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Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (L) dances as he leaves the stage after speaking alongside former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard during a town hall meeting in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on Aug. 29, 2024.
Camille Krzaczynski | AFP | Getty Images
Former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who endorsed former Republican President Donald Trump's campaign, advises the GOP nominee to focus on Vice President Kamala Harris's policy shifts in their upcoming debate.
“Harris has already shown that she is trying to move away from her record, and move away from her positions.” Gabbard He said in an interview on Sunday with CNN's “State of the Union”:
Gabbard is part of a small group of Trump advisers helping the former president prepare for the debate, scheduled for Sept. 10 on ABC.
The Trump campaign insists the candidate does not participate in traditional debate role-playing practice sessions. However, Gabbard has the unique ability to help Trump understand what it will be like to debate Harris, given her firsthand experience during the 2020 Democratic primary.
“What I pointed out at that point in the 2020 campaign debate was her hypocrisy,” Gabbard said.
In July 2019, Gabbard launched a notable attack on Harris during a Democratic primary debate, noting that as a prosecutor she had received prison time for marijuana violations, and accusing Harris of not doing enough to eliminate cash bail.
At the time, criminal justice reform was a very popular issue among Democratic primary voters.
Five years later, Republicans are hoping Trump can replicate Gabbard's success in upsetting Harris, albeit on very different issues.
“Kamala Harris is trying to hide from voters,” Gabbard said Sunday. “She says her position is one thing, but her actions and her record show the exact opposite.”
Compared to Harris' platform in the 2019 Democratic primary, her policies in the 2024 general election lean more center than left, especially on issues like fracking and immigration.
But for Trump, following Gabbard's advice could carry risks as well as potential rewards.
The former Hawaii congresswoman shares Trump's conspiratorial view of how the Biden administration will wield power, and she regularly accused She accused the White House of targeting “political opponents,” including herself.
If Trump leans into these kinds of conspiratorial themes on the debate stage, he could risk drawing attention to his various legal battles, or even alienating undecided voters.
However, surrogates like Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the former Democrat turned third-party presidential candidate who recently dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump, allow the Republican to portray his campaign as a haven for independents and Democratic defectors.
The Trump campaign recently added both Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to its official transition team, and both are said to be in talks for potential cabinet positions if Trump wins the White House.
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