“If Donald Trump were president, Putin would be sitting in Kiev right now. Why don’t you tell the 800,000 Americans of Polish descent here in Pennsylvania how quickly you would trade Poland for a favor?” Kamala Harris asked Donald Trump during the US presidential candidates’ debate in Philadelphia. Trump responded that “if I were president, Putin would be in Moscow and he wouldn’t be losing 300,000 troops.”
On Tuesday evening local time (it was 3 am in Poland), a televised debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump took place in Philadelphia. This is the first and only scheduled televised debate between the Democratic and Republican Party candidates.
Harris and Trump met at the National Constitutional Center in Philadelphia, and their duel was played under the same rules as the Biden-Trump debate in Atlanta. A 90-minute verbal battle ensued. Without the participation of the public, the candidates had their microphones turned on only when they received the floor from the presenters. All they had with them was a pen, blank paper and a bottle of water.
She organized the debate ABC Televisionand moderated by evening news anchors David Muir and Linsey Davis.
The debate between Trump and Harris began with economic issues. However, Donald Trump quickly moved on to the topic of immigrants.
We have millions of people coming into our country from prisons and jails, from mental institutions and insane asylums, and they’re coming and taking the jobs that are currently being done by African-Americans, Latinos and unions… We see what’s happening to cities across the United States. They are taking over the cities. They are taking over buildings. They come in violently. These are the people that Harris and Biden brought into our country and they are destroying our country – Trump said, responding to a question about the economy during the opening of the debate in Philadelphia.
The former president accused Joe Biden and Kamala Harris that the current inflation is “taking the country apart.”
Harris, in turn, stressed that she is “the only candidate who has a plan to lift up the middle class and workers,” mentioning 6,000. tax breaks for newborn children and 50,000 PLN. for starting small businesses. She also accused Trump of introducing a blanket tax on goods in the form of universal tariffs.
Trump responded that the costs of the tariffs would be borne by China and “all these countries that have taken advantage of us for years.”
Turning to the issue of immigration, Harris accused Trump of “killing” the bipartisan bill on immigration restrictions by pressuring Republican lawmakers.
Understand that the people of our country really need a leader who is committed to solutions, who really deals with the problems at hand. The former president, for his part, is someone who would rather exploit a problem in a campaign than solve it -Harris said.
Trump repeated theories promoted by Republicans in recent weeks that Haitian immigrants in Ohio eat dogs and cats of local residents. When debate moderators pointed out that the city of Springfield has denied this report, Trump responded that he had “seen people saying that on TV.” He also called for the deportation of 11 million illegal immigrants.
Harris said Trump’s words showed his extremism, suggested he was talking nonsense, which caused people at his rallies to leave early and politicians in his own party to distance themselves from him. She stressed that so far 200 Republican politicians have endorsed her.
The next topic of debate was abortion issue.
Trump said Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz supports abortion in the 9th month of pregnancy and says it is okay to execute children after birth.
His pick (nominating Walz for vice president – ed.) says that abortion in the ninth month of pregnancy is absolutely acceptable. He also says that execution after birth (…) is OK – Trump said, responding to a question about abortion. The former president said he was proud of the judges he appointed the federal right to abortion was abolished and the matter was left to the discretion of each state.
Harris accused Trump of lying and that if he becomes president he will sign a bill banning abortion nationwide and ending in vitro fertilization. She also promised that would sign a bill restoring previous abortion laws.
I probably got shot in the head because of the things they say about me. They say about democracy, that I’m a threat to democracy. – Trump said, responding to Harris’ suggestion that because the court granted immunity to presidents, nothing would be able to stop Trump from his dictatorial ambitions.
Understand that this is someone who has openly said that he will do away with, quote, do away with the Constitution of the United States, who will use the Attorney General’s Office against his political enemies; someone who has openly expressed contempt for soldiers. Understand what it would mean if Donald Trump returned to the White House without any protection. – said Vice President Harris.
Trump, referring to the storming of the Capitol by his supporters, blamed the situation on Democrats and their failure to ensure security.
I had nothing to do with it, except that I was asked to make a speech.(…) I didn’t do it. Others did it. – Trump said when asked if he regretted his actions on January 6, 2021. He blamed then-Speaker of the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi for failing to protect the Capitol.
Trump repeated his point false claims that he actually won the 2020 election, although in recent weeks he admitted in an interview that he “lost it by a hair”.
Kamala Harris responded that the then-president incited a violent mob to insurrection on January 6 and encouraged voters who are “fed up with the chaos and attacks on the foundations of this country” to join her campaign.
We cannot allow a President of the United States to attempt, as he has done in the past, to subvert the will of the voters in free, fair, and equitable elections. – she added.
I traveled extensively as Vice President of the United States and world leaders are laughing at Donald Trump – they are laughing at you. I’ve talked to military leaders, some of whom worked with you, and they said you’re a disgrace. Harris said, condemning Trump for falsely claiming to have won the previous election.
Trump responded that foreign leaders fear and respect him, quoting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban as a “strong and respected leader.”
I will end the war between Ukraine and Russia as president-elect, and I will do it before I even become president. – Trump declared, responding to a question about the conflict in Gaza.
He repeated his claim that if he were still president, both wars would never have happened. When asked if he wanted Ukraine to win the war, he said yes. “wants the war to end” and “wants to save senseless lives lost.”
He also accused President Biden of “not even calling Putin” and failing to try to resolve the conflict.
We are playing with World War III – said Trump.
If Donald Trump were president, Putin would be in Kiev right now. Understand what this means, because Putin’s agenda is not just about Ukraine. Understand why European allies and our NATO allies are so grateful that you are no longer president and that we understand the importance of the greatest military alliance the world has ever known, NATO. -Harris said. She added that if it weren’t for her and Biden’s actions to support Ukraine, Putin would win the war and “keep an eye on the rest of Europe, starting with Poland.”
Why don’t you say 800,000? To Americans of Polish descent here in Pennsylvania, how quickly would you give up (Poland – ed.) for a favor and for what you consider to be friendship with a dictator who would eat you for dinner?“ -Harris said.
Trump responded that if he were president, Putin would be in Moscow and “wouldn’t have lost 300,000 troops.” He noted, however, that ultimately Russia “has something called nuclear weapons.”
Maybe he does. Nobody talks about it. – he said. He also suggested that Putin invaded Ukraine because of “stupid things” Harris said shortly before the invasion.
I amand a failed state. We are a nation in serious decline. We are ridiculed all over the world (…) I know the leaders very well. They come to me. They are calling me. They do not understand what has happened to us as a nation. We are not leaders. We have no idea what is happening. There are wars going on in the Middle East. There are wars going on with Russia and Ukraine. We will end up in World War III and it will be a war like no other.” Trump said in his closing remarks during the ABC debate in Philadelphia.
In her statement, Harris characterized the upcoming election as a choice between dramatically different visions for the country, “one that is focused on the future and one that is focused on the past and the attempts to hold us back.” However, she emphasized that there is more that unites Americans than divides them and that she wants to be a president for all Americans.
I started my career as a prosecutor, I was a district attorney, I was an attorney general, I was a United States senator, and now I’m vice president. I had only one client: the nation. And let me tell you, as a prosecutor, I never asked a victim or a witness if they were Republican or Democrat. The only thing I asked them was if they were OK. And we need a president like that right now. – Harris said in his closing speech.
