Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, praised Vice President Harris' performance in Wednesday's debate, saying the Democratic candidate showed she is an “intelligent and competent person.”
Romney, a vocal critic of former President Trump, said the vice president made the most of the opportunity to promote himself to tens of millions of American voters who tuned in to ABC News on Tuesday night.
“This is a typical President Trump performance. In the case of Kamala Harris, most people don't know much about her other than a few unfavorable videos that they may have seen on the internet,” Romney told reporters on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. in Clip filmed by MSNBC.
“And people realized that she was actually an intelligent, competent person with unique perspectives on issues,” he added. “And she has demonstrated that time and time again.”
Tuesday's debate marked the first time Trump and Harris faced each other in person, and the Democratic candidate thrived on the debate stage, sparring with the former president on immigration and the economy — some of the most important issues in the campaign — while also coming on the offensive on her own positions on abortion and foreign policy.
Romney wasn't the only one to praise Harris' win. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, R-N., said Wednesday morning that Harris “unquestionably” won the first debate. A CNN poll released just after the debate ended found that 63% of voters who watched the exchange between the two candidates on ABC News concluded that Harris had won. About 37% said Trump was the winner.
Romney said earlier this year that he would not vote for Trump in the 2024 general election, a move announced while President Biden was still seeking a second term.
