NEW YORK – A second head-to-head showdown between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump is unlikely, and much is at stake in a race with a margin of error with five weeks until Election Day in November. Presidential debate.
A debate between vice presidential candidates is the undercard of a White House race, and the need for it has rarely moved in the past, but the debate between the Republican vice presidential nominee, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, and the Democratic nominee The stakes will be even higher if Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz faces off on Tuesday, a day off.
A big knockout blow, or a painful blunder, could turn an event traditionally seen as a second-division tournament into a shocking showdown.
“The importance and significance of this debate is significant given that there will likely only be one head-to-head showdown between the major candidates, and this is the final showdown between the two tickets just before the election. “It's going to get even more intense,” Ryan Williams, a longtime Republican and veteran strategist and communicator of multiple presidential campaigns, told Fox News.
The who, what, where, and when of Tuesday's J.D. Vance-Tim Walz vice presidential debate
Republican vice presidential candidate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance (left), and Democratic vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (right). (Getty Images)
Most political commentators said Ms. Harris defeated Mr. Trump in their first and perhaps only debate last month. And the Debate Watchers Flash poll agreed.
Therefore, if Mr. Vance performs well in Tuesday's vice presidential debate, Mr. Trump could gain momentum.
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And there is a precedent from 12 years ago.
After a shaky first debate by then-President Barack Obama against 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Joe Biden ( The vice president's acclaimed performance was a big boost to his ticket to the Democratic Party. .
In the lead-up to the 2024 vice presidential debate, Vance, 40, has been extremely talkative, giving multiple interviews and answering numerous questions from reporters on the campaign trail.
Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) speaks at a campaign rally in Newtown, Pennsylvania, Saturday, September 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Lawrence Kesterson) (AP Photo/Lawrence Kesterson)
Mr. Walz, 60, has been quite reluctant to talk to national news media.
The governor is in debate camp ahead of the showdown to prepare. Mr. Walz gathered in Harbor Springs, Michigan, near the northern tip of the state's lower peninsula, with his advisers and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who played Vance in a mock debate, among others.
Walz's wife, Minnesota First Lady Gwen Walz, is also helping.
Asked on the eve of his showdown with Vance how his wife helped him prepare for the debate, Walz told reporters, “She won everything.”
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A source familiar with Vance's debate preparations told Fox News Digital that the senator participated in a series of homicide committee sessions with his team last month. A difficult exam or test, or in Vance's case, a vice presidential debate.
Vance last week conducted a mock debate with House Majority Whip Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota in the role of Walz, according to people familiar with the matter. Monica Crowley, a former Trump administration assistant secretary of the Treasury, served as one of the hosts for CBS News, which hosted the debate in New York City.
The power went out in the middle of the mock debate, and a strong storm hit near Cincinnati, Ohio, where Vance lives and where preparation sessions were being held. But Vance and his team continued to use lanterns for lighting and cellphones as timers, according to a person who first provided details to Fox News.
Governor Tim Walz speaks to supporters at a campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, September 12, 2024. (Detroit Free Press/Adam Vander Kooy/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Emmer and Walz served in the House of Representatives for four years before Walz won the Minnesota gubernatorial election in 2018. “I probably know him as well or better than most people on the Republican side,” he said.
And while criticizing his fellow Minnesotan, Emmer said, “The hardest thing about playing Waltz…is lying with a straight face, because that's his job. He's good at the debate game, but there's There is no content,” he claimed. There's a lot of air. ”
Asked Monday if he had any advice for his running mate, former President Trump told reporters, “No, I don't need to.”
But he added that he had “some interaction” with Vance and thought the senator was in “good condition.”
Former President Trump (left) and Vice President Kamala Harris (right) face off in their first and perhaps only debate on September 10, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Reuters)
Part of the Trump campaign's strategy ahead of the debate is to build expectations for Walz.
A senior Trump campaign adviser said, “Mr. Walz is very good at debates. I want to repeat that. Tim Walz is very good at debates. Really good. He's been a politician for almost 20 years. For tomorrow night. He will be very well prepared.” Jason Miller told reporters Monday.
Mr. Walz enters the debate with better polling numbers than Mr. Vance.
According to the latest Fox News national poll, Walz's approval rating was 43%, and his unpopularity was just above water at 40%.
Vance was in the 38% to 50% favorable/unfavorable negative territory.
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The senator arrived in New York City on Monday afternoon, taking a break from debate preparation in the evening to headline a gathering of Republican mega-donors.
Walz was scheduled to fly to New York on Tuesday ahead of the debate.
The vice presidential debate will be moderated by Norah O'Donnell, anchor and editor-in-chief of CBS Evening News, and Margaret Brennan, host and chief foreign affairs correspondent of Face the Nation.
The 90-minute debate begins at 9 p.m. ET and will be held at the CBS News Broadcast Center in New York City.
Broadcast on Fox News Channel, FOX Business Network, Fox News Digital, Fox News Audio and Fox Nation. Special discussion program.
Harris and the Trump campaign agreed to two four-minute commercial breaks during the debate. Campaign staff are prohibited from contacting candidates during breaks.
Other rules, including no studio audience, will be the same as those for the Harris-Trump debate in September and the Trump-Biden presidential debate in June.
However, there is one major difference. That is, a candidate's microphone will not be muted when their opponent is speaking.
Get the latest on the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more with Fox News Digital's Election Hub.
