Five lessons from the US presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris | News about the 2024 US elections

The debate between US Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump began with a handshake and ended with the candidates portraying each other as terrible leaders who should not be elected.

Harris and Trump traded venomous remarks for more than 90 minutes on Tuesday, in a debate that centered on substantive policy issues and personal attacks.

Trump tried to portray Harris as a far-left candidate who would pursue open-border policies, ban fracking and confiscate people’s guns. He also pushed to link her to President Joe Biden, portraying them as fundamentally the same type of politician.

Harris responded by questioning Trump’s fitness for office and calling him a “disgrace.” She also attempted to dismiss the former president as an object of ridicule. At several points, she appeared to stifle laughter as Trump spoke.

Overall, Harris’ answers were more coherent and focused than Trump’s, but it remains to be seen whether his debate performance will make a difference in the race.

Still, even pundits on conservative outlets like Fox News noted that Harris seemed to upset Trump. And in the minutes following the debate, pop star Taylor Swift offered Harris her support, citing her performance on debate night.

Here are some takeaways from the debate: the first meeting between the two candidates.

Trump digresses, repeatedly cites immigration

Trump’s rhetoric moved across a variety of topics during the debate, rarely staying on topic as the moderators addressed it.

One moment Trump was talking about the economy, and the next he was talking about pipelines.

In one breath he would talk about health care. In the next he would talk about immigration. Then he would talk about something else, and then about immigration again.

Trump struggled to stay on message during the debate, his answers lacking focus and he seemed more concerned with throwing punches at Harris.

He repeatedly boomeranged back to immigration, hoping to score points by citing Harris’s record on the issue. At various points, he also promoted the lie that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, are eating people’s pets.

“In Springfield they eat the dogs. The people that came in, they eat the cats,” he said.

City officials have dismissed these stories as untrue.

Still, Trump has always been known for his rambling manner of speaking, so it’s not certain that voters will view him more negatively after Tuesday’s debate.

Harris steps up attacks on Trump

Harris, meanwhile, lashed out at Trump and appeared to rile him up, calling him a “disgrace” on several occasions.

The vice president also highlighted the Republicans and former aides who turned against Trump after he became president in 2016.

Harris borrowed a page from Trump’s playbook, repeatedly calling the Republican nominee “weak.” She also used Trump’s accusation that the world would laugh at American leadership and turned it back on the former president.

“It is absolutely known that these dictators and autocrats hope that you will be president again,” Harris told Trump.

She added that it is “so clear that they can manipulate you with flattery and favors, and so many military leaders you have worked with have told me you are a disgrace.”

Both Republican and Democratic governments maintain close ties with autocratic governments and leaders around the world.

Trump paints Harris as far-left, distorting her record

In his rebuttals, the former president attempted to portray Harris as more left-wing than she actually is, even calling her a “Marxist.”

“She has a plan to confiscate everyone’s guns,” Trump said, in yet another exaggeration.

Harris responded that she and her vice presidential candidate, Tim Walz, are indeed gun owners.

Trump also accused Harris of planning to dismantle the police.

As a senator in 2020, Harris supported efforts to reexamine police department budgets, but she has stopped short of calling for defunding the police. The Biden administration has also voiced support for increasing the number of police officers nationwide.

On health care, Trump said Harris “wants everyone to have government insurance.” While Harris previously expressed support for universal, government-funded health care, she reversed her position when she entered the 2020 presidential race.

Trump’s debate accusations fit into his broader campaign strategy of arguing that Harris is a far-left “radical” Democrat. That strategy, experts say, is designed to dissuade independent voters from supporting her.

Candidates repeat familiar positions on Gaza

When both candidates were asked about the war in Gaza, they returned to their usual talking points.

Harris said she supports a ceasefire in Gaza that would release Israeli prisoners, but she renewed her pledge to continue arming Israel. She also voiced support for the two-state solution.

“Israel has the right to defend itself… and how it does that matters, because it is also true that far too many innocent Palestinians have been killed — children, mothers. What we know is that this war must stop,” she said.

“I will always give Israel the ability to defend itself, especially with regard to Iran and any threat that Iran and its allies pose to Israel.”

The language she used is reminiscent of previous statements she and other Democratic officials have made, including at the Democratic National Convention in August.

Harris continues to repeat the same position on Israel, originating from the DNC and her campaign website.

She must listen to voters: end Israeli atrocities, impose an arms embargo and enforce US law. #Debate2024

— USCPR ACTION (@uscpr_action) September 11, 2024

Trump, in turn, reiterated his position that the war in the Middle East would not have broken out if he had been in power. He also accused Harris of being biased against Israel.

“She hates Israel. At the same time, in her own way, she hates the Arab population, because the whole place is going to be blown up — Arabs, Jews, Israel. Israel is going to be gone,” he said.

In addition, Trump falsely claimed that the Biden administration had lifted US sanctions on Iran.

Candidates express different views on Ukraine

More than two years after Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, support for the conflict has become a dividing line between the two major political parties in the US.

Many Republicans are reluctant to offer more aid, while Democrats largely support strengthening Ukraine’s self-defense capabilities.

That division was visible on Tuesday’s debate stage. On Ukraine, the two candidates seemed to be at odds.

While Trump indicated he would push for a deal to end the conflict, Harris stressed the need to support Ukrainian troops in their fight against the Russian invasion.

Asked whether the US should ensure that Ukraine wins the war, Trump said: “I think it is in the best interest of the United States to end this war and make a deal, because we have to prevent all these human lives from being destroyed.”

Trump said the Biden administration’s lack of leadership allowed Russia to invade Ukraine.

Harris criticized the former president’s reluctance to fully support Ukraine, saying Russian President Vladimir Putin would be in Kiev right now if Trump were still in power.

“Understand that our European allies – NATO allies – are so grateful that you are no longer president and that we understand the importance of the greatest military the world has ever known, which is NATO,” she said.

“The reason Donald Trump says this war would be over in 24 hours is because he would just give up.”