Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump faced off in their first presidential debate on Tuesday evening, which they began by debating over the state of the economy.
Harris alleged that Trump’s administration had battered the economy, and reiterated her plans for a massive tax cut for the middle class. She also alleged that Trump’s plans for increased trade tariffs, especially on China would cause higher inflation.
Trump, on the other hand, defended his administration’s handling of the economy, while also calling for higher trade tariffs, which he said would benefit the economy and the country’s standing in the international community.
The debate, which is hosted by ABC News, is the first time Harris and Trump met on a public stage. Recent polls showed Trump and Harris locked in a tight race with less than two months left to the ballot.
Both candidates stuck loosely to questions from the moderators, while constantly engaging in personal attacks against each other and their policies.
Speaking on abortion and reproductive rights, which has become a key point of focus for the election, Harris said she would reinstate protections for women under the Roe V. Wade ruling.
Trump on the other hand defended the Supreme Court’s overturning of the ruling, but said that he would not sign a national ban on abortion.
Trump said “million” of illegal immigrants had entered the U.S. under Harris’ watch, and were now committing violent crimes in the country.
Trump said he did not think he had lost the 2020 election, while Harris accused the former president of attempting to undermine U.S. democracy.
Speaking on foreign policy, Harris said Israel had a right to defend itself, but noted that far too many Palestinian civilians had been killed in the process. She called for a two-state solution and that the war needed to end.
Trump argued that the Israel-Hamas war would have “never happened” under his administration.
