For Civility Right . 6 00 a. M. On the east coast. A live look at the national Constitution Center in philly philadelphia. Thats where were going to see tonight historic president ial debate go down in just a few hours. Good morning, everyone. Im kasie hunt. Its wonderful to have you with us in just hours. Donald trump and Kamala Harris will meet on that Philadelphia Stage for what might be their only president ial debate of the 2024 election. Debate. It host Abc News shared this first look at the stage. Harris and trump will stand behind podiums just a few feet apart. Their microphones will be muted when it is not their turn to speak tonight will be the first time that the candidates meet Each Other in person. Trump didnt attend Biden And Harriss inauguration after he refused to acknowledge the results of the 2020 election. This one night presents harris with the opportunity to introduce yourself to millions of americans and two voters who polls show, say that they need to learn more about her. The Vice President has been preparing intensely for tonight and for an appalling unlike any, she has debated before he played from this really old and tired playbook, right . For him in terms of how long he will go and we should be prepared for that. Trumps own preparations characteristically informal. His advisors calling them policy sessions. The former president likely to try to define harris on his terms. One Potential Line of attack previewed yesterday by campaign senior adviser Jason Miller its very clear that Kamala Harris is the one whos time. And other opening, i do want to point out here tha all the flipflops within the illfated interview with Dana Bash is kamalas said that her values havent changed after june cnn debate. It is nearly impossible to argue that debates never matter. So you do have to wonder what might happen tonight. That will remember long after this campaign is done they say the difference between a Hockey Mom and a pit bull lipstick. Would you who is there you go again. But can you get things done america does not want a witness a food fight. They want to know how were going to put food on their table youre lucky enough. Thank you so get those hands. Are they small senator, youre no, jack kennedy center, obama i am not president bush. If he wanted to run against president bush, you should have run four years ago all right. Our panels here on this historic day. Alex thompson, cnn political analyst, national political reporter for axios, mark mckinnon, former adviser to George W Bush and the man you just saw there, john mccain, karen finney, cnn political commentator, former adviser to Hillary Clintons 2016 campaigns and brad todd, republican strategist and partner, its public Strategy Firm on message. Welcome to all of you thank you so much for being here mark, big day debates. How much do they matter . How much does this one matter . What are you looking for tonight . Tension City Baby at georgia theres so much on the line, particularly for harris. I mean, it doesnt matter what trumps going to do. Hes not going to move the needle with one vote. I doubt, but harris has a real opportunity, 30 of voters feel like they dont know enough about are yet. So this is all about her opportunity to define herself and also trumps opportunity to do the same about her. So thats what i look for and and the key here, i say, i wrote in my vanity about confidence. Youve ever done debate training. The key to a candidate youre getting out there is, i mean in a sense, this is kind of game of thrones. Shes Saenz A Stark he does hold or youve got to give. Here, are you going to get him baby . Both both internally and externally . Shes got to show strength confidence, and go just kicks him as well in her team has raised the stakes for the debate by the virtue of the fact that shes done very few spontaneous moments since she basically entered this race on july 21. As a result, voters that that citizen you cited from the New York Times poll was 30 . People dont feel like they know her. So she has raised the stakes in this debate and thats also why youve seen her really hold up in pittsburgh. The one anxiety i hear from a lot of democrats, both biden administration officials, harris, its officials former and current is like is this new kamala are old calm law, right . There. Is this the new very competent person weve seen on the stump these last seven weeks, or is the old kamala from 2019, that basically never made it to the our caucus. So im going to dis slightly in that i think the stakes for the former president they are pretty high as well and that is because he will be facing two black women at the same time and he does not do well with black women. You could ask me, shall send our own abby philip, you can as April Mao Era april, you can ask the nabj he does not do. Wow with serious questions being posed by by black women so i think that is why his team overrode his idea to like, lets go free for all. Lets all have the microphones. Know. They were like no hot my x because they know that is a real danger to this president. And how he behaves for him. Ng the debate, with Joe Biden, we will come away saying yes, hes old, hes were all because we focus so much on i didnt the last time she got away with a lot. I disagree. I think the most important moment in that debate with Donald Trump said, you know, i dont know what he said, no think he knew what he said. He actually is a pretty good game time player, but i agree with karen that this is very important Debate Night for him. Its one of the few times Kamala Harris is going to be under pressures. Weve seen that effectively. Shes running a basement campaign. He can put her under pressure and he could hold her accountable for what she said in 2020, which was a platform that was the further left than you the democrat who has ever run for president has got to do that. Can i push you a little bit on to karens point about how he has interacted. She mentioned black women specifically, but women in general. Right . We were just showing that moment with Hillary Clinton where he kind of knowing Donald Trump. I think hes basically trying to put himself in a Camera Frame when hes kinda behind her like that. He knows those were the Cameras Thatt was kinda threatening and something that didnt use i dont think appeal to women. Obviously, he won this election in the long run but what are the pitfalls for him . Oh, look hes insulted. Plenty of people of all genders, parties, and persuasions had plenty of times in live television, theres a real danger for him coming across like a jerk