Harris and Trump attacked each other sharply in their first duel. They accused each other of running the country into the ground, of not having a plan for the pressing problems and of spreading lies.
TV Analysis by my US Correspondent Thomas Spang:
It was the first time that Harris and Trump had ever met face to face – and in what was probably the most important showdown between the two before the election on November 5th. When they first met on stage, the two shook hands. The Democrat approached the Republican and introduced herself as “Kamala Harris” in the event hall in Philadelphia. After that, both immediately went into attack mode.
“Radical Left”
Trump repeatedly referred to Harris as a “radical leftist.” The Democrat, in turn, said several times that her opponent did not care about the needs of the citizens and was only interested in putting others down. Harris complained that Trump had left the country in a disastrous state in 2021 – with the highest unemployment since the Great Depression, the worst health epidemic in a century and the worst attack on American democracy since the Civil War. “And what we have done is clean up Donald Trump’s mess.”
More on the topic
Thomas Spang: He reports for you from the USA
Trump, in turn, complained that Harris and US President Joe Biden had plunged the country into the abyss during their time in office. “We have a nation that is dying,” he said. During various questions, the Republican brought up the topic of migration and accused the Biden and Harris administration of allowing millions upon millions of migrants and criminals into the country unchecked. “They have destroyed the structure of our country.” Trump even accused migrants of eating pets. “In Springfield, they eat the dogs – the people who came here – they eat the cats. They eat the pets of the people who live there,” he claimed without any evidence.
Trump has no plan
Harris accused Trump of wanting tax cuts for the rich and not caring about ordinary Americans. She appealed to citizens to see for themselves at one of his campaign appearances. “I’m going to do something really unusual and call on you to attend one of Donald Trump’s rallies,” the Democrat said to the audience. Trump spreads absurd claims there, such as that wind turbines cause cancer. “The only thing you won’t hear him talk about is you.” Trump has no plan for the people of the country. Trump responded, offended, that people don’t go to Harris’ campaign events in the first place.
Trump accused his opponent of not having a plan for economic policy and of being a Marxist. “She has destroyed our country with policies that are insane,” said the former US president. The two also accused each other of lying on several occasions. Harris complained that Trump was using the same old hackneyed script and spreading a “bunch of lies, complaints and insults.” Americans are tired of this. She repeatedly called on the country to turn a new leaf, look forward and address the needs of the American people.
“You are a disgrace”
Harris also said she traveled the world as vice president and world leaders laughed at Trump. She also spoke to senior military officials, some of whom worked with the Republican. “And they say: You are a disgrace.”
“New way forward”
In her closing statement, Harris also called for a “new way forward” and for unity instead of division. Americans have so much more in common than what divides them. The fact that Harris is promising a new beginning, even though she has been part of the government for three and a half years, is a sore spot in her campaign. Trump aimed precisely at this and at the end of the debate repeatedly raised the question of why Harris had not implemented everything she was now promising during her time in government. She was the “worst vice president in the history” of the country.
The duel, which was hosted by ABC, was a real test for Harris in particular. The 59-year-old had only replaced President Biden as the Democratic candidate a few weeks ago and had previously appeared mainly in strictly choreographed campaign appearances in which her team had everything under control. In the debate against Trump, she now had to prove herself without a script.
Surprise from Taylor Swift
A few minutes after the end of the debate with Taylor Swift, an influential US personality surprisingly spoke up and gave Harris her blessing: she would vote for Harris and her vice president, Tim Walz, in the presidential election, the singer announced in a post on Instagram. Swift has enormous influence among her fans – especially young women, an important voting group – and has around 283 million followers on the Instagram platform.
More on the topic
Will Taylor Swift decide the US election campaign?
Harris and Trump are roughly neck and neck in polls. Both want to win over undecided voters. According to a recent poll, Harris’s positions are not well known to many people. She therefore tried to expand on her substantive goals in the debate – including her signature issue of abortion. Various foreign policy issues – the Middle East, Ukraine, China, Afghanistan – were also discussed. Here, the two mainly repeated well-known positions.
There had been a long wrangling about the date for the television debate. Immediately after the debate, Harris’ team immediately agreed to a second debate in October. However, no date has yet been agreed for another debate. Next up are the vice-candidates: Tim Walz and JD Vance will meet on October 1 (local time) for a showdown.
ePaper
