By Bel Kelly
Elm Staff Writer
On Sept. 10, Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met on stage for their first presidential debate.
The 2024 series of debates kickstarted on June 27 and featured former President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the race in July.
According to CNN, “Biden produced the weakest performance since John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon started the tradition of televised debates in 1960.” For Democrats, it was crucial that new presidential nominee Kamala Harris put her best foot forward for their party — and put her best foot forward, she did.
From the start, Harris’ body language made her seem like a more level-headed debater, ready to respect her opponent. When the two came on stage, Trump moved toward his podium, while Harris crossed the stage to shake his hand first, marking the first handshake at a presidential debate since 2016.
Harris continued to appear poised and confident for the duration of the debate. She made eye contact with Trump, the moderators, and the camera to speak to the viewers, while Trump’s gaze never rested on either Harris or the camera. Harris’ demeanor made her appear more open, while Trump looked despondent.
Her confidence remained unshakeable as the debate went on, and she remained clear and concise on her plans for her presidency. Harris’ proposals included a $50,000 tax deduction for start-up small businesses, a $25,000 down payment assistance for first-time home buyers, and the promise of reproductive freedom. Presidential debates are supposed to inform the American public on candidates’ policy plans and political beliefs; Harris certainly fufilled the purpose of debating by making plain what she plans to do if put in power
However, Trump did not use this debate as an opportunity to clarify his policies. When asked about health policy, he said, “I have concepts of a plan. I’m not president right now.” These comments do not inspire confidence in Trump’s audiences.
To hear Trump admit to not having a plan for healthcare, it becomes difficult to trust a politician who does not know what he would do if put in power. Instead, he spent the majority of the debate rising to the bait set by Harris.
Former New Jersey Republican Governor Chris Christie, who led Trump’s 2016 transition team, said, “She was exquisitely well prepared, she laid traps, and he chased every rabbit down every hole instead of talking about the things that he should have been talking about. This is the difference between someone who is well prepared and someone who is unprepared.”
By bringing up Trump’s criminal sentencing, his rallies, and even the Central Park Five, Harris goaded Trump into going on the defense. He wasted his speaking turns on irrelevant tangents rather than concentrating on policy and his political stances. If nothing else, Trump’s inability to stay on topic marked Harris as the superior debater.
But Trump did not need Harris’ bait to deviate absurdly far from the topics of discussion. “In Springfield…they’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” Trump said when speaking on immigration. His endorsement of a baseless and bizarre conspiracy further alienates undecided voters.
In regards to abortion, Trump gave an equally strange and misinformed argument, concentrating on the nonexistent executions of babies after birth.
Moderator Linsey Davis was quick to fact-check Trump on this. “There is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it’s born,” Davis said.
It is especially troubling that so much time was given to the subjects of pet-eating and the non-existent concept of post-birth abortions, while more prevalent issues, such as the genocide in Gaza and gun violence in the USA, went unmentioned.
This strange accusation against the immigrants of Springfield, Ohio was not the only lie Trump told during the debate.
According to The New York Times, Trump made 64 false or inaccurate statements while Harris made five. These statistics highlight each candidate’s propensity for lying, a factor undecided voters should closely consider at the polls in November.
One of Trump’s falsehoods, for example, entailed labelling Harris as a “Marxist” in a dramatic attempt to frame her as extreme. While Trump sought to use volatile rhetoric to discredit the Democratic Party, Harris in contrast opened herself up for Republican support. In the debate, she mentioned the 200 former Republican staffers who signed an open letter endorsing her White House bid. Harris hopes to unite people of different political inclinations against Trump rather than against the entire Republican Party, and in turn cleverly avoids alienating undecided voters.
“And I will tell you, the one thing you will not hear [Trump] talk about is you. You will not hear him talk about your needs, your dreams and your desires. And I’ll tell you, I believe you deserve a president who actually puts you first,” Harris said on the debate stage.
Overall, Harris has been widely acknowledged as the winner of this debate by meda outlets such as CNN, USA Today, The Guardian, and The New York Times, among others.
Since the debate, the polls have started to lean in her favor. Trump, comparatively, has since gone viral online for his various absurd comments and refused to debate Harris again in October. Undecided voters should take this turndown of a second round as a concession to the fact that Harris is the more skilled debater and, in turn, the stronger candidate.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Photo Caption: Harris is revitalizing the Democrat Party after former President Biden dropped out of the 2024 race.