thats always the thing that Donald Trump has in many ways, these two people are misfits, dont trumps not as nice as most people would like their president to be Kamala Harris is not near a centrist as theyd like to present to be. Thats what the battle is tonight. Heres a strategic question for you you. That theres a line of attack that trump is obviously taking, is that that harris is flipflopping. But the more effective line is that shes liberal. So why go in the flipflopper line, because then youre saying shes becoming a centrist. The stay just like flipflop because its weak into him, strength, weaknesses, the ideology. Well, the most important perception of a Candidate Running for president is the perception of strength, right . Hold up so Lyndon Johnson was not the 1965 civil Rights Act when he was Vice President. He did pass it when he was president. Is that a thats not a bad flipflop. Well, hold on. Ill take that Flip Flop because we want leaders who can learn new information. Take the input and say, you know what the country is changed. Ive learned new information and i too, im going to change heres what he had. No. He has not asked she know she sends Brittany Statements by spokesman, she doesnt say she needs to explain. I was wrong. She never said i was wrong in 2020. She doesnt she says, oh, i have learned experiences. Thats different than saying you were wrong. Why was she to what she change or other democrats wrong . Why she changed. I will i will say the one thing thats been consistent about all of these changes as theyve all gone from the left to the center, which again suggests that this is more about a political move than a sincere change of ideology. Now of course, maybe it is sincere, but the fact is that alex, you can say that it may look like that on the surface, but you know, her heart well, whats in her heart . I dont believe youre just values. And on the other hand, we do have a series of policy positions actually told the all in the same direction. I completely agree. I dont know whats in her im only putting out but it is consistent that all of these positions have gone from the left of center, and the fact is that she has its not been really toughly questioned in interviews about why she needs to tell us. Our are there democrats wrong to be for defund the police, are they wrong to want a decriminalised illegal crossings . Are they wrong to ban fracking gus your chest as the far left says, anyone final thought from, you gotta go this one criticism i have harris on this is that i think shes too defensive about it. And rather than sort of go to this, you know, youre attacking my record my values havent changed to say, yeah you know, i used to be against fracking when we didnt have as much information, weve learned a lot. We now know its a lot safer. We know its a better alternative to gas and oil, but thats basically what she says. She said my values havent changed. What ive learned now is that there is a way to have a clean Energy Economy without having fracking me apart, without banning fracking. I think the ultimate reality here is that there are a lot of voters who still dont fully understand this argument that you guys are having right here. Were going to see a lot. Were going to learn a Lot Tonight from her. And obviously our panel is going to be back in just moments to watch Vice President harris and former President Trump on the Debate Stage Tonight, tune in to the abc News President ial debate simulcast. Its tonight at 9 00 p. M. Eastern. You can watch it right here on cnn. I want to be live in philadelphia for cnns special Coverage And Analysis before the debate. And coming up next here on cnn this morning, a catastrophic failure of Epic Proportions. That is how republicans are describing the 20 21 withdrawal from afghanistan in a scathing new report, plus the civilian astronauts streaking through space as we speak, how they hope to make History And D change the whole race i think mr. Nixon is an effective leader of his party i hope he would grant me the same question before us is which Point Of View and which party do we want to leave the united states Kamala Harris for follow for complete coverage and exclusive pre and postdebate analysis. 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I was not going to extend this forever war and i was not extending a Forever Exit 13 American service men lost their lives during the chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan on august 30, 2021, house republicans and Democrats Releasing Dueling Reports on monday, Casting Blame for the botched exit on Each Other. The republican report highly critical pull the biden administration claiming the president and Vice President harris lied to the american people at every stage of the withdrawal its a historic document its not a political document there was a document designed to get to the truth. This was a catastrophic failure of Epic Proportions some say saigon was the worst i say this was that was house foreign Affairs Committee Chairman mike mccaul. Hes now threatening to hold secretary of State Anthony Blinken in contempt if he refuses to testify about the withdrawal. Mark mckinnon, this was obviously a really, really difficult moment in american history at period what happened at Abbey Gate . Obviously its become a major is your political Focal Point of this campaign. And it also speaks to the bigger issue that the Trump Campaign is dealing with as they try to tie Kamala Harris to President Biden because one of the things this report did was talk more about harris is role than it likely would have where she not at the top of the ticket, how should she be addressing this . This issue . Its obviously become an issue as well with what happened at arlington cemetery. Well, i mean, wars are hell. I mean, we how long were you afghanistan . Decades and have we ever withdrawn from a war easily or casually, or without casualties i dont think so loss of any american life is is, is never acceptable and it should certainly be a worthy of investigation to find out what went wrong and what could have been done better. But i dont think i dont get a sense that american voters are sitting here today going, oh, we really screwed up and afghanistan and its bidens fault. I mean, trumps the one that plan the Exit And Biden got it done, which was credibly, hard thing that well, i will say, i do think some republicans do think its effective, which is why theyre doing this report now, i mean, he Chairman Mccall may say that this is not political. I dont know whats in his heart but lets lets be hone