Kamala Harris and Donald Trump showcased starkly totally different visions for the nation Tuesday on abortion, immigration and American democracy as they met for the primary time for maybe their solely debate earlier than November’s presidential election.
The Democratic vice chairman tried to get beneath the pores and skin of the Republican former president, upsetting him with reminders concerning the 2020 election loss that he nonetheless denies and delivering derisive asides at his different false claims. Harris’ needling prompted Trump to launch into the form of freewheeling private assaults and digressions from which his advisers and supporters have tried to steer him away.
The pair outlined sharply reverse visions of the place the nation is and the place they intend to take it if elected. Harris promised tax cuts aimed on the center class and mentioned she would push to revive a federally assured proper to abortion overturned by the Supreme Courtroom two years in the past. Trump mentioned his proposed tariffs would assist the U.S. cease being cheated by allies on commerce and mentioned he would work to swiftly finish the Russia-Ukraine battle, even when it meant Ukraine didn’t obtain victory on the battlefield.
The controversy, Trump’s seventh as a presidential nominee as he mounts his third run for the White Home and Harris’ first, was maybe the perfect alternative by Harris to outline herself on her personal phrases to voters. Their debate concluded hours earlier than the primary ballots of the election will start to be mailed Wednesday in Alabama. Election Day is Nov. 5, lower than two months away.
Harris’ efficiency by practically each measure gave the impression to be the alternative of President Joe Biden’s in June, with sharp, centered solutions designed to hit her speaking factors whereas needling Trump, whereas Biden at instances was muddled, halting and at instances incoherent. Harris used her physique language and facial expressions to confront Trump and categorical that she discovered his solutions ridiculous or amusing — or each — whereas Biden at instances had a slack-jawed expression whereas Trump attacked him.
In a single second, Harris turned to Trump and mentioned that as vice chairman, she had spoken to overseas leaders, “And they say you’re a disgrace.”
Trump in flip tried to hyperlink Harris to Biden, questioning why she hadn’t acted on her proposed concepts whereas serving as vice chairman. “Why hasn’t she done it?” he mentioned. Trump additionally centered his assaults on Harris over her project by Biden to cope with the basis causes of unlawful migration.
He repeatedly dismissed her and Biden as weak, and cited the reward of Hungary’s nationalist prime minister Viktor Orbán to point out that he’s a broadly revered by leaders world wide, saying Orbán calls him the “most feared person.”
Trump once more denied his loss to Biden 4 years in the past, when his efforts to overturn the consequence impressed the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol rebel.
“Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people,” Harris mentioned, “So let’s be clear about that. And clearly he is having a very difficult time processing that.”
Saying it’s “time to turn the page,” Harris delivered an attraction to Republicans and independents turned off by Trump’s fashion and his efforts 4 years in the past to overturn the 2020 presidential election, saying there’s a spot in her marketing campaign for them “to stand for country, to stand for our democracy, to stand for rule of law and to end the chaos.”
Trump twice declined to say that it was in the perfect curiosity of the U.S. for Ukraine to win its battle in opposition to Russia. Harris mentioned it was an instance of why America’s NATO allies have been grateful he was not in workplace, as she and Biden have despatched tens of billions of {dollars} to assist Kyiv fend off Russia’s invasion.
As the previous president made a sequence of false claims about migrants, Harris appeared to smirk as he mentioned that migrants are “taking jobs that are occupied right now by African Americans and Hispanics.”
“Talk about extreme,” Harris responded, when Trump repeated unsubstantiated claims that immigrants in Ohio are consuming their neighbors’ canine and cats.
The candidates met in a small, blue-lit amphitheater transformed right into a tv studio, with no stay viewers, which means there was no rowdy applause, cheers or jeers. The intimate setting — with the candidates’ lecterns positioned lower than 10 ft from one another — belied the contentious debate to comply with.
As Harris appeared to attempt to interject throughout considered one of his responses, Trump replied, “I’m talking now, sound familiar?” harkening again to a second when Harris shut down an interruption from then-Vice President Mike Pence.
Harris sharply criticized Trump for the state of the economic system and democracy when he left workplace, because the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the nation and after his supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a bid to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
“What we have done is clean up Donald Trump’s mess,” Harris mentioned. She opened her reply by saying she expects voters to listen to “a bunch of lies, grievances and name-calling” from her GOP opponent throughout their 90-minute debate.
