The grim circumstances don’t change Harris’ overarching objective: to methodically yoke Pence to the Trump administration’s months of failures to contain the virus, zeroing in on his role as chair of the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

The legal threat to the Affordable Care Act — clarified by the battle over the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s seat — will be another focal point for Harris. And after Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito lamented Monday the “ruinous consequences for religious liberty” of the court's decision that granted marriage rights — and signaled that the ruling should be reconsidered — the VP contenders' sharply divergent records on same-sex marriage are likely to surface.

Harris’ aides view Pence as a far more polished and disciplined orator than the president. Unlike with Trump, they say, when Pence says something untrue it is packaged in language that makes it harder to spot and counter in real time. But Harris will attempt to pin him down on Trump’s stewardship of the sputtering economy and explosive remarks on race and groups tied to white supremacy.

“The key thing with Pence is that you have to separate out style from substance,” said Bob Barnett, the Democratic lawyer who was Tim Kaine’s stand-in for Pence in 2016 and has focused on debate preparations for 10 presidential campaigns. “He will come across as very measured, very thoughtful and very smooth — very unlike President Trump. But out of his mouth will come these wild Trumpisms.”

Rarely have vice presidential debates been memorable, let alone consequential. Kaine, who shared a stage with Pence four years ago, conducted a review of VP debates at the time and concluded that “no one ever made any difference,” though the 1976 meeting between Sens. Bob Dole and Walter Mondale was viewed as a boon to Jimmy Carter’s campaign.

The thunderclap of events leading into the week — along with Trump's condition and Biden's age — has raised the stakes for both campaigns with less than a month before Election Day and the prospects for the remaining presidential debates up in the air.

Harris and Pence’s camps each recognize that a future president could be on stage. And they anticipate a more orderly event after the president’s constant outbursts interrupted the flow in Cleveland and made it exceedingly difficult to follow.

Trump is leaning on Pence more than before to perform after he was sidelined with the virus. Harris had always planned to focus on making a proactive case for Biden, but her aides contend last week’s debate reinforced for many voters that the upcoming clash could be their last chance to hear something approaching a substantive exchange of ideas.

Even if Trump recovers and debates again, there’s no guarantee Biden or a future moderator will have more success than Chris Wallace.

New safety precautions will serve as a visual reminder of the virus that’s consumed the country. The Commission on Presidential Debates approved plans for plexiglass barriers between Pence, Harris and moderator Susan Page. The candidates were moved from 7 feet to 13 feet apart. Biden’s camp supported the moves, which came under scrutiny from Trump officials, despite Pence's leadership on the coronavirus task force that advocates for safety measures.

Harris, a prodigious preparer, has spent weeks trying to drill down to the substance of Pence's record and past remarks. In Washington, before arriving last week in Salt Lake City, she reviewed briefing materials, memorizing Biden’s stances, the Trump-Pence agenda and studying for how to square her record with the anticipated hits from Pence.

Prep sessions have involved a rotating cast of subject matter experts and top Biden hands, including Symone Sanders, who has been traveling with Harris of late. Former South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who sparred with Harris over his own record on race shortly before she dropped out of the primary last year, has been helping prep her on Pence, a fellow Indianan.

“We’re very cognizant that Pence can’t run from Trump’s record,” a Biden campaign adviser said. “This debate isn't even about him. It’s about their failed record.”

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