5 reasons Kamala Harris is going to run rings around Mike Pence at tonight's debate

Kamala Harris and Mike Pence will debate each other on Wednesday evening and it’s expected to be an explosive match-up.

The vice presidential debate will likely not be as, er, messy as the presidential debate that saw Trump criticised for interrupting too much and speaking over Biden.

The debate will also reportedly see Harris and Pence debating with a plexiglass shield between them.

Unlike the three Presidential debates that Biden and Trump will do before the election, this will be the only debate between the two VPs.

So what can we expect from the debate? Judging from Kamala Harris’ past experiences, we’ve made some predictions:

1. Kamala Harris holds people to account

During Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination hearing in September 2018, Harris was widely praised for her “takedown” of the SCOTUS nominee.

Grilling him over Robert Mueller, Harris probed:

Have you ever discussed [Robert] Mueller or his investigation with anyone at Kasowitz Benson and Torres — the law firm founded by Mark Kasowitz, [who is] president Trump’s personal lawyer?

Kavanaugh attempted to avoid answering the question multiple times and a tense exchange between the pair took place over the next two minutes.

The takedown ended with Harris stating:

I think you’re thinking of someone and you don’t want to tell us.

Let’s hope she brings this same energy on Wednesday evening.

2. Kamala Harris tells the truth

Harris is big on truth. In fact, she even released a memoir last year titled The Truths We Hold.

According to Politifact, Kamala Harris’ scorecard on truth fares much better than Mike Pence’s.

The VP hopeful scored 37 per cent “mostly true” on the statements evaluated, while Pence only scored 12 per cent “mostly true”.

The public’s perception of Harris over Pence is also more favourable.

According to an ABC News/IPSOS poll in August, Harris is generally perceived as more “inspiring, honest and caring” than her VP rival.

At least 37 per cent said they see Harris favourably, compared to 32 per cent who said they see her in an unfavorable light.

Pence was viewed in a generally "negative" light, with at least 33 per cent of voters holding favourable views, compared with 47 per cent who have unfavourable views.

3. She speaks from the heart

During one of last year’s Democratic nominee debate, she actually took on Joe Biden over the issue of desegregation bussing.

This is the practice of transporting students to schools in different neighbourhoods in an effort to address racial segregation.

She said in June 2019:

I do not believe you are racist. But I also believe, and it is personal — it was hurtful to hear you talk about the reputations of two United States senators who built their reputations and careers on the segregation of race in this country.

This is in reference to Biden previously having “working relationships” with segregationists and late lawmakers James Eastland of Mississippi and Herman Talmadge of Georgia.

Harris also accused Biden of opposing busing, which Biden disputed.

But during her impassioned speech on the issue, she added:

There was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools, and she was bused to school every day, and that little girl was me.

The moment went viral online and the now-VP hopeful was praised for opening up about her past.

In 1975, Biden did sponsor a bill to ban the use of federal funds for bussing. He has since denied opposing bussing overall, saying he was only against it being ordered by the Department of Education.

All seemed to be forgiven in August this year when Biden posted about Harris via Instagram:

Her own life story is one that I and so many others can see ourselves in: a story that says that no matter where you come from, what you look like, how you worship, or who you love, there’s a place for you here.

4. Kamala Harris keeps her cool

It’s unlikely Kamala Harris will call her political opponent a “clown” or tell him to “shut up”, like Joe Biden did with Donald Trump last week.

Instead, she’ll probably keep her cool and rationally explain her point of view, according to fellow senator, Cory Booker.

Booker told Buzzfeed News on Monday:

She is very respectful and professional, but at the same time hard-hitting. And she does it in a way that doesn't break the formality or the decorum of a moment.

But I've sat next to her before, where, you know, I've winced! Because she's hit so hard.

Sounds like there won’t be any outbursts like Trump’s dummy spits last week...

5. She can deliver iconic one-liners

Time and time again, Kamala Harris has delivered some pretty satisfying one-liners and this debate is likely to have a few.

For example, she once said:

Let’s speak [the] truth here today — this president isn’t trying to make America great; he’s trying to make America hate.

She’s also said:

[Trump] inherited the longest economic expansion in history from Barack Obama and Joe Biden and then, like everything else he inherited, he ran it straight into the ground.

And then when the Democratic nominee debate last year got rowdy, she said:

Hey guys, America does not want to witness a food fight, they want to know how we’re going to put food on their table.

And who knows? Maybe one of her zingers will join the Biden campaign’s “Will you shut up, man?” t-shirt.