Fear of a 'mean, bully Trump' showing up at Harris debate has his advisers on edge: NYT

In a deep dive into the debate preparations currently underway for Tuesday night when Donald Trump will face off with Vice President Kamala Harris, the New York Times is reporting that some of the former president's advisers are worried he may come on too strong and alienate voters who have tuned in.

At issue, the Times is reporting, is the unpredictability of Trump, who reportedly has little respect for his opponent, with the report stating, "Mr. Trump plainly believes that Ms. Harris is unintelligent, advisers and allies say. In private, he uses misogynistic language to describe her and gossips about her past romantic relationships, including with Willie Brown, the former mayor of San Francisco."

That has aides on edge that "he could appear overly aggressive" as he was in his first debate with now-President Joe Biden back in 2020 that helped lead to his re-election loss.

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With Harris as his opponent, there are now worries he could go over-the-top with personal attacks or be so afraid to engage his opponent that he comes off as diminished just as questions about his advanced age are being asked.

According to the Times, "The former president’s allies and advisers have urged him to be 'happy Trump' in the debate rather than 'mean, bully Trump,' as one close ally put it, while pressing a policy-based case against Ms. Harris. There are risks to that approach as well: One ally warned that if Mr. Trump tried to stay on his best behavior, he could overcorrect and come across as 'low energy.'"

The report adds, "In private, Mr. Trump has toyed repeatedly with dropping out of the debate, which is being hosted by ABC News, one of his least favorite networks. (No other debates are scheduled yet.) He has ranted about what he claims is its unfairness toward him and has proposed debates on other networks."

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