Thank you, I love Lucid and I can’t wait for the debate tonight, hoping to see Kamala kick Donald’s butt and kick him in the balls! Haha! He IS the past and she IS the future!!!!!!!! 😊🩷
It is impossible to debate a gish gallop, a firehose endless lies, fabrications, and misleading claims. It is impossible for the opponent to address these without being constantly on the defensive and unable to correct all the false claims. I suspect Harris will ignore and be dismissive of Trump to deprive him of that kind of attention, but that will only carry her so far. I question the wisdom of her agreeing to the debate since it will only serve to spread what Dr. Bandy Lee calls "Trump contagion" and further corrupt the process.
This nation missed a huge opportunity when tRump was in office, to remove him with the 25th Amendment. He jumped over that hurdle. Using the 14th Amendment was smashed, so he jumped over that hurdle as well. The APA should have backed Dr Bandy Lee in her concern over tRump but they were too concerned about the Goldwater Rule to help her rid the nation of this menace. So we end up with a Machiavellian, sadistic sociopath running for POTUS. Shocking!
Well Biden did a good job in 2020 squashing the gish gallop and I don’t see why Harris can’t do the same. She just needs to look “normal”, rational, empathic, and competent. The only thing better ( and I look forward to it) is for her to laugh at him. Make him the clown that he is.
Steve, allow me to make a minor and friendly editorial suggestion: “So we end up with a [fascist] Machiavellian, sadistic sociopath running for POTUS.” I realize that some in our midst object to the fascist pejorative, but it’s an accurate label nonetheless. As I recall, Jason Staley, during a recent Q&A, strongly stated that “fascist” is appropriate when referring to contemporary fascists. It is, therefore, not limited to historical figures as some historians seem to prefer. In my opinion, not referring to DJT and his cabal as a fascists is like fighting a fascist knife wielding thug with one’s hands tied behind our back. I recognize that at times the pressure to conform seems to require that we go along to get along. I tend to think lay people may relate to “fascist” more than other esoteric euphemisms familiar to the more educated. BTW, I don’t necessarily disagree with your comment; I seldom if ever do, just miss what seemed to be your standard practice of naming fascists as fascist. On a personal, but public note, it’s good to see you back. Disclosure: I regret the apparent reluctance of this august platform to weigh-in re the American-Zionist-apartheid Israel fascist surge during the brazen escalated genocidal attack on Indigenous Palestinian people in occupied Palestine. As an outlier, I don’t blame you for avoiding being one yourself—if that’s the case. I do also fear the bipartisan support for Palestinian genocide maybe do more harm than good to the Harris campaign; as Norman Solomon has tried to warn, to no avail. Thank you for doing what you fo do well—truth telling.
I’m so glad there are people like you who are able to expertly provide guidance and insight. I don’t think any “presidential debate” in my life time has been a true debate. Until the forum is removed from biased platforms they can’t be. I really hope VP Harris has consulted mental health and other experts as she would during litigation.
Thank you for this, Ruth. I very much appreciate this Lucid community and your articles. These are good guidelines but it is so hard to know what will happen and I am hoping VP Harris will use her strength and knowledge to combat what are sure to be plenty of attacks and lies by this criminal. What on earth is he doing running for president anyway?
I think it's because he knows he can't pull off a coup, military or otherwise, not just yet. He needs to get back into office or Project 2025 won't happen.
I just had a fantasy that Harris will give T. a withering look and say she doesn’t debate fascists, felons, and sexual predators. But then she would be accused of cowardice.
Thank you Ruth , no expectation here as I know he will lie, intimidate, scowl. Contrary to some repeated nonsense that Harris better be careful because ‘Trump is good at debates’..he is NOT !
He is horrible period.
Never answers questions and lies, lies, lies, goes into off script tangents..yada yada…BORING!
I won’t be watching.
The debate/debacle/contest is for those ‘undecideds’. His base sold out years ago -deer in headlights syndrome-this is for those undecideds who ,sorry, I just pray for too.
I’m not confused nor ever was.
Bless ‘y’all’ for keeping track . I might watch the highlights undoubtably repeated ad infinitum for supposed entertainment but more from the comedian’s take ..love a good laugh.
I never bought into the fear implanted , love my country, know great lessons came from this and hope is my preferred company…I’ll stay the course😌
I so appreciate the effort most of the writers in this Substack format, let alone the comments, book suggestions ,and valued opinions.
Unexpected was SUBSTACK is now THE BEST SOURCED NEWS …so sad great newspapers de$olved.
