Republicans were in damage control mode on Wednesday after former President Donald Trump appeared “unprepared” for his presidential debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, pointing blame at the team that coached him.
Even though Trump continues to proclaim he won the debate “by a lot”, some of his most loyal supporters believe he missed opportunities to define Harris and took her bait when she attempted to knock him off-script.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called Trump’s performance a “disaster” and told the Bulwark his debate team should be fired. Trump held informal policy sessions with a handful of advisers, including Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) and former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who once challenged Harris on the Democratic debate stage in 2019.
Chris Christie, a former Trump ally-turned-critic who has helped advise him for previous debates, said it was clear the former president wasn’t in the company of an experienced team.
“Whoever did debate prep for Donald Trump should be fired. He was not good tonight at all,” the former New Jersey governor said on ABC News immediately following the debate, calling him “unprepared.”
Gaetz defended Trump’s performance, mentioning that foreign policy was “a really strong point in the debate for President Trump.”
“He was able to show people that it was a more peaceful world when he was president, and that peace came through strength, and in a way, it came from unpredictability,” Gaetz said in the spin room on Tuesday.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) said Trump should have had more details in his back pocket when it comes to inflation, mortgage rates, and immigration.
“I do agree with Lindsey that there were missed opportunities for President Trump to make his point with more detail,” Cramer said, speaking with reporters on Wednesday. “People understand with four years between administrations, between low interest rates and high interest rates, and it would be helpful to have numbers to demonstrate it.”
“I do hope he tightens things up a little bit, he’s got the right message,” Cramer added.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), a prominent Trump critic, said he believed Harris handily won the debate.
“People saw, ‘Oh, she’s an intelligent, capable person who has a point of view on the issues,’ and she demonstrated that time and again,” Romney said.
While many Republicans accused the ABC News moderators of bias, they privately and publicly complained about Trump’s comments claiming the 2020 election was rigged and were dismayed he dwelled on his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
“I don’t think you should say stuff that maybe makes it harder for people to vote for you,” said Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN). “Anyone’s individual style, that’s up to them to figure out if it’s working or not.”
Meanwhile, allies have long worried that he’s too closely embraced Laura Loomer, a conspiracy-prone activist on the Right who was seen traveling with Trump on his plane to the Philadelphia debate.
Other Republicans, such as Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), defended Trump, calling him “passionate” and authentic, qualities that he said would ultimately help him win the election.
“We all know who Trump is — he’s a passionate guy, he’s a fighter. That’s who he is, and I think that’s why Americans like him,” Scott said.
Some pointed to Trump’s inability to stay on message, bringing up the viral moment in which he discussed an unfounded claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating residents’ pets.
“For the love of the Lord, why would he even waste time on this?” said a former Republican Senate leadership aide speaking on condition of anonymity. “It was so clear she was able to get under his skin, and it was just disappointing to see how poorly he reacted.”
A Republican donor, who asked to remain anonymous to speak freely, urged the former president not to focus on topics that aren’t winning issues in any future debates.
“He kept bringing the conversation back to abortion, and I don’t know why his team didn’t just tell him to give a short answer and move on,” the person said. “But continuing to fight on this issue, it was giving it more air time. Abortion is not a winning issue on our side right now, so just say you won’t institute a nationwide abortion ban and move on to the economy, immigration, or anything else.”
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It’s unclear whether there will be other debates between Trump and Harris. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO), who helped prepare the former president for his debate against President Joe Biden in June, said he’d be open to help advise the former president again.
“He had a knockout blow of a sitting president, and I helped him prepare for that,” Schmitt said. “I’d be happy to help wherever I can, like I have the whole time. I just want to see him win. I think that’s important for our country.”
Ramsey Touchberry contributed to this report.
