On Tuesday, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump engaged in a combative presidential debate that often went off the rails. Trump followed weird and frequently falsehood-filled tangents concerning audience sizes, immigration policy, and abortion access. Harris, on the other hand, presented a compelling argument against Trump.
It is arguable that the Philadelphia debate was the most major opportunity for both Harris and Trump since Joe Biden withdrew from the campaign for the presidency in July, and the event started off in a friendly manner. In recognition of the fact that the two candidates for president had never met in person prior to Tuesday night, Harris made her way up to Trump’s podium in order to shake his hand and introduce herself.
Nonetheless, the warmth did not endure for very long. It was after Trump had delivered some boilerplate attack lines about the high inflation that was witnessed earlier in Biden’s presidency that he shifted his focus to insulting Harris as a “Marxist” and peddling unsubstantiated accusations that Democrats intended to “execute the baby” by legalising abortions in the ninth month of pregnancy.
This incorrect claim was addressed by both Harris and the host of ABC News, Linsey Davis, who joined her colleague moderator David Muir in fact-checking several of Trump’s comments throughout the evening. Trump’s statements were checked for accuracy by Davis. After that, Harris proceeded to deliver a scathing criticism of Trump’s record towards abortion, pointing out that he had nominated three of the Supreme Court judges who had ruled to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
“One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs in order to agree that the government and Donald Trump should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,” Harris said. “This is something that absolutely cannot be done.” “And I promise that when Congress passes a bill to put back in place the protections of Roe v. Wade, I will proudly sign it into law as President of the United States of America,” the president said.
In spite of widespread public support for Roe v. Wade, President Trump boasted about his involvement in overturning the decision and praised the Supreme Court for its “great courage” in releasing its decision. At the same time, he consistently avoided answering questions on whether or not he would veto a national abortion ban if he were elected president.
Even when the moderators asked questions about his most pressing concerns, such as immigration, Trump appeared to stumble over his own words. After being questioned about Biden’s management of the border between the United States and Mexico, Harris shifted her focus to Trump’s campaign rallies.
The statement that Harris made was as follows: “I am going to extend an invitation to you to attend one of Donald Trump’s rallies because it is a really interesting thing to watch.” During the course of his rallies, you will notice that he makes references to fictional personalities such as Hannibal Lecter. He is going to discuss the ways in which windmills aggravate cancer. Additionally, you will observe that people begin leaving his rallies early due to tiredness and boredom. This is something that you will notice. Furthermore, I will tell you that the one thing that you will not hear him talk about is you.
It appeared as though Harris was making a clear attempt to divert Trump’s attention away from the issue of immigration policy and into a dispute about the number of people who attended his rallies. This strategy was successful. Trump started hitting Harris with unfounded charges that her campaign was paying people to attend her rallies while touting his own events as “the most incredible rallies in the history of politics.” At the same time, Trump was celebrating his own events as taking place.
Instead of focussing on his immigration policies, Trump chose to promote false rumours that Haitian migrants living in a city in Ohio have begun kidnapping and eating the pets of their neighbours. These claims have been discredited.
The dogs are being consumed by them. According to Trump, the individuals who entered the country are “eating the cats.” They are known to consume the animals that belong to the humans that reside there. In addition, this is what is taking place in our nation, and it is a terrible thing.
The outburst soon became a subject of mocking on social media, as Democrats hailed Trump for “doubling down on the crazy uncle vibe”, in the words of the transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg.
Despite the fact that there were parts of the discussion that were so ludicrous that they bordered on silliness, other conversations concerning foreign policy and the uprising on January 6 were weighty with meaning. At the same time that he was being pressed on his false allegations alleging widespread fraud in the presidential election of 2020, Trump once again refused to admit his defeat, which prompted Harris to issue a powerful warning.
This is something that needs to be made quite clear: 81 million people voted to dismiss Donald Trump. “And it is abundantly clear that he is having a very difficult time processing that,” Harris clarified. On the other hand, we cannot allow ourselves to have a president of the United States who, as he has done in the past, makes an effort to subvert the will of the voters during an election that is transparent and impartial.
In the realm of foreign policy, Harris faced challenging issues regarding the conflict in Gaza. She stated that she is in favour of Israel’s “right to defend itself” while simultaneously advocating for Palestinians to be granted “security, self-determination, and the dignity they so rightly deserve.”
Trump, when asked about his own position on the war, reaffirmed his bombastic claims that his presence in the White House would have prevented the wars in both Gaza and Ukraine. He said that his presence would have prevented the wars.
Trump stated, “If I were president, it would have never begun,” referring to the situation. There is no way that Russia would have ever done it if I were president. I am really familiar with Putin. If he had gone into Ukraine, he would not have done so at any point in time, and there was no possibility of him doing so over the past four years.
Trump, however, avoided answering the question directly when he was asked whether he wanted Ukraine to prevail in its battle against Russia.
Trump has stated, “I want the war to come to an end.” “I believe that it is in the greatest interest of the United States to end this war and just accomplish what needs to be done, all right? It is imperative that we reach a compromise in order to prevent the loss of all of these human lives.
At the conclusion of the discussion, Harris made a solemn pledge to serve as “a president for all Americans,” while Trump referred to her as “the worst vice president in the history of our country.” During what may have been their only presidential debate, two candidates who presented radically divergent perspectives on the future of the country came to a conclusion that was appropriate.
As there is not yet another presidential debate that has been formally scheduled, it is possible that the debate that will take place on Tuesday may be the final time that Harris and Trump will meet before the day of the election. The days that lie ahead will determine whether or not the debate left a lasting impression on the voters who are still undecided and who will ultimately decide the outcome of what appears to be a race that is very close.