On Politics: Is Donald Trump too emotional for this?
Is Donald Trump too emotional for this?
The latest, with 55 days to go
When Vice President Kamala Harris said that former President Donald Trump had been fired, his stony face broke into a scoff. When she said that world leaders had called him a disgrace, his eyes revealed a flash of anger. And then, as she cast doubt upon his "temperament," he became the show to her tell. "Let me just tell you about world leaders," Trump responded. With his voice rising, he insisted that the "strongman" leader of Hungary, Viktor Orban, admired him, and he criticized President Biden before pointing his finger at Harris. "He hates her, he can't stand her," Trump declared, as Harris kept a cool half-smile on her lips. It was just one skirmish in a long 105-minute debate on Tuesday night. Harris needled Trump over everything from his election loss to the size and devotion of the crowds at his campaign rallies, leaving the former president visibly rattled and struggling to defend himself. In pushing him there, Harris seemed to be inviting viewers to ask themselves a new question about Trump: Might he be a little too emotional to be president? "Donald Trump was, through his tone of voice, the loudness of his voice, the words that he was choosing to use, sharing too much of his emotions," said Mollie West Duffy, the co-author, with Liz Fosslien, of a book called "No Hard Feelings: The Secret Power of Embracing Emotions at Work." "I think we would advise, in addition to many other things, trying to stay on topic," Fosslien said. "And also kind of looking at her more." Upside-down gender dynamicTrump has long made a point of projecting strength and dominance on television and in public, particularly when facing female opponents, and Harris had every reason to try to make him look weak onstage. Triggering emotional reactions allowed Harris to wordlessly suggest that Trump could be manipulated by foreign leaders in the same way. It was also a way of turning the unavoidable gender dynamic of the night on its head. "She was asserting a level of power and control that are often seen as traits desired in executive leaders, in presidents, but also questioned in women," said Kelly Dittmar, who is the director of research and a scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics at the Eagleton Institute of Politics. "She was very calm, and rational, in contrast to tropes that women would be somehow too emotional or less stable than male leaders." Harris and her aides had watched videos of Trump's previous debates against Hillary Clinton, as well as his combative interviews, like the one with three Black female journalists earlier this summer. Onstage, she reached for words and phrases that her campaign officials know set Trump off, like "Charlottesville," which invokes his blithe words after antisemitic and racist violence unfolded in that Virginia community during his presidency. It was a concerted effort not to simply talk about his temperament — as Democrats have been doing for years — but to let it play out for all to see. Focus on crowd sizeEmotions, of course, are only one way to judge a debate performance. Voters are also weighing what policies the candidates promoted and how truthful they seemed to be about their own records — and Harris missed several opportunities to tell voters more about hers. And some of Trump's allies say he did just fine, thank you very much, given a setup — with a pair of moderators who frequently fact-checked Trump — that many Republicans have already dismissed as "rigged." "What we didn't want, and what she did want, was for him to lose control in a way that would seem inappropriate dealing with a female," said Newt Gingrich, the Republican former House speaker. "And I think he managed to avoid that." Still, when I asked Gingrich about one particularly defensive moment — when Trump let Harris bait him into a disjointed and conspiracy-laden defense of the crowds at his rallies — he acknowledged it wasn't ideal. "I frankly would just as soon he didn't say that," Gingrich said, "but I think compared to his potential for getting angry, it was fine." Kathleen Hall Jamieson, a professor of communication at the University of Pennsylvania, said that the perception of emotion in public settings was highly subjective, and that many voters most likely perceived the same facial and vocal expressions differently. "At the minimum, I can say he's looking stern," she said. "At the minimum, I can say, she's smiling, he's not." On Wednesday, Trump's feelings kept coming. In an interview with "Fox & Friends," he railed about the debate moderators and complained about a Fox News host, Harold Ford Jr., who said the debate had been disappointing to his supporters. And he seemed determined to cut a more assertive figure with Harris. On Tuesday night, he seemed almost surprised when she strode over to his lectern to shake his hand. On Wednesday morning, when they shook hands again at a Sept. 11 memorial in New York, he seemed to hold her hand for an extra beat — as if the gesture would not end until he, rather than she, let go.
An undecided voter reviews the debateWhen Connor Gamble, a freshman at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, cast a vote in his first presidential primary, he chose Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina, who was at the time warning voters about the dangers of former President Donald Trump. Gamble, a registered Republican, isn't sure who he will vote for in November, and as he watched the debate in a dorm with friends on Tuesday night, he was trying to figure it out. Gamble isn't sold on Trump. But he's been disappointed by aspects of Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign, including the cautious television interview she gave this month. The debate, he said, might have changed things. Harris's attacks, Gamble said, made Trump look "unbalanced." She, however, seemed "presidential," he said. Gamble hasn't made up his mind. But the debate left him feeling like Harris is an option. "I know how she would act as a president," he said, "which I think is almost as important as policy itself." Read past editions of the newsletter here. If you're enjoying what you're reading, please consider recommending it to others. They can sign up here. Have feedback? Ideas for coverage? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at onpolitics@nytimes.com.
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