I was shocked yesterday when I heard the Illinois governor say that trump is a good debater. That's not how I understand debates. The only thing I can figure is that he thinks being able to steamroll his opponent is good debating. I will not be watching tonight. It would not be good for my ability to sleep. I will see whatever my favorite news programs have to say tomorrow.
Actually, Trump is a sad entertainer! Pathetic drain in our society of good?
Low I.Q. and lover of the uneducated and lost souls in life? Unexposed dreadful man who does nothing but spread lies and loves to hear his useless blather?
Sorry about the misinterpretation. I guess I always thought that entertainers were by definition entertaining. Clearly that's not the case with trump. I agree wholeheartedly that he is a real blight on our lives. And always has been, even when he wasn't in national politics.
Do you have a source for that? I was so surprised I went looking for the quote. Didn't find it, but did find quotes like this, from WMUR: "I think this is going to be a very, very hard debate on both sides. . . . I don't think much of Donald Trump, but he has won some of the debates that he's been in." Which IMO is a long way from saying he's a good debater, not least because (as others here have mentioned) presidential debates are barely "debates" at all.
The people that say Trump is a good debater are not paying attention to what he says. Or they simply can't understand the word salad.
They may be some of the same people who think he's good for the economy. They "vote with their wallets" because it pisses them off that they have to pay $.50 more for a dozen eggs, and the want to "f..k the libs" who they blame for the $5/gal of gas for them to drive their truck to the gun show. They don't realize that if Trump gets elected, they may say good bye to health care, social security, rule of law, and democracy.
And the cost of groceries and everything else will go up. I think back to his debate with Hillary Clinton, and all he did was work on intimidating her. And as so many others have said, the firehose of lies overwhelms the opponent. If that's a win, it's a pretty poor one. He doesn't have the brainpower or the self control or the knowledge to have a real debate.
Ruth-what a marvelous concise break down of what lies ahead! It is not going to be easy-especially for Harris. Whatever she states is going to be countered by an uninformed person who wants to be “in office” for different reasons. Trump’s freedom depends upon it! He does not admit or accept the freedoms WE the People live by in this nation. Trump’s goal is to cause confusion and chaos. His drive is endless and very destructive! Stay awake, voters!
Rather than fact checking, they should just confront him about his lies. Recently he said:
“Can you imagine you’re a parent and your son leaves the house and you say, ‘Jimmy, I love you so much, go have a good day in school,’ and your son comes back with a brutal operation? Can you even imagine this? What the hell is wrong with our country?”
They should confront him with it and make him prove it. They should do that with all his lies.
Dear Dr. Ben-Ghiat. It is in my hopes and prayers that Vice President Harris can remain focused on her message of hope and a positive future. A Trump onslaught is coming tonight. We know that. Kamala will need to discern what needs to be addressed and dismiss the lies, minutiae, and innuendo with biting sarcasm and humor. The public will not remember the details of the debate and will remember the impressions and well-placed zingers. Think Bentson/Quayle and Reagan/Carter. Many Blessings.
Trump - who the press won’t give a bad headline too & any Dems - who the press negatively hammers relentlessly.
Come on man- even if Trump whipped off his diaper- peed on the moderators; fling poo at Harris- the Press would say-
“my my, what machismo! SO BOLD”.
Harris will be crucified no matter how well she performs- because MSM wants a felon Trump dictatorship. Lying traitor convicted con & rapist Trump -cannot get a bad headline.
Where I live- it’s very Ruby red- I’m afraid to put out a sign or be targeted. Kids trounced my sign for Biden in 2020. MAGA have their signs & flags up & will gladly become part of the Trump “Gestapo” if asked.
Nothing seems to stick to the guy. He's like teflon. The number of billionaire backers for him is stunning and shows their willingness to back fascism. We are on a dark path.
I remember when Trump had a verbal protestor is one of his earlier rallies (Pre J6) and told the crowd to 'take him out and beat the crap out of him'. It would appear his inate taste for competition with his international strongman image, is to erect gallows for his number 2. Lord knows what type of public spectacle, short of an assasination attempt, Trump can produce on stage with Harris.
Waiting for the plus size lady to sing….
Thank you, I love Lucid and I can’t wait for the debate tonight, hoping to see Kamala kick Donald’s butt and kick him in the balls! Haha! He IS the past and she IS the future!!!!!!!! 😊🩷
Wow! That is a brilliant idea! Kick like your future depends on it!!!
thanks Rosemarie!
It is impossible to debate a gish gallop, a firehose endless lies, fabrications, and misleading claims. It is impossible for the opponent to address these without being constantly on the defensive and unable to correct all the false claims. I suspect Harris will ignore and be dismissive of Trump to deprive him of that kind of attention, but that will only carry her so far. I question the wisdom of her agreeing to the debate since it will only serve to spread what Dr. Bandy Lee calls "Trump contagion" and further corrupt the process.
