Harris and Trump Take the Debate Stage in Philadelphia

            This week’s presidential debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, PA caught the attention of millions as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met face-to-face for the first time and took the stage to discuss important American issues. The debate covered a number of topics with both sides giving passionate appeals to the public. It ran for roughly an hour and forty-five minutes and microphones were muted for questions, fact-checking, and to allow both sides to speak and respond. Moderators Linsey Davis and Bill Muir asked hard questions and provided each candidate two minutes to respond to questions and one minute for follow-ups.

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    The debate began with both sides explaining their plans for America’s economy should either one take office in November. Harris started off by laying out her plan to extend a $6,000 tax cut to families and a $50,000 tax deduction to help Americans start small businesses. Trump stated his economic plans for America include attaching more tariffs to other countries, namely China, and cutting taxes. When asked by moderator David Muir if Americans can afford to pay higher prices produced by tariffs, Trump responded that China will be paying higher prices, not Americans. 

The Ukraine War, the War in Gaza, and the withdrawal from Afghanistan were all touched on in the debate as well. Harris shared her goal to find a two-state solution between Palestine and Israel as well as a hostage deal and a ceasefire deal. She supported Joe Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and also shared her support of Ukraine in the war against Russia. Trump stated that he wants the Ukraine War to stop and that he could settle it before he takes office if he were to win in November. On the topic of the Afghanistan withdrawal, he stated that he would’ve done it differently without losing soldiers or leaving behind equipment. He shared similar sentiments about Israel and Palestine. 

The subject of America's healthcare saw questions about reproductive rights and health insurance. Former President Donald Trump explained that abortion is a state issue under the Trump administration and shared his criticisms of abortion in the ninth month of pregnancy and the “execution” of newborn babies in Virginia. This was then corrected by moderator Linsey Davis as it is not legal in any state to kill a child after birth. Along with that, Trump did not provide a healthcare plan, stating that he had “concepts of a plan.” Vice President Kamala Harris stated that should Congress produce a bill to protect reproductive rights, she would sign it into law. Her healthcare plans include capping drug prices and improving the Affordable Care Act.

After watching the debate, I feel that Vice President Harris performed more coherently than former President Trump in that she provided more direct answers and gave more clear plans for different issues. It was difficult to follow Trump’s line of thought on several points, and I found it hard to take him seriously after his offensive comments about killing newborns and migrants eating pets. On both sides, the insult-throwing and name-calling took up precious time and made both candidates look unprofessional at points throughout the debate. In the next presidential debate, whether that be this year or in four years, I hope to see both candidates focus on core issues and spend less time entertaining bait and conspiracy theories.