Trump, Harris to face off in US presidential debate

PHILADELPHIA-

Democratic US Vice President Kamala Harris put Republican Donald Trump on the defensive during a combative US presidential debate on Tuesday, with a series of attacks on abortion restrictions, his fitness for office and his numerous legal troubles. Both candidates were looking for a moment that could turn their campaigns into their close elections.

A former prosecutor, Harris, 59, appeared to rile up the former president with a series of sharp attacks, prompting a visibly angry Trump to issue a barrage of falsehoods in his answers.

At one point she brought up Trump’s campaign rallies, challenging him by saying that people often leave early “out of fatigue and boredom.”

Trump, frustrated with the size of Harris’s own crowd, said, “My rallies, we have the largest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics.” He then pivoted to a baseless conspiracy theory claiming that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are “eating the pets” of residents.

“What an extreme fuss,” Harris said, laughing.

Harris criticized Trump for his criminal conviction for covering up hush-money payments to a porn star, as well as his other criminal charges and a civil judgment finding him liable for sexual assault. Trump denies wrongdoing and has again accused Harris and Democrats of orchestrating the affairs without evidence.

Trump also repeated his false claim that his defeat in the 2020 election was the result of fraud, calling Harris a “Marxist” and falsely claiming that immigrants are responsible for a surge in violent crime.

With eight weeks to go before the Nov. 5 election and just days until early voting starts in some states, the debate — the only one scheduled — offered both opportunities and risks for each candidate, before a television audience of tens of millions of voters.

The candidates opened the debate by focusing on the economy, an issue that polls show favors Trump.

Members of the press appear in the spin room during a presidential debate between former U.S. President Donald Trump, left of screen, and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, right, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (Matt Slocum/AP Photo)

Harris attacked Trump’s plan to impose high tariffs on foreign goods — a proposal she likens to a sales tax on the middle class — while praising her plan to provide tax breaks to families and small businesses.

“Donald Trump has left us with the worst unemployment since the Great Depression,” Harris said, referring to his years as president from 2017-2021. Unemployment peaked at 14.8 percent in April 2020 and was 6.4 percent when he left office. It was much higher during the Great Depression.

Trump criticized Harris for the persistent inflation during Biden’s term, though he exaggerated the extent of price increases. He also quickly shifted to his main topic, immigration, again claiming without evidence that immigrants from “madhouses” are crossing the U.S. southern border with Mexico.

Inflation, he said, “is a disaster for the people, for the middle class, for every class.”

Trump, 78, criticized Harris for the persistent inflation during Biden’s term, though he exaggerated the extent of price increases. He also quickly shifted to his main issue, immigration, again claiming without evidence that immigrants from “madhouses” are crossing the U.S. southern border with Mexico.

Inflation, he said, “is a disaster for the people, for the middle class, for every class.”

A surprising handshake

The debate began with a surprise handshake between the two opponents, who had never met before. Harris walked up to Trump at his lectern and introduced herself by name, marking the first handshake at a presidential debate since 2016.

The meeting is especially important for Harris, as polls show that more than a quarter of likely voters feel they don’t know enough about her. Harris entered the race just seven weeks ago, after President Joe Biden left office.

Harris launched a lengthy attack on abortion restrictions, speaking passionately about women being denied emergency care and incest victims being unable to terminate their pregnancies because of state bans that have proliferated since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a nationwide right in 2022. Three Trump appointees formed the majority in that ruling.

She also claimed that Trump would support a nationwide ban, but Trump called this claim a lie.

Trump, who has sometimes struggled with the abortion message, falsely claimed that Harris and the Democrats support infanticide, which — as moderator Linsey Davis noted — is illegal in every state.

“Like I said, you’re going to hear a lot of lies,” Harris said.

Harris also tried to tie Trump to Project 2025, a conservative policy that would, among other things, expand executive power, abolish environmental regulations and make it illegal to ship abortion pills across state lines.

Trump responded that he had “nothing to do” with Project 2025, although some of his advisers were involved in its creation.

The candidates also exchanged criticisms of the Israel-Gaza war and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but neither gave specific information on how they would end each conflict.

Harris accused Trump of being willing to abandon U.S. aid to Ukraine to curry favor with Russian President Vladimir Putin. She called Trump a “disgrace,” while Trump claimed Harris has a “hatred” for Israel. She rejected the claim.

First meeting

Trump, who has launched personal attacks against Harris for weeks, including racist and sexist insults, largely avoided insults during the early moments of the debate. But he called her a “Marxist” as he grew increasingly agitated.

Trump’s advisers and fellow Republicans had urged him to focus on high inflation and immigration during Biden’s presidency, even though both levels have fallen dramatically this year.

Presidential debates don’t necessarily change voters’ minds, but they can alter the dynamics of a race. Biden’s poor showing against Trump in June led him to suspend his campaign on July 21.

In a race that could once again hinge on tens of thousands of votes in a handful of states, even a small shift in public opinion could change the outcome. The two candidates are effectively tied in the seven swing states that are likely to decide the election, according to polling averages compiled by The New York Times.

The 90-minute debate, hosted by ABC News, took place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. As agreed by the campaigns, there was no live audience and the candidates’ microphones were muted when it was not their turn to speak.