Exclusive: Republican members of the House are privately expressing disappointment about former President Trump’s performance in Tuesday’s debate against Vice President Kamala Harris.
Several House GOP lawmakers, speaking on the condition of anonymity to speak openly, believed Trump had “missed” opportunities to effectively attack Harris and promote his own record. Some said the prevailing sentiment within the House Republican Conference was that Harris successfully trapped him on several occasions — though most argued that it would ultimately have little impact on election day.
“It was horrible. I think that’s the comment you’re seeing from everybody,” one senior House Republican told Fox News Digital.
“The worst part is that he had several opportunities to get after her, but he couldn’t. He got stuck in the hook that she was dragging in the water.”
There was a clear winner in the Trump-Harris contest, but don’t assume this election is over
US Vice President Kamala Harris and former US President Donald Trump during the second presidential debate at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, Tuesday, September 10, 2024. (Getty Images)
Another House Republican went further, calling the debate a “trash dump” on the former president.
“It was the worst bloodshed I’ve ever seen,” the lawmaker said. “But the thing is, even this scene – Trump looks old standing next to Kamala Harris. He didn’t look old standing next to Biden … and that’s something you can’t fix.”
While most Republicans ignored the debate’s ultimate impact on the election, that lawmaker was concerned, “I think it will impact the election.” People in the middleThe ones that matter.”
A third Republican said “she’s definitely gotten into their heads,” and his fellow conference members agreed. “He did well.”
GOP lawmakers who spoke to Fox News Digital argued that Trump’s policies and record are far stronger than Harris’s and were disappointed that they weren’t a bigger part of her performance.
Harris tells Trump during debate she’s ‘not fighting against Joe Biden’
“While she made a lot of (good) points, she managed to evade all of those arguments,” a third Republican said. “We need to stop treating her like she’s Joe Biden, who can’t express her views, and treat her like Hillary Clinton.”
“I don’t like answering questions about cats, dogs and immigrants,” a fourth Republican lawmaker said when asked for his reaction to the debate.
Many Republicans privately expressed disappointment in Trump’s performance (Vin McNamee)
However, the person also said Harris “had to present herself as a credible person and someone with a policy agenda, but she didn’t do that.”
However, when asked if Harris successfully framed him, he said it was Trump’s own “fault”.
Another Republican said he had not discussed the debate with GOP colleagues, adding, “I think everybody is disappointed by it.”
“They set a trap and he fell into it. He wasn’t helped, but there were easier things he could have said,” said a fifth MP. “You want to talk about the border, the world on fire, inflation – that’s all he had to do. Instead, he provoked and provoked until he got a response.”
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“I think they missed some opportunities to highlight his record. And I’ll leave it at that,” the sixth Republican senator said, smiling coyly.
A seventh Republican who spoke to Fox News Digital at the end of the debate Tuesday night said Harris was “doing a good job of provoking them.”
“They are right on policy, but they fail to get the message across,” he complained.
However, most Republican members who spoke on the House floor publicly praised Trump, and top Republican leaders declared the former president’s victory within minutes of the debate.
“Tonight, President Donald Trump has exposed Vice President Kamala Harris as the dangerous radical she has always been,” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement Tuesday night.
Speaker Mike Johnson praised Trump’s performance, as did most Republicans speaking publicly. (Getty Images)
Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, who helped Trump prepare for the debate, told reporters Wednesday that the former president “did a great job.”
“Look, the debate was about immigration and the economy. These are the issues that President Trump values with voters,” he said.
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Trump himself posted on his Truthout social app shortly after the debate, “People are saying there’s going to be a big win tonight!”
When contacted for comment on this story, the Trump campaign pointed Fox News Digital to its statement on Tuesday night’s debate, which said, “President Trump delivered an excellent debate performance tonight, prosecuting Kamala Harris’s abhorrent record of failure to stand up to the nation that has harmed Americans for the last 4 years.”
“We watched President Trump lay out his bold vision for America and how he would build on the successes of his first term by boosting the economy, securing the border, and curbing the crime that is ravaging communities across the country,” the statement said.
“In contrast, Kamala’s vision of America is a dark reminder of Joe Biden’s oppressive, big government policies, which she seeks to continue.”
