(NewsNation) — Moderators of the ABC presidential debate faced criticism online from some who said they didn’t fact-check Vice President Harris as much as they did former President Trump.
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a Republican, said she still doesn’t know who Harris is after watching her debate Trump.
“I think we still don’t know who Kamala Harris is,” Noem told NewsNation’s Dan Abrams after the debate. “These moderators not once pushed her, fact-checked her. Even when she misspoke. It was pretty strange to watch that.”
Abrams pressed Noem and asked if Trump made a “compelling case” to serve as president of the United States. Noem said Trump “did a great job talking about his accomplishments” but that she wished both candidates talked about the fact that “our children are dying,” referencing the fentanyl crisis and opioid epidemic.
“The reason I speak for President Trump so often is he let me do my job,” Noem said. “He recognized that in America, governors get to make decisions. That should have been something they talked about more tonight.”
NewsNation’s Chris Stirewalt also said he felt as though the moderators, ABC’s David Muir and Linsey Davis, went harder on Trump, a sentiment echoed by Republicans.
NewsNation’s Chris 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.
Harris, Trump 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 Anna Kutz and Devan Markham contributed to this report.