Outside view from across the pond:

It appears from the outset that the Trump camp is tripping over it’s own feet and stepping on landmine after landmine. Literally all Harris seems to have to do is stay on message, bat off anything too controversial, and let the opposition’s trousers fall down by themselves.

It’ll be interesting either way. The only real surprise to me will be whether I’ll learn about key moments from news outlets or from mad memez first.

I can see where it looks that way, but you have to understand that Trump’s fanbase literally does not care.

Trump could start the debate by dropping trou and laying a turd live on stage and MAGA would go on about how he’s “owning ABC and the libs!”

The media would cut away and claim “Trump opened the debate by declaring his disdain for the process…”

I get it - I think at this point Trump could empty an AK47 magazine into an orphanage and his core voters wouldn’t give a fuck.

I’d imagine there is a good chunk of silent “left-of-Republican” market though - people who have voted red because that’s what they’ve always done, maybe because their household is overwhelmingly Republican but they’re ready to break ranks, or even those who boarded the meme train in 2013 or 14 but are ready to get off.

I suppose an awkward analogy is being in a group of twenty people trying to get in to a bar with one or two cunts who are beyond mangled - the sensible ones looking at them and thinking “yeah I’ve stuck with them this far, but maybe I can make a change and enjoy the rest of the night with people who are largely sensible”.