A warm night in Westwood

The first–and possibly only–2024 Presidential Debate in Philadelphia made its West Coast debut in an environment not especially hospitable to former President and current nominee Donald J. Trump. It was, perhaps, predictable that the crowd assembled at the Hammer Museum on Tuesday, Sept. 10, was slanted towards Democratic hopeful Vice President Kamala Harris, given its location in Westwood and the proximity of UCLA.
The two-hundred-person capacity Susan Bay Nimoy and Leonard Nimoy Studio began at 5 p.m., gradually filling the room over the next hour, with a sizable overflow in the adjacent Billy Wilder Theater. As wait staff shuttled drinks from the restaurant within the edifice, the availability of alcohol contributed to an atmosphere akin to the Comedy Store, the Laugh Factory, or similar venues.
As the exchange got underway, Harris seemed to be more prepared with a game plan conceived to goad the former president by pushing his buttons. Trump in turn defended his record and blamed every misstep over the past 3? years on the administration helmed by Harris and President Joe Biden.
In this, the era of interactive media, the assembly became an active participant, especially during the discord over female reproductive rights.
Harris connected with the largely White liberal assembly who cheered and clapped with her declaration that:
“…Donald Trump certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body.”
To be sure, moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis appeared to be slightly biased towards the Democratic as they occasionally intervened to correct Trump’s more provocative allegations.
His statement that vice presidential nominee Tim Walz suggested abortion in the ninth month was permissible, and that termination of an infant after it is born was reasonable, Linsey Davis reminded him that “…there is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it’s born.”
Later, Trump alluded to rumors of Haitian immigrants targeting pets as a source of food in towns across the Midwest.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats,” he said. David Muir countered that ABC News made a point to reach out to the city manager of Springfield, Ohio, the city in question, to resolve the allegation.
“…there have been no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community,” Muir reported.
Harris was the clear favorite within this west-side gathering, who cheered her momentum while snickering and sighing at the provocative statements that are part and parcel to the Trump repertoire.
Harris emphasized her commitment to establishing a level playing field for everyone regardless of economic status, a ploy carried over from her days as a prosecutor, attorney general, and senator.
Perhaps as a nod to his status as former chief executive, Trump was given the last word. He stated that his opponent has had 3 1/2 years to do the things she said she’d do.
“But you haven’t done it. And you won’t do it,” he said.