Speaker Johnson says Trump ‘clearly prevailed’ in debate

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said that former President Trump “clearly prevailed” in the Tuesday ABC News debate against Vice President Harris, praising his “authenticity” and arguing the moderatos leaned in favor of the Democratic nominee. 

“Well, I will tell you what, President Donald Trump is the reigning presidential debate champion, and even though the contest was three to one last night, he clearly prevailed,” Johnson said during his Wednesday morning appearance on FOX Business Network’s Mornings With Maria with guest anchor Cheryl Casone. 

“I looked at seven or eight polls this morning, viewer polls,” Johnson continued. “I mean, Newsmax had him win in 93 to six. C-SPAN had him 65-35 as the victor. The Daily Caller says it was 73 to nine, something like 73 to eight. They gave 19 points to the moderators because they were so lopsided for the other side, fact-checking only Trump and allowing her to skate through that.” 

The Tuesday night debate was the first time Harris and Trump met in-person.

The Democratic nominee had a sound showing on ABC News, sparring with the ex-president on the economy and immigration, one of the top issues in this election, while also going on offense over abortion and foreign policy. One of Harris’s objectives Tuesday night was to rattle the ex-president, something she likely succeeded in doing as Trump at times appeared irritated with her jabs. 

New Hampshire GOP Gov. Chris Sununu (R) had a different assessment than Johnson, telling CNN that Harris “definitely won” the first debate. 

Johnson said that Harris’s performance on Tuesday night was an “act” and that she misrepresented her record. 

“So, she went out last night and delivered the lines as if she was an actor in a play,” he said Wednesday morning. “But, that’s the thing. It’s an act. It was phony. She lied about her record. She lied about President Trump’s record, and she got away with it.”  

A new YouGov poll, released hours after the showdown between the party’s nominees, found that 43 percent of respondents thought that Harris won the debate while 28 percent said Trump was victorious. Around 30 percent said they were not sure. 

The Speaker said that voters value Trump’s “authenticity” and projected, again, that the ex-president will win the election come November. 

“The thing that people appreciate so much about President Trump is his authenticity,” Johnson said. “He is real. It comes from the heart. He did expose so many of her policy failures, but he needed five hours to unfurl them. That’s the problem. She is trying to pretend that she is somebody totally different than we know that she is and her entire record shows, and it’s a farce.”  

“They’re running a campaign on a fantasy instead of facts,” he added. “But, I’m telling you what, the people are going to vote on record over rhetoric, and we’re going to win this election.”