Nina Turner, the former national co-chair for Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, also joined the panel to discuss their major takeaways from the debate.
“At the end, it was really good, she put this barb in it, this jab in it. Which made Trump address the jab instead of responding back with substance. That was his choice, but it goes to great debate prep,” Hughes said.
“Oh, she got in his head. She did,” Turner said. “She owned him tonight.”
“By her saying, ‘You’re weak,’ I mean he almost jumped out of his skin. … He tried to keep his composure, but she was already in his head,” Turner added.
“He wouldn’t even look at her, which I think is a mistake on a human level,” Cuomo added.
Stirewalt echoed that analysis, saying Trump could not resist her baiting.
“My verdict is: She prepared, and he did not prepare,” Stirewalt said. “He famously doesn’t like to prepare. He famously doesn’t like to do his homework. And she did, and you could tell tonight.”
‘Harris got help from moderators’: Stirewalt
Stirewalt told Cuomo and Abrams that he felt as though the moderators went harder on Trump, a sentiment echoed by Republicans.
Cuomo asked Stirewalt to clarify his statement, asking: “Do you believe that they were helping Harris, or he requires more fact-checking because he is completely reckless with the truth on a regular basis more than anyone he’s ever on stage with?”
“A lot of Republicans tonight are going to take comfort from the fact that it was unfair, that it was rigged, that it was bad,” Stirewalt said.
Abrams added that if the GOP leans on calling out the referees, “That’s when you know you’re in trouble.”
“Trump still didn’t do what he had to do,” Abrams said.
Bill O’Reilly, Geraldo Rivera weigh in on Trump and Harris
Bill O’Reilly told NewsNation he doesn’t think anyone won the debate, citing Trump playing only to his base and Harris refusing to give specific answers to the moderators’ questions.
“Trump was foolish at times. He won the first half-hour of the debate, but then he descended as he always does,” O’Reilly said. “I don’t know why.”
Geraldo Rivera, however, thinks Harris was the clear winner because Trump was resorting to “middle school” tactics.
“He lost his best chance to squash her candidacy and make her a mockery. He lost his best chance to be the favorite going forward,” Rivera added.
While Democrats and Republicans might believe their candidate came out on top, one thing is clear: It was a livelier debate than the late June event that led to President Joe Biden’s exit from the race.
The 90-minute debate could have a profound impact on the Nov. 5 election, with 30% of registered voters telling an NPR/PBS News/Marist poll the debate will help them decide how to cast their ballots.
Trump, Harris tied in predebate polls
The forum marked the first face-to-face matchup between Harris and Trump, who were neck and neck in predebate polls.
The latest polling from the New York Times/Siena College revealed Trump leads Harris by just a point. Three other polls posted within the past week — RMG Research/Napolitan News National Survey (+2), Outward Intelligence survey (+4) and Emerson College Polling (+4) — all reflected Harris leading Trump.
Harris maintained a 3.5-point lead nationally across all polls, according to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ’s polling average.
NewsNation’s Devan Markham contributed to this report.
