Harris, Trump spar from start of their presidential debate

U.S. Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump had never met until their presidential debate Tuesday night, but immediately started sparring in a pivotal encounter leading up to the national election on Nov. 5.
The two candidates shook hands at the outset, took their places behind lecterns on a stage at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia and then started assailing each other.
They feuded about the U.S. economy, abortion rights for American women, immigration at the U.S. border with Mexico, the Israeli war against Hamas militants in Gaza, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol as Congress certified that Trump had lost the 2020 election.
Referring to the 2020 election that Trump lost to President Joe Biden, Harris said, “Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people. He has a very difficult time processing that.”
Trump recently said he lost the election “by a whisker,” but on the debate stage Tuesday, he said it was a sarcastic remark and refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of the 2020 outcome.
Standing a short distance away from each other, the two candidates shook their heads at each other’s comments, with Harris all but laughing out loud at some of Trump’s remarks. ABC News anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis gamely tried to control the flow of the encounter, failing at times.
Tens of millions of Americans were likely watching what could be the only debate of the campaign. The faceoff took place eight weeks before Election Day but only days ahead of when early voting starts in some of the country’s 50 states.
On the debate stage, the rules for Harris and Trump were the same as at the debate Trump had with Biden in June, where Biden stumbled badly, leading him a month later to end his reelection bid as he fell behind Trump in national polling.
Trump and Harris’ microphones were muted when the other was speaking and they were not allowed to pose questions to each other.
But that did not stop them from interrupting each other. There was no live audience listening to the debate.
It is the first presidential debate for Harris. For Trump, it is his seventh over three presidential election cycles since 2016.
Watch related report by Anita Powell:
National polling shows the contest to be close, making it all the more crucial for both candidates to make their best case in the debate for the small number of voters who haven’t already made up their mind. At stake, returning Trump to the White House after he lost reelection in 2020 to President Joe Biden or elevating Harris, Biden’s second-in-command.
Democrats quickly coalesced around Harris’ candidacy when Biden dropped his reelection bid in July after a stumbling debate against Trump in late June and endorsed Harris as his successor. While Biden trailed Trump when he ended his campaign, Harris has edged ahead of Trump in numerous national polls by 2 or 3 percentage points.
A New York Times-Siena College poll released Sunday showed Trump with a 48-47% lead nationally, even as the newspaper showed Harris ahead in an average of multiple polls in three crucial battleground states: Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. The two candidates were tied in four other crucial states: Arizona, Georgia, Nevada and North Carolina.
The seven highly contested states are expected to play an outsized role in determining the outcome of the election because the U.S. does not pick its president and vice president by the national popular vote.
Rather, the election is 50 state-by-state contests, with electors for the winning ticket in all but two states casting all their votes in the Electoral College for either Harris and her vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, or Trump and his ticket mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance. The number of Electoral College votes for each state is based on population, so the most populous states hold the most sway.
The new Times-Siena poll showed that the debate stakes are particularly high for Harris in introducing herself to the American public, with 28% of those surveyed saying they need to know more about her, while only 9% said the same about Trump.
University of Michigan debate coach Aaron Kall told VOA: “Tuesday night is one of the most highly anticipated and consequential presidential debates of all time. Trump is a seasoned presidential debater but has a history of making controversial remarks against opponents on stage, which could distract from a more important focus on substantive policy issues.”
“Harris just entered the race in July and is still being defined by voters and the Trump campaign. She must demonstrate she can prosecute the case against Trump’s first term in office and recent actions,” he said. “Trump is an especially effective counter-puncher and could employ a scorched earth debate strategy if he feels unfairly maligned on stage.”
Kall added, “Both candidates should stress their compelling biographies and unique skill sets that make them especially qualified to lead the country during the next four years.”
He said the two candidates “must get these voters to feel comfortable with the notion of them being president for the next four years and a regular fixture on their television screens and in their living rooms.”
Harris has been preparing for the debate at a Pittsburgh hotel in the crucial battleground state of Pennsylvania. She has held several mock debates with a Trump-like substitute, complete with television lighting and would-be moderators asking her pointed questions.
Trump has engaged in policy briefings with his aides, shunning mock debates.
Meantime, Trump and Harris have sparred at a distance.
Trump told Fox News commentator Sean Hannity last week that he let Biden talk at their June debate, adding, “I’m going to let her talk. There are those who say that Biden is smarter than she is. If that’s the case, we have a problem.” Trump had often insulted Harris’ intellect, saying she has “no idea what the hell she’s doing.”
“Look, this is a woman who is dangerous,” he said. “You can’t take the chance. You have no choice. You’ve got to vote for me, even if you don’t like me.”
Harris has mocked Trump as well.
At the Democratic National Convention last month as she accepted the party’s presidential nomination, Harris said, “In many ways, Donald Trump is an unserious man.” Harris added, “But the consequences of putting Donald Trump back in the White House are extremely serious.”
The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that Trump and all future U.S. presidents are immune from being prosecuted for wrongdoing while in office for actions linked to their official duties, which Harris said poses a problem if Trump again wins the presidency.
“Just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails,” Harris said, “and how he would use the immense powers of the presidency of the United States. Not to improve your life, not to strengthen our national security, but to serve the only client he has ever had, himself.”
Trump, 78, has at times on the campaign trail seemed to miss running against Biden, 81. He has yet to develop a steady line of attack on Harris, 59, although on debate night he attacked Harris on every question posed by the ABC anchors.
If elected, she would be the first woman and first person of South Asian descent to serve as the U.S. president, and the second Black person after Barack Obama.