Claire McCaskill: Harris' interview performance answered voters' questions. Trump's sparked more
This is an adapted excerpt from the Oct. 15 episode of "Morning Joe."
On Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris participated in a live town hall in Detroit with radio host Charlamagne Tha God. The wide-ranging conversation covered everything from Harris' upbringing to her record as a prosecutor to the dangers of disinformation.
On the same day, Donald Trump sat for an interview with the editor-in-chief of Bloomberg News at the Economic Club of Chicago. During that interview, the former president ranted about tariffs, his new "favorite word," continued to dodge the question of whether he would accept the results of the upcoming election , and insisted he oversaw a peaceful transfer of power in 2020 even though his supporters violently mobbed the U.S. Capitol.
I wish we could require every American citizen to sit down and watch those interviews, side by side, in their entirety. It would show just how stark the contrast is between the two candidates.
Since Harris entered the race, she has gained in her stature, her poise and her ability to — with discipline — articulate a very clear message about what she will do and what her priorities will be as president. Trump is going the other way. Harris is rising to the moment and he is falling.
Trump's incoherent interview on Tuesday also highlighted a major issue for him in this election: his cognitive ability. In August, Trump told CBS News he would "very gladly" release his medical records to the public. But here we are, two months later and weeks away from the election, and he's still yet to release those records. While Trump hides his medical history, he's going after Harris for hers, calling the vice president's allergies "dangerous."
I want you to think back to just a few months ago when everyone was worried about President Joe Biden's age. After his debate with Trump, Biden did a gut check and said, "Yeah, I think I should pass the torch." Trump would never do the same. He is the oldest man who's ever run for president. If Trump wins in November, he will be in his 80s sitting in the Oval Office, and he's refusing to tell the American people the truth about his health.
