Tuesday, September 10, the first presidential debate between Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump took place in Philadelphia. The debate was broadcasted on ABC Andy moderated by David Muir and Linsey Davis.
The debate started on an uplifting note when Harris and Trump shook hands. It is interesting to note that they had never met prior to this debate. According to ABC News, this was the first handshake in a Presidential debate in eight years.
The moderators asked both candidates questions on the economy, immigration, abortion and foreign policy. They also had follow-up questions for each candidate. Trump was asked about his feelings regarding the January 6 Capitol riots, and Harris was questioned on her perceived ‘change of views’ on issues such as fracking and foreign policy stances.
The first questions of the night centered around the economy. Trump criticized the Biden administration for the state of the economy and stated that if he became President he would increase tariffs on foreign countries like China.
“We’re doing tariffs on other countries. Other countries are going to finally, after 75 years, pay us back for all that we’ve done for the world,” Trump said.
Harris countered with plans for tax credits for small businesses and middle-class Americans. She said that Trump’s plan was only beneficial to the rich and corporate America, and would not help most Americans. Trump countered that the Biden administration had ruined the economy and that when he was President there was no inflation.
“I had no inflation, virtually no inflation, [President Joe Biden and Harris] had the highest inflation, perhaps in the history of our country because I’ve never seen a worse period of time. People can’t go out and buy cereal, bacon or eggs or anything else,” Trump said.
Harris criticized the Trump administration for leaving the country with a trade deficit and a trade war with China. “Well, let’s be clear that the Trump administration resulted in a trade deficit, one of the highest we’ve ever seen in the history of America. He invited trade wars,” Harris said.
The topic of abortion re-occurred throughout the night. Trump took credit for the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the United States Supreme Court three years ago. Trump believed that all legislation regarding abortion should be up to each state. Harris claimed that if Trump was elected he would enact a federal Abortion ban. When asked directly if this was true, Trump refused to say yes or no. Harris reiterated her desire to reinstate the protections that women had under Roe v. Wade. Harris said, “I absolutely support reinstating the protections of Roe v. Wade.”
Immigration and border security were a top discussion point. Harris was put in charge of the Border by the Biden Administration according to the Associated Press. It was around this topic that Trump claimed that illegal immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were stealing pets and eating them. He follows this by stating that if Harris was elected, she would allow criminals and terrorists to cross the border. Harris responded with a list of all of Trump’s legal convictions and ongoing court cases.
On the topic of foreign policy, Harris said, “Well, let’s understand how we got here. On October 7, Hamas, a terrorist organization, slaughtered 1,200 Israelis. Many of them were young people who were simply attending a concert. Women were horribly raped. And so absolutely, I said then, I say now, Israel has a right to defend itself.”
Harris continued, “I actually met with Zelenskyy a few days before Russia invaded, tried through force to change territorial boundaries to defy one of the most important international rules and norms, which is the importance of sovereignty and territorial integrity. And I met with President Zelenskyy. I shared with him American intelligence about how he could defend himself. Days later I went to NATO’s eastern flank.”
Trump said, “If I were president, it would have never started. If I were president, Russia would have never, ever — I know Putin very well. He would have never — and there was no threat of it either, by the way, for four years. Have gone into Ukraine and killed millions of people when you add it up. Far worse than people understanding what’s going on over there. But when she mentions Israel all of a sudden — she hates Israel.”
The debate ended after ninety minutes and there was no handshake at the end.
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