MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace wonders who Trump's 'misbehaved child' debate strategy was supposed to win over

(Image credit: Screenshot/TwiterMSNBC)

published 30 September 2020

Nicolle Wallace was not impressed with Tuesday night's debate between President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden. Specifically, she said on MSNBC, she was appalled at Trump's performance and underwhelmed by Chris Wallace's moderating.

"Chris Wallace did not act as a moderator, Donald Trump did not act as a debater," Nicolle Wallace said. "Donald Trump was the abuser, Chris Wallace was among the abused. Also among the abused, his opponent, who had a debate challenger who was cheating." Both campaigns agreed to the rules, "Donald Trump didn't follow them, and the debate moderator didn't hold his feet to the fire," she added. "And everyone who was suggesting, 'Oh, there was nothing he could do,' try driving down the freeway in a rainstorm with an 8-year-old in the back, screaming — there's always something you can do. You take the iPad and you throw it out the window. There is always something you can deprive a misbehaved child of, and in this case it was Donald Trump's desperate need for the oxygen of airtime."

As for Joe Biden, "men and women, I think, will react to this differently," Wallace said. "I think in the face of abuse, there's just a human instinct to defend, and so I think men might think Joe Biden missed opportunities to punch back. I think women might have appreciated that this didn't descend into pure violence. I mean, this felt like an assault." And it's clear Trump and his team "prepped for this" performance, she added. "I think the question now becomes 'why.' What's the plan, because that ain't gonna win you one vote from a mom in the suburbs."

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Wallace, who has worked on three Republican presidential campaigns, said "that is not how you talk to" suburban women, so "what are they doing?"

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.