Democratic anxiety over debate grows ahead of Harris-Trump match-up

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

70% : The strategist said Harris's performance will be important in defining herself to white working-class voters in the key swing states -- such as Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, which make up the "blue wall" that Democrats are counting on to beat Trump.
62% : "We have a problem with white working-class voters, and Trump performs really well with those folks," the Democrat acknowledged.
57% : A New York Times/Siena College poll of 1,695 likely voters nationwide published Monday showed Trump at 48 percent support and Harris at 47 percent.
56% : Her campaign team has also invited Philippe Reines, a former senior adviser to Clinton, to play the role of Trump at practice sessions and heighten the realism by wearing a power suit and long red tie.
49% : Harris is fully aware of the high stakes for her campaign and spent days holed up at the Omni William Penn Hotel in Pittsburgh to prepare for her face-to-face showdown with Trump.
48% : Polling expert Nate Silver is giving Trump a 64 percent chance of winning the Electoral College, while other political handicappers have rated the race a toss-up.
47% : I think she is going to be as well-prepared as anyone could possibly be and they'll go over every foreseeable scenario" about what Trump may say or do on stage.
42% : The poll showed that while voters' views of Trump are largely fixed, 28 percent of the likely electorate said they need to learn more about Harris.
38% : Two-thirds of likely voters said they need to learn more about Harris's policy and plans, while less than half of voters said the same thing about Trump.
36% : All these battleground states are 48-48 [percent], 49-49 [percent] and there's a lot of support there for Trump that seems incomprehensible
29% : Ray Zaccaro, a Democratic strategist and former Senate aide, said Democrats are mindful that the high-stakes debate could be "catastrophic or monumental" after Biden's campaign was derailed by the June 27 debate against Trump.
26% : Other Democratic strategists say they believe Harris would be on course to beating Trump on Nov. 5 if she can "get past" the debate without committing a major gaffe or leaving voters with doubts about her leadership vision.
21% : Harris's practice sessions are being guided by Karen Dunn, a former adviser to Hillary Clinton, who squared off against Trump in three debates during the 2016 election.

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