Former President Donald Trump and current Vice President Kamala Harris faced off for the first presidential election debate that discussed their past and proposed policies on Tuesday, Sept. 10. There was a main focus on issues regarding the economy, immigration, abortion and military involvement in foreign countries.
The debate between Harris and Trump differed in some ways to the previous debates between Trump and President Joe Biden in terms of how the debate was structured.
“This one seemed to go a bit smoother,” history teacher Eric Mongirdas said. “I just remember there were no mics that were muted between Trump and Biden; it seemed to be a little bit more chaotic than this one.”
Although the debate did outline the policies of the candidates and showed contrasts between their potential administrations, some students believe the debate did not have much of an effect on the preconceived opinions of the candidates in the eyes of voters.
“I think a lot of people already chose their side before the debate,” Addie Dennett ’27 said. “I think a lot of people are going to have to do their own research in order to find out who they’re going to vote for.”
The economy, especially the high inflation rates, was one of the talking points of Trump and Harris. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported inflation rates reached a high of 9.1% under the Biden-Harris administration. Harris planned to increase child tax credits along with tax reductions for startup small businesses. Trump wanted to fix the economic issues utilizing tariffs.
“Look, we’ve had a terrible economy, because inflation, which is really known as a country buster,” Trump said. “The people of the country are absolutely dying with what they’ve [Biden and Harris] have done. They’ve destroyed the economy.”
Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022 and states have implemented new abortion bans ranging from full bans to up to 18 weeks. Women’s rights to abortion has been a topic of contention among Democrats and Republicans. More religious conservatives have spoken against abortions while many liberals have favored allowing abortions. Although Trump stated no plans for a national abortion ban, his running mate JD Vance has previously expressed a desire for an abortion ban at the federal level but now thinks it should be decided at a state level.
“One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs,” Harris said, “to agree that the government and Donald Trump certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body.”
Trump believed the current border and immigration policy under the Biden-Harris administration is too lenient. During his previous term and potential future term, Trump expressed installing stricter border control and immigration policies.
“They [Biden-Harris administration] allowed people to come in, drug dealers, to come into our country,” Trump said. “They’re destroying the fabric of our country by what they’ve done.”
There has been controversy over how the United States would handle foreign aid and the United States military including the Middle East with the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict.
“It must end immediately, and the way it will end is we need a ceasefire deal, and we need the hostages out,” Harris said.
Another discussion of aid and military support was for the Ukraine-Russia war that has been active since 2022 and what the candidates want to do going forward.
“I think it’s in the U.S. best interest to get this war finished and just get it done. Negotiate a deal,” Trump said.
The debate ended with the closing statements of both Harris and Trump, each making their final rebuttals and arguments.
“I think you’ve heard tonight two very different visions for our country — one that is focused on the future and the other that is focused on the past, and an attempt to take us backward,” Harris said. “The American people know we all have so much more in common than what separates us.”
