Political Wire

  • Front Page
  • Trending News
  • Polling Dashboard
  • Trial Balloon
  • Membership
    • Subscribe
    • Sign In
  • Sign In
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / 2024 Campaign / ‘Ignore Him’

‘Ignore Him’

September 7, 2024 at 7:21 pm ET By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Mark McKinnon, a former George W. Bush operative now backing Kamala Harris, writes in Vanity Fair that she should ignore Donald Trump in next week’s debate.

Said McKinnon: “He hates-hates that. You and Walz have figured out how to pick the lock on his psyche. Don’t call him dangerous—it only makes him appear stronger and bigger. Keep hitting him with weird. Keep bruising his ego. Not with head shakes and tut-tutting (neither of which works in a debate), but by brushing off his absurdities with clarity.”

He adds: “You don’t need to land a heavy blow, just a deft gut punch—and gut check—every now and then. Keep deflecting his jabs with composure, poise, and mild disbelief bordering on low-grade disdain. It diminishes him and makes him smaller.”

Filed Under: 2024 Campaign

From our partner:

See What You're Missing

Ground News lets you compare how stories are covered across the political spectrum and quickly spot coverage you might otherwise miss.

Try Ground News for yourself. Political Wire readers get 40% off Ground News Vantage at ground.news/politicalwire.

 

« Trump Pledges ‘100% Tariff’ for Countries That Shun Dollar
Texas Wants Access to Medical Records of Women »

Your Account

Members

For the full experience, sign in.

Become a Member

  • Join Political Wire
  • Gift a Membership

Members Only

  • What Does It Take for a Political Party to Implode?
  • Is Ticket Splitting Making a Comeback?
  • Democrats Put the Family Feud on Hold
  • The Hidden Battles Shaping the Ballot
  • Republicans Face a Turnout Problem

Word of the Day Political Dictionary

Gish Gallop

The “Gish Gallop” is a rhetorical technique named after Duane Gish, a prominent figure in the creationist movement who used this method to overwhelm his opponents during debates, particularly about the theory of evolution.

Read the definition →

Yesterday’s Word of the Day: Teflon president

Show me a random term

Think You Know Politics?

  • The Way It Was →
  • Yea or Nay? →
  • Split Decision →
  • Pollster →

About Political Wire

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

Praise for Political Wire

“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”

— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”

“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”

— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report

“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”

— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report

“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”

— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia

“Political Wire is a great, great site.”

— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”

“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”

— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post

“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”

— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit

“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”

— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.

Copyright © 2026 · Goddard Media LLC | Privacy Policy | Corrections Policy

Political Wire ® is a registered trademark of Goddard Media LLC