How Democrats are making a mistake in rural America – by not showing up
The ConversationSEP 13 2024
US Vice Pres. and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris took on Republican rival Donald Trump in the pair's first election debate Tuesday night, hosted by ABC News. The face-off came as they were seen as virtually tied in the polls.
On the economy, Harris declined to directly answer whether it was better today than before she took office, but did accuse Trump of having "no plan" while pledging to create an "opportunity economy." Trump also dismissed the moderators when questioned about his proposed tariffs leading to inflation.
On immigration, Trump spoke of "migrant crime" and, appearing to cite reports from people in Springfield, Ohio, claimed immigrants were "eating" people's "pets." Harris said Trump would "prefer to run" on the issue "instead of fixing" it.
In a brilliant fashion, Kamala Harris exposed Trump's worst qualities while also offering the country a bright future under her leadership. She articulated clear policy proposals on issues like housing and immigration, and skilfully balanced compassion with pragmatism on sensitive topics like abortion and foreign policy. Now that Americans have gotten to see the real Kamala Harris, there's no question who represents statesmanship and who promotes anger and chaos.
ABC News was clearly prepared to attack Trump and defend Harris at all costs. While they interrupted Trump over and several times, they blatantly refused to do so with Harris—even for the most notoriously debunked lies, such as the "fine people on both sides" and "blood bath" comments. Despite that, Trump maintained a dominant presence, particularly on issue of ending global wars. As Trump stood for Americans first, Harris touted her endorsement from Goldman Sachs.