The one and only debate between Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris was quieter, clearer and more disciplined than the resentful, chaotic presidential debate a week earlier.
- Harris dropped the gloves from the outset. “The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country,” she said in her very first answer, launching into a sweeping attack on the Trump administration’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis.
Coronavirus takes center stage
Harris: highlighted the staggering death toll of the virus in the U.S., and slammed the White House for failing to act in the early days of the pandemic.
Pence: defended the Trump administration’s handling of the crisis, and argued that a Biden administration would have fared no better under the same scenario.
“Our nation’s gone through a very challenging time this year, but I want the American people to know that from the very first day, President Trump has put the health of the American people first,” he said.
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Harris attacks Trump’s reported tax revelations
Harris:
She brought up last month’s bombshell report from The New York Times, which said Trump paid just $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and another $750 the following year.
That report also said that the president is personally responsible for more than $420 million in debt, most of which is coming due within the next four years.
Pence:
He replied that Trump has paid millions in taxes, and added, “The president said those public reports are not accurate.”
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Echoes of the Trump-Biden debate
Harris: tore into Trump over damning reports about his attitude and actions toward the U.S. military
Pence: refused to move on without completing his rebuttal – and forcing a rebuke from the moderator.
Harris: Joe Biden would hold Russia to account
Pence: “I’ve got to have more than that.”
The slanders against President Donald Trump regarding men and women of our armed forces are absurd
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Analysts not sure debate will make a difference
* Frank Luntz, the noted GOP consultant, said a focus group of undecided voters he conducted during the debate thought “both sides are ducking the questions.”
* “Feels like a draw. Don’t see the few remaining undecideds changing their views on basis of this evening,” wrote Ian Bremmer, president of the Eurasia Group.
Reference: CNBC
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