Trump campaign officials are trying to manage expectations ahead of Tuesday's vice presidential debate between Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D). , praised the governor as a talented debater and suggested Vance would go on the offensive on the issue. Immigration and Waltz's military career.
“Tim Walz is a very good debater. It was really good,” Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller said on a call with reporters previewing the debate. “He's been in politics for almost 20 years. He'll be well prepared for tomorrow night. He'll be dancing around on stage pointing at Kamala Harris at a rally. It's not going to be a gesticulating, effeminate caricature. Waltz is going to button it up.”
Miller and Trump allies told reporters that Walz would “lie on command” about Harris' background and her own, and scrutinized her travels to China and her time in the National Guard. He quoted some of his past statements.
Former President Trump has repeatedly mocked Walz's body language and excited personality on stage at rallies. Trump also latched onto Walz's criticism that the Republican ticket is “weird.”
Rep. Tom Emmer (R-Minn.), who filled in for Walz during Vance's debate preparations, rejected the idea that Walz would be able to “rely on his folksy demeanor” to appeal to the audience. did.
“I spent the last month looking at all of Mr. Walz's old debate footage and studying his mannerisms and policy positions,” Emmer said. “From what I see, J.D. Vance is going to mop the floor with Tim Walz and expose him as a radical liberal at heart.”
Emmer echoed Walz's time as governor.
President Trump's allies have signaled that Vance would be particularly aggressive on immigration issues, attacking Walz over the Biden administration's handling of the southern border, and Vice President Harris They argued that the government was not doing enough to deal with the surge.
Mr. Vance's supporters argued that the senator's background in dealing with poverty would allow him to speak authoritatively about the impact of inflation on American families.
Vance also suggested that Walz could be criticized for his handling of the 2020 riots in Minnesota after the killing of George Floyd.
Tuesday's event, hosted by CBS News, will be the only debate between Walz and Vance on the calendar.
The debate also marks the last debate of the presidential campaign before Election Day, as Harris and Trump have no new showdowns scheduled on the calendar, despite Harris seeking a second showdown. There is a possibility that