This nation missed a huge opportunity when tRump was in office, to remove him with the 25th Amendment. He jumped over that hurdle. Using the 14th Amendment was smashed, so he jumped over that hurdle as well. The APA should have backed Dr Bandy Lee in her concern over tRump but they were too concerned about the Goldwater Rule to help her rid the nation of this menace. So we end up with a Machiavellian, sadistic sociopath running for POTUS. Shocking!
Well Biden did a good job in 2020 squashing the gish gallop and I don’t see why Harris can’t do the same. She just needs to look “normal”, rational, empathic, and competent. The only thing better ( and I look forward to it) is for her to laugh at him. Make him the clown that he is.
Steve, allow me to make a minor and friendly editorial suggestion: “So we end up with a [fascist] Machiavellian, sadistic sociopath running for POTUS.” I realize that some in our midst object to the fascist pejorative, but it’s an accurate label nonetheless. As I recall, Jason Staley, during a recent Q&A, strongly stated that “fascist” is appropriate when referring to contemporary fascists. It is, therefore, not limited to historical figures as some historians seem to prefer. In my opinion, not referring to DJT and his cabal as a fascists is like fighting a fascist knife wielding thug with one’s hands tied behind our back. I recognize that at times the pressure to conform seems to require that we go along to get along. I tend to think lay people may relate to “fascist” more than other esoteric euphemisms familiar to the more educated. BTW, I don’t necessarily disagree with your comment; I seldom if ever do, just miss what seemed to be your standard practice of naming fascists as fascist. On a personal, but public note, it’s good to see you back. Disclosure: I regret the apparent reluctance of this august platform to weigh-in re the American-Zionist-apartheid Israel fascist surge during the brazen escalated genocidal attack on Indigenous Palestinian people in occupied Palestine. As an outlier, I don’t blame you for avoiding being one yourself—if that’s the case. I do also fear the bipartisan support for Palestinian genocide maybe do more harm than good to the Harris campaign; as Norman Solomon has tried to warn, to no avail. Thank you for doing what you fo do well—truth telling.
I’m so glad there are people like you who are able to expertly provide guidance and insight. I don’t think any “presidential debate” in my life time has been a true debate. Until the forum is removed from biased platforms they can’t be. I really hope VP Harris has consulted mental health and other experts as she would during litigation.
Hope Harris demolishes Trump!
Thank you for this, Ruth. I very much appreciate this Lucid community and your articles. These are good guidelines but it is so hard to know what will happen and I am hoping VP Harris will use her strength and knowledge to combat what are sure to be plenty of attacks and lies by this criminal. What on earth is he doing running for president anyway?
I think it's because he knows he can't pull off a coup, military or otherwise, not just yet. He needs to get back into office or Project 2025 won't happen.
Thanks Joanna!
I just had a fantasy that Harris will give T. a withering look and say she doesn’t debate fascists, felons, and sexual predators. But then she would be accused of cowardice.
She did do the withering look!
Oh she sure did—many times over. 💪🏼
Thank you Ruth , no expectation here as I know he will lie, intimidate, scowl. Contrary to some repeated nonsense that Harris better be careful because ‘Trump is good at debates’..he is NOT !
He is horrible period.
Never answers questions and lies, lies, lies, goes into off script tangents..yada yada…BORING!
I won’t be watching.
The debate/debacle/contest is for those ‘undecideds’. His base sold out years ago -deer in headlights syndrome-this is for those undecideds who ,sorry, I just pray for too.
I’m not confused nor ever was.
Bless ‘y’all’ for keeping track . I might watch the highlights undoubtably repeated ad infinitum for supposed entertainment but more from the comedian’s take ..love a good laugh.
I never bought into the fear implanted , love my country, know great lessons came from this and hope is my preferred company…I’ll stay the course😌
I so appreciate the effort most of the writers in this Substack format, let alone the comments, book suggestions ,and valued opinions.
Unexpected was SUBSTACK is now THE BEST SOURCED NEWS …so sad great newspapers de$olved.
GOTV sisters, it is our turn to shine.
💙💙🇺🇸BLUE TSUNAMI🇺🇸💙💙
She will probably go by the Mark Twain advice “Never argue with an idiot. They will drag you down and beat you with experience”.
She took the advice in fact!
