On Thursday, Trump met the press at another open press conference, this time at his own golf club in New Jersey. There he answered questions from the press for a long time and fired off with criticism of Vice President Kamala Harris, Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz – and not least President Joe Biden.
It is the latest in a series of several press meetings Trump has held in a short time.
– Trump is trying a little desperately to win back the limelight. That is all this is about. His “trick” is always to grab media attention, says US expert and professor at the Norwegian University of Applied Sciences, Hilmar Mjelde, to NTB.
He believes the problem for Trump is that Harris beats him on his home turf. She collects the most money, climbs the charts, has the most enthusiastic fans. Trump is at a loss, says Mjelde.
– Trump is idling. He has one track and is unable to adapt or renew himself. His media appearances have lost all news value, he says.
Is Harris being shielded from interviews?
On Thursday, Harris and Biden simultaneously held their first joint election campaign appearance after Biden withdrew as a presidential candidate. At a local university in Largo, Maryland, just outside Washington, the crowd was busy thanking Biden while tributes poured in for Harris.
– It has really loosened up for Harris. She has become a much, much better candidate, says Mjelde.
And while Trump frequently meets the press, Harris has so far largely stuck to open campaign events. Mjelde believes it is a bad sign if Harris is shielded from the media.
– It’s a signal that her team thinks she won’t handle open interviews very well, but she can’t hide from those interviews very much anymore, he says.
Launched nicknames for Trump
At Thursday’s election campaign meeting, Biden launched a nickname for the Democrats’ opponent – namely Donald Dump.
– Isn’t it sinking a little to Trump’s level with such nicknames?
– Both Tim Walz’s lying joke about JD Vance and Biden’s ladle kick do not harmonize well with all their talk about raising the tone of the political debate. This is also Trump’s legacy to American politics. He vulgarized the political debate, and others are following suit, says Mjelde.
Even if the Democrats are right, Mjelde thinks this may be somewhat misleading. The Republicans and Trump tend to be much better off in the decisive swing states than the opinion polls suggest.
– I think this is a 50-50 race. But any candidate would clearly be in Harris’ rather than Trump’s position now, overall, he believes.
#expert #Trump #idling
2024-08-16 20:59:41
