Swing state AG previews VP debate with dire prediction for Harris: 'Poor Kamala'

MILWAUKEE - Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost previewed a potential debate match-up between Sen. JD Vance and Vice President Kamala Harris and predicted it will not go well for the vice president.

"Poor Kamala," Yost told Fox News Digital on Monday when asked about the upcoming debate between Harris and Vance now that the Ohio Republican has been named as Trump’s running mate.

Yost agreed with the narrative promoted by many conservatives on social media that the debate clash will be an uneven match-up.

"It will be interesting to see what the oddmakers in Vegas put together on this, but he’s going to be a chef’s knife and salad tongs to her word salad."

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Sen. JD Vance is expected to debate Vice President Kamala Harris before the November election. (Getty Images)

A Biden-Harris campaign official told Fox News Digital that Harris reached out to Vance and left a voicemail congratulating him on his selection, and "expressed her hope that the two can meet in the vice presidential debate proposed by CBS News."

Conservatives on social media quickly predicted that Vance would have a good night if the two end up settling on a specific day to debate.

"He will be terrific debating Kamala Harris," Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich posted on X.

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Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost speaks at the Conservative Political Action Coalition annual meeting at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in Maryland on March 4, 2023. (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

"The JD Vance vs Kamala Harris debate is going to be a beatdown unlike anything we've seen since the Seahawks/Broncos Super Bowl," State Freedom Caucus Network communications director Greg Price posted on X.

"The Vance vs Kamala debate is going to be brutal lol," conservative commentator Dana Loesch posted on X.

Harris’ former communications director said last month that Vance is the one Republican who would be the "greatest threat" to her vice presidency if chosen.

"I think JD Vance would pose the greatest threat [to] Kamala Harris, in some respects. I mean he's an incredible debater," Ashley Etienne, who served as Harris’ communications director in 2021, told CNN. 

"I think he has this quality that makes him seem palpable to that one to two percent that actually might vote or that is undecided, that will actually pay attention to the debates because most people don't pay attention to the debates."

Fox News Digital reached out to the Biden campaign for comment but did not receive a response.

Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks during the Women's Economic Participation in the Industries of the Future meeting at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders' Week in San Francisco on Nov. 16, 2023. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

Yost raved about Trump's selection of Vance while speaking to Fox News Digital.

"It was pandemonium in the Ohio delegation," Yost said about the energy on the convention floor when Vance was introduced as Trump's running mate. "People were pumped and for good reason, JD is popular and he is going to be a great vice president."

"JD makes a connection with working class voters, the folks that have been left behind by the system, in a way that most politicians don't and when you talk with him he can certainly hold his own with anybody in an intellectual conversation."

The Biden and Trump campaigns have not yet agreed to a specific time or place for a debate. Typically, vice presidential candidates hold one debate leading up to the November election. 

Fox News Digital’s Jamie Joseph contributed to this report.

Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..