Trump, in the meantime, rapidly went after Harris for abandoning a few of her previous liberal positions and mentioned: “She’s going to my philosophy now. In fact, I was going to send her a MAGA hat.” Harris smiled broadly and laughed.
Harris has sought to defend her shifts away from liberal causes to extra reasonable stances on fracking, increasing Medicare for all and necessary gun buyback packages — and even backing away from her place that plastic straws needs to be banned — as pragmatism, insisting that her “values remain the same.”
As the talk opened, Harris walked as much as Trump’s lectern to introduce herself, marking the primary time the 2 had ever met. “Kamala Harris,” she mentioned, extending her hand to Trump, who acquired it in a handshake — the primary presidential debate handshake for the reason that 2016 marketing campaign.
Harris, in zeroing in on considered one of Trump’s largest electoral vulnerabilities, laid the tip of a federally assured proper to abortion at Trump’s ft for his function in appointing three U.S. Supreme Courtroom justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, leaving greater than 20 states within the nation with what she referred to as “Trump abortion bans.”
Harris gave considered one of her most impassioned solutions as she described the methods girls have been denied abortion care and different emergency care and mentioned Trump would assign a nationwide abortion ban if he wins.
Trump declared it “a lie,” and mentioned, “I’m not signing a ban and there’s no reason to sign a ban.”
The Republican has mentioned he desires the difficulty left to the states.
Harris used a query about her plans to enhance the economic system by saying she would lengthen the tax lower for households with kids and a tax deduction for small companies whereas attacking Trump’s plans to impose broad tariffs as a “sales tax” on items that the American folks will in the end pay.
Trump was stone-faced throughout her reply however retorted: “I have no sales tax. That’s in incorrect statement. She knows that.”
Trump, who’s attempting to color the vice chairman as an out-of-touch liberal whereas attempting to win over voters skeptical he ought to return to the White Home continued to name Harris a “Marxist,” and mentioned “Everyone knows she’s a Marxist.”
Trump, 78, has struggled to adapt to Harris, 59, who’s the primary girl, Black particular person and particular person of South Asian descent to function vice chairman. The Republican former president has at instances resorted to invoking racial and gender stereotypes, irritating allies who need Trump to focus as a substitute on coverage variations with Harris.
“I read where she was not Black,” Trump mentioned when requested about feedback questioning Harris’ race, after which he added a minute later, “and then I read that she was Black.” He appeared to counsel her race was a selection, saying twice, “That’s up to her.”
“I think it’s a tragedy that we have someone who wants to be president who has consistently over the course of his career attempted to use race to divide the American people,” Harris responded.
Harris mentioned Trump has an extended historical past of racial division, going again to when his household’s firm was investigated for refusing to hire to black folks a long time in the past. She additionally talked about that he referred to as for the loss of life penalty for the “Central Park Five,” who have been falsely accused of rape, and unfold false “birther” theories about President Barack Obama.
“I think the American people want better than that, want better than this,” she mentioned, nodding towards Trump.
Harris hit Trump on considered one of his largest sources of pleasure, his freewheeling marketing campaign rallies. Harris famous how on the occasions, Trump, as he meanders by means of topics, will generally muse on “fictional characters like Hannibal Lecter” and whether or not “windmills cause cancer,” after which mentioned that if you happen to watch his occasions “you will also notice that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom.”
“The one thing you will not hear him talk about is you. Your needs, your dreams and your desires.”
Trump tried to make use of his subsequent query to reply by accusing Harris of getting nobody attending her rallies besides the those who he claimed, with out proof, that she has bused in and paid to be there.
“She can’t talk about that. People don’t leave my rallies. We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies in the history of politics,” he mentioned.
In speedy style after the June 27 debate between Trump and Biden, the incumbent bowed out of the race after his disastrous efficiency, Trump survived an assassination try and bothsides selected their operating mates.
The controversy subjected Harris, who has sat for less than a single formal interview previously six weeks, to a uncommon second of sustained questioning.
Trump at one level launched into an assault on Biden, questioning his psychological acuity by making the declare that Biden “doesn’t even know he’s alive.”
Harris rapidly tried to show it round to make Trump look lower than sharp.
“First of all, I think it’s important to remind the former president, you’re not running against Joe Biden. You’re running against me,” she mentioned.
Value and Miller reported from Washington. AP Polling Editor Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux in Washington and Thomas Beaumont in Las Vegas, Invoice Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.
