Republicans urge Trump to accept second debate against Harris

Allies of former President Trump are urging him to accept a second debate with Vice President Harris after she turned in a strong performance Tuesday night, effectively putting the ball in Trump’s court for a second meeting.

Harris’s team wasted no time calling for another debate, while Trump refused to commit.

Some Senate Republicans believe Trump could use another bite at the apple.

“I think it would be an opportunity,” said Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), one of his top surrogates. “If I was in Trump’s position, I would.” 

Trump and the GOP have struggled to define Harris since she ascended to the top of the Democratic ticket, and many Republicans think the president missed a key chance Tuesday. Instead of focusing on policy differences, they say, he took bait placed by Harris and committed self-inflicted wounds by going down unnecessary rabbit holes. That included a much-derided reference to an online conspiracy theory that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are eating pets.

“I believe we missed a lot of opportunities last night,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) told reporters, agreeing that a second debate could be beneficial. 

“It makes a lot more sense to, instead of talking about cats and dogs, talk about 1.5 million got-aways,” he said, referring to immigrants who have evaded Border Patrol. “That’s a lot more frightening to me, and it’s a real threat.”

Others, however, sounded a note of caution.

“I wouldn’t ever debate again in a liberal setting. I don’t think it should be at CNN; I don’t think it needs to be at ABC. He’s done two of those,” said Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), calling for Fox News or another conservative outlet to handle the next meeting.

Fox News has proposed three dates in October to both campaigns for a debate, which would likely be moderated by anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum. 

“I don’t know. That’s up to him,” said Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), a top supporter. 

“That’s up to them to decide. Although, usually, if you’re winning, you don’t want another debate, so it’s curious that the Harris people want one. … Despite all the media talk and the punditry going on, I think they’re very concerned about the trajectory of the race over the last 10 days, especially as voters learn more about her and figure out that she’s just like Biden or worse.” 

Harris’s campaign argued Tuesday night that the “American people got to see the choice they will face this fall at the ballot box” and should have a second opportunity before November.

Trump responded late Tuesday, saying Harris wants to debate again “because she lost tonight.”

“I don’t know that I want to do another debate,” he added Wednesday morning on Fox News.

Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller, meanwhile, argued Wednesday that Trump has committed to another debate, telling CNN that his team agreed to an NBC-hosted debate Sept. 25.

Multiple surveys showed Harris was widely viewed as the winner of Tuesday’s debate, but questions remain about whether the performance will translate into voter movement behind her campaign.

Democrats, many of whom had been nervous going into the debate, were downright giddy in the aftermath — and want to see it happen again.

“I’d certainly enjoy watching a repeat,” Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said with a laugh and a smile. “It was a wonder to behold. She was so confident and down-to-earth and in command.” 

“I think she can repeat [her performance],” he continued. “And I think Trump can repeat it.” 

Democrats argue Harris still is not fully known to some voters — especially compared to Trump, who has had sky-high name recognition for years — and could benefit from a second chance to appeal to voters.

A New York Times poll published Sunday found that 28 percent of likely voters said they felt they needed to know more about Harris, while only 9 percent said they needed to know more about Trump. 

Democrats are also cognizant that despite favorability ratings that have ebbed and flowed throughout the years, voters have had a rosier view of Trump’s presidency in hindsight than they did during it. Party strategists are hopeful that another debate is a chance to knock that view down a peg.

“More people need to see him look like an unhinged weirdo. His retrospective favorability rating is still positive. More people think he was a good president than a bad president,” one Democratic operative said. “She has to keep showing how bad he looks now.”

“She needs to prosecute the case that he was a bad president and that he’s only gotten worse since then,” they added.

Some concede that Harris’s performance Tuesday will set the expectations high for a future debate. But top Democrats say the benefit is worth the risk.

“I like it when my team wins 10-0, but I also like it when my team wins 8-2,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said. 

“Maybe she can’t eclipse last night’s performance,” Murphy continued. “But maybe she gets better.” 

Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) pointed to Harris’s busy schedule before November but encouraged another round.

“If she believes she can have another one and still do all of these other things that she has to do around the whole country, then I would say, you know, do it. But I do want to make sure that she spends a lot of time in certain states that we know are key to ultimately having the electoral votes necessary to win,” he said.

There was a debate about the debate before Tuesday’s event actually took place, which included Trump repeatedly criticizing ABC, raising questions about whether he would participate in it, and the Harris campaign pushing back on muting microphones while another candidate is speaking.

Trump said Wednesday he’d do an NBC-hosted debate or a Fox-hosted debate, adding he has to determine whether he wants to do one. He also railed against ABC, attacking the network for how it fact-checked his statements compared to Harris’s and suggesting it should have its broadcast license revoked, while other Republicans have attacked the moderators.

“It’s clear we’re going to have another debate on debates, and I can’t imagine Donald Trump will show up for it,” Democratic strategist David Thomas said, quipping that Harris and Trump should debate every day, because it’s something she “excels at.”

Meanwhile, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), who ran against Trump in the GOP primary, warned against Harris challenging Trump to another debate, suggesting the former president could do better, while for Harris, “nothing great can happen … in a second debate.”

But other Republicans question whether Trump can improve in a second debate, pointing to how he was baited by Harris to steer off message.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), a noted Trump critic who was the GOP presidential nominee in 2012, called the debate a “classic President Trump performance” and praised Harris for looking “intelligent” and “capable” on the stage.

“I think Trump could probably use a second debate, although I am not sure — even after this experience — that he would have the discipline to stay on message, counter Harris’s attacks or hold her accountable for nonanswers,” former Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) said.

Cheyanne M. Daniels contributed.