I was shocked yesterday when I heard the Illinois governor say that trump is a good debater. That's not how I understand debates. The only thing I can figure is that he thinks being able to steamroll his opponent is good debating. I will not be watching tonight. It would not be good for my ability to sleep. I will see whatever my favorite news programs have to say tomorrow.
You are right, trump is not a debater. He is an intimidator.
Actually, Trump is a sad entertainer! Pathetic drain in our society of good?
Low I.Q. and lover of the uneducated and lost souls in life? Unexposed dreadful man who does nothing but spread lies and loves to hear his useless blather?
Hope debate confirms my thoughts!!
I find it difficult to see him as an entertainer - I find nothing about him entertaining. I'm sure the debate will confirm your thoughts.
Did not state that Trump is entertaining. That is what he would like to be!
Really he is a boring drag of an individual! The sooner he leaves the scene the better off our nation will be! A real blight on our lives!
Sorry about the misinterpretation. I guess I always thought that entertainers were by definition entertaining. Clearly that's not the case with trump. I agree wholeheartedly that he is a real blight on our lives. And always has been, even when he wasn't in national politics.
exactly
Do you have a source for that? I was so surprised I went looking for the quote. Didn't find it, but did find quotes like this, from WMUR: "I think this is going to be a very, very hard debate on both sides. . . . I don't think much of Donald Trump, but he has won some of the debates that he's been in." Which IMO is a long way from saying he's a good debater, not least because (as others here have mentioned) presidential debates are barely "debates" at all.
I was watching Deadline Whitehouse on MSNBC, and the governor said it while he was a guest on that show. I believe it was in the second hour.
The people that say Trump is a good debater are not paying attention to what he says. Or they simply can't understand the word salad.
They may be some of the same people who think he's good for the economy. They "vote with their wallets" because it pisses them off that they have to pay $.50 more for a dozen eggs, and the want to "f..k the libs" who they blame for the $5/gal of gas for them to drive their truck to the gun show. They don't realize that if Trump gets elected, they may say good bye to health care, social security, rule of law, and democracy.
And the cost of groceries and everything else will go up. I think back to his debate with Hillary Clinton, and all he did was work on intimidating her. And as so many others have said, the firehose of lies overwhelms the opponent. If that's a win, it's a pretty poor one. He doesn't have the brainpower or the self control or the knowledge to have a real debate.
Ruth-what a marvelous concise break down of what lies ahead! It is not going to be easy-especially for Harris. Whatever she states is going to be countered by an uninformed person who wants to be “in office” for different reasons. Trump’s freedom depends upon it! He does not admit or accept the freedoms WE the People live by in this nation. Trump’s goal is to cause confusion and chaos. His drive is endless and very destructive! Stay awake, voters!
Rather than fact checking, they should just confront him about his lies. Recently he said:
“Can you imagine you’re a parent and your son leaves the house and you say, ‘Jimmy, I love you so much, go have a good day in school,’ and your son comes back with a brutal operation? Can you even imagine this? What the hell is wrong with our country?”
They should confront him with it and make him prove it. They should do that with all his lies.
Dear Dr. Ben-Ghiat. It is in my hopes and prayers that Vice President Harris can remain focused on her message of hope and a positive future. A Trump onslaught is coming tonight. We know that. Kamala will need to discern what needs to be addressed and dismiss the lies, minutiae, and innuendo with biting sarcasm and humor. The public will not remember the details of the debate and will remember the impressions and well-placed zingers. Think Bentson/Quayle and Reagan/Carter. Many Blessings.
Thank you David
2 sets of standards-
Trump - who the press won’t give a bad headline too & any Dems - who the press negatively hammers relentlessly.
Come on man- even if Trump whipped off his diaper- peed on the moderators; fling poo at Harris- the Press would say-
“my my, what machismo! SO BOLD”.
Harris will be crucified no matter how well she performs- because MSM wants a felon Trump dictatorship. Lying traitor convicted con & rapist Trump -cannot get a bad headline.
Where I live- it’s very Ruby red- I’m afraid to put out a sign or be targeted. Kids trounced my sign for Biden in 2020. MAGA have their signs & flags up & will gladly become part of the Trump “Gestapo” if asked.
Nothing seems to stick to the guy. He's like teflon. The number of billionaire backers for him is stunning and shows their willingness to back fascism. We are on a dark path.
Great commentary on Nicolle Wallace's program.
Thanks Jake!
I remember when Trump had a verbal protestor is one of his earlier rallies (Pre J6) and told the crowd to 'take him out and beat the crap out of him'. It would appear his inate taste for competition with his international strongman image, is to erect gallows for his number 2. Lord knows what type of public spectacle, short of an assasination attempt, Trump can produce on stage with Harris.