Republicans are expressing concerns that Donald Trump’s unpredictable debate performance on Tuesday night may have damaged his opportunity to undermine Kamala Harris’ appeal to swing voters. Party strategists and leaders labeled Trump’s showing as a “missed opportunity” that could impact his prospects at the polls in November.

The debate, organized by ABC News, was crucial for both presidential campaigns. Democratic candidate Harris aimed to introduce herself to voters following a hectic two-month campaign while demonstrating her ability to handle significant pressure. Trump approached the face-off with the intent to counter Harris’ initial momentum and connect her to the public’s dissatisfaction with the Biden administration regarding issues such as the economy and immigration.

However, some Republicans who spoke with YSL News immediately after the debate believe Trump failed to effectively communicate his key messages, while Harris consistently placed him on the defensive, addressing everything from his rally attendances to the events of January 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol. Trump’s frequent detours during the debate diverted attention from his main arguments against Harris, leaving many in the GOP feeling he fell short on a significant platform.

“He missed a big chance to define Harris,” commented Mike DuHaime, a GOP consultant and former political director for the Republican National Committee, adding, “All the pressure was on Harris to show she was capable… Harris succeeded, partly due to Trump’s ineffectiveness.”

Trump may not encounter another favorable opportunity like the one he had on Tuesday night. With no further presidential debates scheduled, the 2024 GOP nominee has suggested he may choose to skip future debates.

Obama and Bush faced debate challenges but won the presidency

Determining the significance of any individual debate can be challenging.

Trump ended President Joe Biden’s candidacy in June after their debate revealed the 81-year-old incumbent’s advanced age and lack of coherence. Typically, losing a debate has not proved to be a death knell for candidates. Trump faced difficulties in the 2016 debates against Hillary Clinton but still secured the presidency, and both former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush overcame debate setbacks to achieve victory in their respective campaigns. However, few events in a campaign compare to the direct confrontations between presidential candidates, which allow voters to compare them side by side.

“Debates are significant events in presidential politics,” remarked GOP consultant Alex Conant, who was involved in Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio’s unsuccessful 2016 presidential bid. “Very little else can shift the trajectory of a race. Not only did (Trump) waste his chance, but she also took advantage of hers.”

GOP strategist Karl Rove, known for leading Bush’s successful presidential campaigns in 2000 and 2004, offered a blunt evaluation of Trump’s weak performance.

“Will this debate make an impact? Yes, although perhaps not as much as Team Harris anticipates or as much as Team Trump might worry,” Rove commented on Wednesday in the Wall Street Journal. “However, there’s no sugarcoating this. Mr. Trump was outperformed by someone he previously mocked as ‘dumb as a rock.’ Which raises the question: What does that imply about him?”

In response to the criticism from some Republicans regarding their nominee’s debate performance, the Trump campaign referred to a statement released right after the debate by senior advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles, which claimed: “President Trump delivered a masterful debate performance tonight, holding Kamala Harris accountable for her dismal record of failures.”

Trump similarly asserted in a Fox News interview on Wednesday that he emerged victorious in the debate against Harris, despite expressing frustrations about the moderators, feelings echoed by numerous supporters. His allies maintain that he still possesses a compelling argument against Harris and that Republicans hold advantages on critical policy discussions.

Ralph Reed, a Trump supporter who is also the founder and chairman of the Faith & Freedom Coalition, stated that Trump’s campaign will continue to highlight Harris’s shortcomings on the economy and immigration. “Those topics will weigh heavily on her in the long run, and I am more concerned about that than the debate’s outcome,” Reed said.

When asked his opinion on the debate results, Reed criticized the moderators, describing the debate format as “very unfair.”

“Considering the challenges he faced and the perceived bias against him, I thought he managed to hold his ground,” Reed added.

Trump supporters call for ‘calm’

Several Trump backers acknowledged that Harris employed an effective debate tactic.

Representative Byron Donalds, a Republican from Florida, noted that Harris’ strategy of getting under Trump’s skin worked well, arguing that more debates would help clarify her position within the Biden administration.

What advice would he give Trump for future debates?

“Stay calm,” Donalds advised YSL News after the debate in Philadelphia. “She’s attacking you because she’s trailing and lacks a solid plan to address the American people’s challenges. If she had one, she would articulate it.”

The Florida congressman has become one of Trump’s more vocal advocates during the campaign after being considered for a House leadership role in 2023. He was also mentioned as a possible vice presidential pick and is set to join Kash Patel, a former senior Pentagon official under Trump, at a campaign event focused on policy in Bermuda Run, North Carolina on Thursday.

During the interview, Donalds expressed that Trump has previously demonstrated the ability to convey a concise message and could do so again.

“He did show some frustration at times, but you’d be frustrated too if someone was misrepresenting you, your record, your statements, and your financial journey,” Donalds remarked. “What we learned on Tuesday is that Kamala Harris is quite adept at provoking others.”

Other Republicans who were present in the spin room shared similar assessments of the 90-minute debate. They believed that while Harris didn’t convincingly outline how she would enhance American lives, she succeeded in unsettling Trump in front of a nationwide audience.

“The idea that the country is going to shift under her leadership felt unconvincing… It came off as just empty promises,” said Senator Lindsey Graham from South Carolina.

He also praised Trump’s closing remarks. “I would have gone harder on that point, sooner,” added the senator, who ran against Trump in the 2016 Republican primaries.

‘A lost chance’

The debate moderators from ABC News conducted fact checks on Trump’s comments regarding immigration, abortion, and crime during the event. Some Republicans argued that they could have done more fact-checking of Harris’ statements. Vermont GOP Chair Paul Dame, who is also a member of the Republican National Committee, questioned the fairness of the moderators while sharing his view that Trump had a poor performance, labeling it as his “worst debate ever.”

Dame remarked in an interview that Trump became sidetracked by “a hundred trivial matters.”

“Topics like crowd sizes and other irrelevant things seemed to take precedence,” he added. “Trump understands what his main issues are: the economy and public safety, and I thought he veered quite off course from those vital topics.”

Dame observed that Trump seemed to be addressing his loyal rally audiences instead of the wider audience watching the debate, arguing that his inability to adjust his speech potentially cost him support from undecided voters.

“This is certainly a missed opportunity; it’s a swing and a miss,” Dame commented. “He had the chance to show the middle ground that he could restore order, and he didn’t manage to do that. In fact, I think Harris presented herself better in that regard.”

Trump now has just two months to make adjustments and try to build a broad enough support base to secure a second non-consecutive term in the White House.

David Jolly, a former Republican congressman from Florida who is now independent, mentioned that Trump caused some damage to himself during the debate but is hopeful the race will remain close and believes Trump has time to recover. He noted that the debate didn’t significantly hurt Trump as it had for Biden previously.

“Not by a long shot,” he said. “Last night’s debate won’t be the deciding factor in this election.”

Jolly, who provides commentary for MSNBC, indicated that he thinks Trump will continue to rely on “negative partisanship” to portray Harris unfavorably to swing voters.

That approach was effective in 2016 against Clinton but not against Biden in 2020, and Jolly believes that it’s faltering again in 2024. Instead, he argued, Harris has successfully conveyed a message of “turning the page” to move beyond the strife of the Trump administration.

“Donald Trump hasn’t grasped that yet,” Jolly stated. “Until he recognizes that it’s his biggest liability, he’s in a precarious position heading into November, and his team is aware of it.”

He concluded: “We saw a candidate in distress last night without a doubt.”