Pundits across the spectrum have been complementing Harris for baiting Trump in last Tuesday’s debate.
Fair enough; she did bait him. Yes, that got him angry. And, yes, his anger pushed him into inane and ludicrous responses.
But it was her responses to Trump’s bullying and bloviating that defined the night. She gave him bemused smiles, the kind a parent gives a six year old who wants to drive the car. She raised her eyebrows and chuckled at his “Haitians eat dogs and cats” line. She rolled her eyes at his claim of winning the 2020 election.
By 20 minutes into the debate, Trump was full bore into his macho mode: piling lie onto lie, ignoring the moderators fact checks, and blowing past his time limits.
Through it all, Harris stayed calm. After each of his outburst, she efficiently skewered his arguments and then poked his macho, the most memorable poke inviting people to a Trump rally so they can see the crowd leave early out of boredom.
Where Hillary Clinton reacted to Trump’s bullying with nervousness, Harris reacted with patient amusement. Where Biden reacted with “C’mon Man!”, Harris just laughed.
Then, in the time honored way of dealing with bullies, she punched him in the nose. She told him world leaders were laughing at him. She told him military leaders called him a “disgrace”. She called him “weak”. She noted he inherited a fortune, then declared bankruptcy 6 times. And then she reminded everyone that he was fired by 81 million voters.
In response, Trump insisted his rallies had more people than Harris’, immigrants have destroyed the fabric of the country, inflation is the worst we’ve ever had, and bragged about overturning Roe v Wade and winning the 2020 election…same old, same old. He was irritated, red in the face, clearly flummoxed.
Trump left the stage immediately after the debate without so much as a glance at Harris or the moderators. Where did he go? To the cuddling arms of his Fox family: Bret Baier, Jesse Watters, and his favorite Uncle, Sean Hannity.
There is nobody more alone than a bully who’s lost his macho.
It was a master class, not in baiting, not in fact checking (it was refreshing seeing reporters actually correct him in real time), and not in succinctly worded arguments, although all of that happened. No, it was a master class on exposing Trump as an insecure child who aspires to be a macho bully.
It’s a unique strategy, perfect for this campaign: a mature, intelligent woman draining the macho from a school yard bully.