Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are squaring up in Philadelphia for what is likely to be their sole debate of this campaign.
The two sparred over the debate rules with Harris wanting the mics to be unmuted. Ultimately, the same rules from Trump’s previous debate with Biden — which proved disastrous for the prez — were upheld and the mics were left muted.
Former President Trump insisted Wednesday he did a “great job” facing off against Vice President Kamala Harris despite the presidential debate being “unfair” and “rigged” in his first interview since the Philly showdown.
The Republican nominee, 78, took aim at the ABC moderators for repeatedly fact-checking and debunking him during Tuesday night’s debate in Philadelphia.
“It was three on one,” Trump said during an early morning appearance on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends.”
“I thought I did a great job.”
“It was a rigged deal, as I assumed it would be, because when you looked at the fact that they were correcting everything and not correcting with her,” he continued, claiming that “six or seven times she told an outright lie” that was not challenged.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump set the tone at Tuesday night’s debate right off the bat — without even uttering a single word.
The Democratic and Republican presidential candidates opened their showdown with a bold handshake that spoke volumes and amounted to “psychological warfare,” body language experts told The Post.
Kamala Harris shakes hands with Donald Trump during the debate. AFP via Getty Images
As the clock struck 9 p.m., Harris entered the stage exuding confidence, with her head up and shoulders back, crossing to meet Trump at his podium to shake his hand — appearing to catch him by surprise, body language analyst Chris Ulrich told The Post.
“I don’t think he was ready for it,” he said. “Or maybe it was their strategy, just to go to the podium, and if she shakes hands, he would shake hands.”
Former President Trump has casually dismissed Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris — saying he much prefers the approval of Brittany Mahomes anyway.
Trump, 78, gushed over the wife of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes when asked in an early morning TV interview about Swift, 34, revealing she would be voting for his Democratic rival.
“I actually like Mrs. Mahomes much better, if you want to know the truth. She’s a big Trump fan,” the Republican nominee told Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” when asked about Swift’s endorsement.
Jokester Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) compared Trump's debate performance with Biden's flop at their June 27 verbal sparring match.
"This debate was so bad, Nancy Pelosi is quietly working the phones to get Trump out of the race," Moskowitz posted on X.
Biden, 81, dropped out of the 2024 contest on July 21, almost a month after he delivered a scattered and incoherent performance at his CNN debate against Trump.
In the intervening weeks, House Speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-NY) led a behind-the-scenes effort to push Biden off the Democratic ballot, according to multiple reports.
This debate was so bad, Nancy Pelosi is quietly working the phones to get Trump out of the race.
Democratic Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy brushed aside former President Donald Trump's quip that he "probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me."
"Donald Trump, from the very beginning of his presidency, has celebrated and instigated violence in this country, leading to the disastrous assault on the Capitol," Murphy swiped on CNN.
He commended Vice President Kamala Harris' performance and claimed that "Trump looked like a puddle by the end of that debate."
Silicon Valley investors are lashing out at the ABC News presidential debate moderators.
"ABC has let Harris get away with the Charlottesville hoax, bloodbath hoax, police officers dying on J6 hoax, etc," Sequoia Capitol partner and venture capital investor Shaun Maguire posted on X.
"But they fact check Trump on animals in Ohio… when he was correct," Maguire said.
Harris accused Trump of calling neo-Nazis at a rally in 2017 "very fine people" and inciting a "violent mob" on Jan. 6, 2021, that clashed with Capitol Police.
"And some died," she said, without clarifying that the deaths of all the officers were unrelated to the Capitol riot.
ABC has let Harris get away with the Charlottesville hoax, bloodbath hoax, police officers dying on J6 hoax, etc
But they fact check Trump on animals in Ohio… when he was correct
Sen. Tim Scott ducked a question about whether Donald Trump properly addressed the controversy over his past remarks about Vice President Kamala Harris' race.
"I'm a black man. I think it's insulting to have a conversation about who I am or who he is or who she is," Scott (R-SC) told CNN, noting that is a settled issue at birth.
(R-L) Sen. Tim Scott, Sen. Lindsey Graham, and Vivek Ramaswamy speak to FOX News host Sean Hannity in the spin room after a presidential debate. AP
"From my perspective, what we should do is what the American wants to do — talk about them and their issue, their future, their challenges."
Scott also claimed that Trump had a "strong performance."
Former 2024 GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy served Vice President Kamala Harris with a backhanded compliment after her performance against Donald Trump during Tuesday's first presidential debate.
"Did she exceed the very low expectations that were set for her? Yes, she did," he told Fox News — adding that ABC News moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis were working in her favor.
PHILADELPHIA — Republican vice-presidential nominee J.D. Vance defended Donald Trump’s debate declaration that Haitian migrants are “eating the dogs” and “eating the cats” of Springfield, Ohio, residents after the unsubstantiated claim went viral this week — saying critics are missing the bigger point.
The Biden-Harris administration has sent nearly 20,000 Haitian nationals to the small town of 58,000, and residents are feeling overwhelmed.
“We just actually heard a 911 call from a citizen in Springfield earlier today that some of the immigrants in Springfield were capturing geese at the local pond, slaughtering them and killing them,” the Ohio senator said in the spin room post-debate.
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance speaks to reporters in the spin room following the presidential debate. Getty Images
But “dogs?” a reporter asked.
“Look, I don't know what are the full spate of animals that there that are being consumed there in Springfield, but I know the geese are certainly among them. And we've heard reports from a number of constituents on the ground that they have had pets abducted by some of the immigrants there. We're of course looking into this stuff,” he replied.
“But look, the fundamental issue here is whether they were eating geese or dogs, is that really what we're going to hang our hat on? The problem is that this small town in Ohio has been flooded with 20,000 migrants thanks to Kamala Harris' policies. Now people can't afford basic goods, they can't afford food, they can't afford housing in their communities, and their public safety has been completely destroyed. It's a disgrace, and Donald Trump is right to call it out. And Kamala Harris, like so many other issues, she has no way to explain why she's going to be better as president than she has been as vice president. It's her policies that caused the problem. She should have to answer for that.”
