USA Trump does not want to commit to a second duel with Harris
After the TV duel against his opponent Kamala Harris, Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump has left his consent for a further debate open.
If you have won a TV duel, you don't necessarily have to compete again, said the 78-year-old. "At the moment, let's see what we do." At the same time, he attacked the US broadcaster ABC, which had hosted the debate, and called for the channel's broadcasting license to be revoked because the moderators had been unfair.
Trump allowed himself to be provoked by Harris in the debate
Trump and Democrat Harris competed against each other in their first TV debate on Tuesday evening (local time). The two candidates engaged in a heated exchange in Philadelphia. Trump allowed himself to be provoked by Harris, appeared annoyed at times and became defensive. Harris attacked Trump head-on and refused to be flustered. The performance was a special test for her, as she had only entered the race for the White House a few weeks ago. The duel ushers in the hot phase of the presidential election campaign, with the election taking place on November 5.
In a flash poll of registered voters conducted by CNN, 63% of respondents said they saw Harris as the winner - compared to 37% who saw Trump ahead. In a YouGov poll, 54 percent of voters surveyed said they thought Harris had won the TV duel - 31 percent voted for Trump. It remains to be seen what impact the debate will have on the election. So far, Harris and Trump are roughly tied in the polls.
Trump shared photos of polls showing him as the winner via his online mouthpiece Truth Social. However, these were online or viewer surveys by certain broadcasters, which do not claim to be representative.
Trump names conditions for second duel
No date has yet been set for a second debate. Harris proposed a second debate immediately after the first one. Trump has made it clear in the past that another duel should be hosted by his house and court broadcaster Fox News. Trump called Fox News after the debate on the breakfast show and said that the two moderators proposed by Fox News, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, should not moderate such a duel under any circumstances. Instead, the 78-year-old suggested Fox News commentators Jesse Watters, Laura Ingraham or Sean Hannity, all of whom are staunchly behind Trump and regularly hurl insults at the Democrats on their shows.
ABC, on the other hand, which hosted the debate in Philadelphia, was the "most dishonest" broadcaster, according to Trump. The duel was "three against one", criticized the Republican with regard to the two moderators. They had subjected some of the ex-president's statements to a live fact check and described them as false.
Trump: Swift will pay a price
Meanwhile, the campaign team of 59-year-old Harris and her running mate Tim Walz were delighted to have the support of pop star Taylor Swift and began selling Harris-Walz friendship bracelets. Fans of the singer, the "Swifties", often wear friendship bracelets to spread a positive vibe. Shortly after the TV debate, Swift announced her intention to vote for Harris in the November election. This is good news for the Democrat, as Swift has enormous influence among her fans - especially among young women, an important group of voters.
Trump seemed annoyed by Swift's decision. "She always seems to support a Democrat. And she'll probably pay a price for that in the marketplace," he said. He was not a Swift fan, he added. A few weeks ago, Trump had published images generated with artificial intelligence on his online mouthpiece that were intended to give the impression that Swift and her fans supported Trump. Swift has now cited these images as one reason why she is making her political position public. Trump's running mate J.D. Vance complained that Swift was a billionaire who was out of touch with the interests and problems of most Americans.
SDA
