Arizona political expert: Donald Trump let Kamala Harris off easy on immigration issue
Sep 11, 2024, 10:00 AM | Updated: 10:37 am
Republican Donald Trump speaks during the presidential debate with Democrat Kamala Harris on Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
PHOENIX – An Arizona political expert thinks former President Donald Trump let Vice President Kamala Harris off the hook on the issue of immigration during Tuesday’s presidential debate.
“What stood out for me was what should have been Trump’s main issue, which is Arizona’s main issue, didn’t end up landing for him,” Stan Barnes, founder of Phoenix’s Copper State Consulting Group, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Arizona’s Morning News on Wednesday.
Recent polling shows how important the issue of immigration is in the Grand Canyon State. More Arizona voters cite it as their top concern than any other issue, according to an August survey by Noble Predictive Insights. The Phoenix-based research firm also found strong support for Proposition 314, a Republican-backed border security-related ballot measure.
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The issue of immigration “exists like a dead cat at the front door of the White House,” Barnes said.
“I mean, it’s right there for everybody to see is a Democratic problem given that [President] Joe Biden unwound everything that Trump had done,” he added.
What did Trump say about issue of immigration?
While the Republican nominee actually did refer to dead cats when discussing immigration, it was to amplify false rumors that Haitian immigrants in Ohio were abducting and eating neighborhood pets.
“They’re eating the dogs. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” he said.
Harris called Trump “extreme” and laughed after his comment. Debate moderators pointed out that local officials in Ohio have said the claims are not true.
Barnes said it’s good politics for Trump to attack his Democratic opponent and the current administration for their policies on immigration and the southern border whenever he can, but he missed his chance during what could be his only debate with Harris.
“Kamala Harris never got pinned down on that. She should have been on the defense about that, but she never was,” Barnes said. “And so what stood out to me was, she did not have to account for a broken system under her watch, and she got away with acting like she had nothing to do with any of it.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
