SAVANNAH, Georgia — Georgia voters strongly support former President Donald Trump’s decision not to debate Vice President Kamala Harris on CNN in late October despite growing pressure from Democrats to face off again.
Trump supporters, who descended on coastal Georgia on Tuesday for the Republican presidential nominee’s inaugural visit to the city this election cycle, defended him and said he had already been clear about his policy views in the previous two debates.
Harris indicated after the Sept. 10 debate with Trump that she wanted another debate and characterized Trump’s disinterest as cowardly. The Democratic National Committee has since launched an ad campaign that pictures Trump in a chicken suit in an effort to pressure him into another debate.
Voters on site Tuesday said Trump should ignore Democrats goading.
“I don’t think there’s a need to,” said Jamie Kennedy, a Georgia resident who spoke with the Washington Examiner. “He’s already debated twice, and he hasn’t changed anything. He’s still going to do everything he said he was going to do, whereas [Harris] keeps on flip-flopping. It’s not like she’s going to answer any questions.”
Jody Lanier works in the coastal Georgia real estate market and said Trump does not need to clarify his views, unlike the Democratic Party, which has run two candidates, one of whom has admitted to shifting policy views.
“He’s already debated Biden, and then he’s debated Kamala. So they’re the ones that changed nominees, not us. We’ve been very consistent. He’s been very consistent,” said Lanier, 57.
Since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris has faced criticism for her shifting stances on Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, a mandatory gun buyback program, a fracking ban, expanding the Supreme Court, and a federal job guarantee. However, Harris supporters who spoke with the Washington Examiner at a recent Savannah rally in September said they were not concerned about her change in views.
Melissa Weatherly, a registered nurse and Savannah resident, attended the rally alongside her mother. Weatherly said Trump should refuse to debate unless Fox News hosts the event as opposed to CNN.
“They can go to Fox and do it on Fox because he had one [debate] set up on Fox, and she wouldn’t show up to that one,” said Weatherly.
Trump declined to debate a third time and stated during a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, on Sunday that he had already completed two debates.
“The problem with another debate is that it’s just too late. Voting has already started,” Trump said. “She’s had her chance to do it with Fox. Fox invited us on, and I waited and waited. They turned it down.”
Lanier agreed and said another debate would be unfair to people who had already cast their ballots.
“I agree with him that the voting has already started,” said Lanier. “He was always telling them that you should have had the debates before the voting started. She had opportunities to do that and turned him down until after the second debate.”
Trump declines second CNN debate: “I’ve already done two…The problem with another debate is that it’s just too late. Voting has already started. She’s had her chance to do it with Fox. Fox invited us on, and I waited and waited. They turned it down.” pic.twitter.com/rhispm3zVZ
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 21, 2024
Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA) told the Washington Examiner on Capitol Hill on Tuesday afternoon that another Trump-Harris debate would be a good thing.
“I think anyone who’s undecided absolutely wants to continue to hear from the candidates because it’s about a contrast, and there’s a clear contrast on the stage at the first debate,” Williams said. “However, President — future President Harris has already agreed to a second debate, and she’s ready to continue to put her ideas and put herself before the American people, and he should do the same.”
Georgia Southern University student Ethan Miller broke with the others at the rally and supported the idea of Trump debating Harris on CNN in late October. Miller said the additional air time could help Trump appeal to moderate and independent voters, particularly if Trump hits on one particular matter.
“I do think he should debate again,” said Miller, a senior who is studying political science and philosophy in Statesboro, Georgia.
“He needs to hit more on the economy. He has to hammer that in, especially to get at least like, in my opinion, to get more younger voters out there,” Miller continued. “I’m in college. What’s going through my mind is being able to go into a job-rich workforce when I graduate. So that’s what I’m most worried about.”
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In his speech Tuesday afternoon, Trump trounced Harris’s performance, adding that he had “absolutely destroyed her.”
“It was 3 on 1, too,” Trump said, enforcing an earlier claim that one of the ABC News hosts challenged him to an unfair extent.