Harris, Trump sharpen attacks as stage set for much-awaited presidential debate

Republican Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris prepared to meet for the first time on Tuesday night in their only scheduled debate of the US presidential campaign, a key moment in a close-fought contest.

The nationally televised debate beginning at 9 pm ET (0100 GMT, Wednesday) takes place just eight weeks before the November 5 election, and days before early voting will start in some states.

Former President Trump said he would contrast the left-wing policies Harris proposed in her failed 2020 presidential bid with the more centrist positions she has staked out now.

“You don’t know what to expect. She’s changed all of her policies over the years,” he told NBC News in a phone interview.

Harris indicated she will draw attention to Trump’s habit of lying.

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“Donald Trump has a real problem with the truth,” she wrote in a social media post Tuesday morning. Her campaign released an ad featuring former President Barack Obama ridiculing Trump’s false claims about crowd sizes at his events.

Harris will also talk about her plans to lower Americans’ daily expenses, campaign advisers said.

The encounter is particularly important for Harris, with opinion polls showing that more than a quarter of likely voters feel they do not yet know enough about her.

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The debate offers Harris, a former prosecutor, a chance to make her case against Trump, whose felony convictions, outspoken backing for supporters convicted in the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol and frequent falsehoods offer plenty of fertile ground.

First meeting

It will be the first time the two candidates have met and follows weeks of personal attacks on Harris by Trump and his allies that have included racist and sexist insults.

Trump’s advisers and fellow Republicans have urged him to focus on the high levels of inflation and immigration that have taken place during Democrat Joe Biden’s presidency, though both have dropped dramatically this year.

“He’s ready to talk about why your life was better when he was in office,” Lara Trump, the candidate’s daughter-in-law, said on CNN.

Presidential debates do not necessarily change voters’ minds, but they can transform the dynamics of a race. Biden’s performance against Trump in June was so damaging that it eventually led him to abandon his campaign.

In a contest that could again come down to tens of thousands of votes in a handful of states, even a small shift in public opinion could alter the outcome. The two candidates are effectively tied in the seven battleground states likely to decide the election, according to polling averages compiled by the New York Times.

“There is more for Kamala Harris to gain and more for her to lose,” since she remains less known to many voters, said Mitchell McKinney, a former adviser to the US Commission on Presidential Debates.

Viewers will be looking for where she stands on various issues. But just as important, they will be looking to see how she handles herself against Trump, who is already well known.

“She spoke to the teleprompter the last 15 times I’ve saw her, so it’ll be interesting to see how she handles questions,” said Dave Boligitz, a Philadelphia hospital administrator.

Muted microphones

The 90-minute debate, hosted by ABC News, will take place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. As agreed by the campaigns, there will be no live audience and microphones will be muted when it is not a candidate’s turn to speak.

Harris has been preparing in Pittsburgh since Thursday, holding mock sessions on a stage with lights to recreate the debate environment.

Trump has relied on informal chats with advisers, campaign appearances and media interviews to prepare, with former Democratic congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard - who had a memorably hostile exchange with Harris in a Democratic presidential debate in 2019 - offering advice.

On a call with reporters, Gabbard said Trump would treat Harris the same as any other opponent.

“President Trump respects women and doesn’t feel the need to be patronizing or to speak to women in any other way than he would speak to a man,” she said.

While any personal crossfire will get plenty of attention, the two rivals are also likely to skirmish over issues.

Abortion has been a top issue for Harris and Democrats since 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court - powered by three Trump appointees - eliminated a nationwide right to the procedure in a broadly unpopular decision.

Harris has also sought to tie Trump to Project 2025, a conservative policy blueprint that proposes expanding executive power, eliminating environmental regulations and making it illegal to ship abortion pills across state lines, among other right-wing goals.

Trump has offered shifting rhetoric on abortion while distancing himself from Project 2025, even though many of his former advisers were involved in the effort.

Trump is expected to highlight Harris’ past support - since disavowed - for left-wing stances such as banning fracking, portraying her either as a flip-flopper or an extreme liberal in disguise.