By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-09-24 08:25:35 | Updated at 2024-09-30 15:39:17
6 days ago
Sen. JD Vance unveiled who will help him prepare for next week's vice presidential debate by impersonating Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz in mock practice sessions.
House Republican Whip Tom Emmer, the third most powerful GOP representative, will help Vance, 40, prepare to take on Walz, 60.
Vance confirmed that Emmer is joining his prep team during a campaign event in Charlotte, North Carolina Monday afternoon.
But they haven't held a mock session quite yet, just eight days before the face-off.
'Tom, who's a great representative for the state of Minnesota, he has not helped us out yet,' Vance said.
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, has been reportedly preparing for his debate against Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz by practicing against Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn.
'But I think that we are going to try and call on him in the next couple of weeks, as we really start to think about how to how to make our best case during this debate,' Vance added.
The vice presidential hopefuls are scheduled to square off in a live debate on Tuesday, October 1 on CBS.
It is expected to be one of the last major televised events before voters cast their ballots in the presidential contest.
In fact, some states have already begun early voting by mail, so the showdown could prove to be influential among those who are still undecided.
A source close to the debate preparations told NOTUS that Emmer has been rehearsing his role for the last month and has been hand-picked due to his familiarity with the 'Minnesota nice' persona.
But whether that mid-western trope will be taken on by Walz is yet to be seen.
Democratic vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, delivers remarks at an election campaign event in Superior, Wisconsin, U.S. September 14, 2024. Walz and Emmer both have represented Minnesota in Congress
House Republican Whip Tom Emmer has been practicing his Walz impersonation for the last month to prepare Vance for his October 1 debate
So Vance and his team have also prepared for a more firey version of the Democratic VP nominee.
'For over a month now, J.D. has been doing murder board prep sessions, both over Zoom and in person,' the source told NOTUS.
'Murder board sessions have been just hammering J.D. with question after question,' they added.
'Essentially, his team acts as the moderators and just hammers him with questions to see how he naturally responds to stuff.'
Vance's team is weary of Walz going on the offensive as Kamala Harris did with Donald Trump during their debate.
To mitigate that, Emmer, the sources said, has been working to simulate Walz's debate style.
The GOP whip has spent hours practicing the governor's mannerisms and his polishing up on the Democrat's policy proposals, they said.
Walz and Vance are scheduled to debate on CBS on October 1
'One of the overarching goals of the debate next week is to cut down Walz's fake moderate branding to expose him as a leftist,' another source told the outlet about the Republican's preparations.
Vance's wife, Usha, is also participating in the Ohioan's debate practice, as is Trump campaign advisor Jason Miller, sources reportedly said.
