"Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking."
Kamala Harris’ sharp retort during the 2020 debate with then-Vice President Mike Pence encapsulates the strategy she's employing against Donald Trump in their upcoming debate on ABC News, set for September 10.
While most Democrats have had enough of Trump’s rhetoric, Harris is eager to let him speak freely during the debate. Her team is pushing to overturn a rule secured by President Joe Biden’s team in their June debate with Trump, which muted a candidate's microphone when it wasn’t their turn to speak. This rule aimed to prevent Trump’s interruptions, which were a major issue during the 2020 debates, leading Biden to famously say, “Will you shut up, man?”
Harris' camp hopes to give Trump enough rope to potentially hang himself with his own words, whether through an insulting interruption or by letting his domineering personality shine through.
Trump’s team, however, is resistant to the change, though Trump himself has said he wouldn’t mind if the mute button were removed. This is a critical moment for Trump, who has struggled to adapt to facing Harris after Biden’s withdrawal. The debate may be his best chance to slow Harris' momentum, particularly since his team believes she's unprepared for the kind of pressure Trump can bring in a debate setting.
CNN political analyst Scott Jennings, a Republican, emphasized the stakes: "Trump needs to debate. Harris needs to debate. They both have something to prove."
The ongoing spat over the debate format underscores how Harris has shifted the campaign dynamics. Her team has enjoyed trolling Trump—the ultimate political troll—releasing a web video mocking him as a chicken for potentially backing out of the debate. Harris aides also suggested that Trump’s handlers were too intimidated to discuss the microphone issue with him directly.
Allowing open mics would test Trump’s self-discipline during the debate with Harris, at a time when GOP strategists are urging him to focus on policy and abandon his usual confrontational style. Visuals of Trump talking over or disrespecting Harris, who could become the first Black woman president, would likely resonate negatively, particularly among women, minorities, and suburban voters in key swing states.
Such a scenario would support Harris' broader campaign message, which she articulated during the Democratic Convention: Americans have a fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism, and divisiveness of the past.
"The Vice President wants the American people to see an unfettered Donald Trump because that’s what we will get if he becomes president again," Harris campaign spokesman Ian Sams told CNN.
However, this strategy isn't without risk for Harris. In 2016, Trump’s interruptions during his debates with Hillary Clinton disrupted her flow, yet he still won the election. Maria Cardona, a CNN political commentator, offered another reason Harris might favor open mics: "By having the mics unmuted, it will give her the ability to control both what she says and fact-check him on the spot."
Harris’ viral moment in 2020
In her 2020 debate with Pence, conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, Harris memorably shut down an interruption by raising her hand and stating, "Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking. ... I’m speaking." This prepared moment left an impression of Pence as "mansplaining" to Harris, an image amplified by their contrasting races and genders. Harris liked the phrase so much she used it again later in the debate.
The phrase quickly went viral, spawning social media memes and merchandise that helped bolster Harris' public persona.
The current debate over the September 10 event's format is exposing familiar tensions within the Trump campaign. While Trump’s staff prefers muted microphones, senior adviser Jason Miller said that the former president had agreed to the same debate terms as his previous one with Biden. Miller also implied that Harris' change of stance suggested her debate preparations were faltering.
However, Trump, as he often does, seemed to undermine his team’s position. “It doesn’t matter to me, I’d rather have it probably on but the agreement was everyone be the same as it was last time,” Trump said at a campaign stop in Virginia.
Harris’ team quickly seized on Trump’s statement, with Sams declaring on CNN that the former president had settled the matter in favor of open mics. "We heard from the horse’s mouth," Sams said.
