IMF agreement could give Ukraine access to $1.1 bn

PHILADELPHIA: Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump met on Tuesday for their first and perhaps only debate, a battle that could have a significant impact on the Nov. 5 election as polls show a close race.

Here are tips from the debate:

CORRECTS HER RIVAL

Harris made a point to get under Trump's skin, as her campaign had predicted.

She urged viewers to attend a Trump rally, where she said Trump would say bizarre things like windmills cause cancer (something he has actually said) and where, she mocked, attendees would leave exhausted and bored.

Trump, who prides himself on the crowds he draws, was visibly upset.

“My demonstrations, we have the largest gatherings, the most incredible gatherings in the history of politics,” he said. He accused Harris of taking attendees to her meetings.

Trump then falsely claimed that immigrants in the country illegally killed and ate people's pets in the city of Springfield, Ohio, an unsubstantiated claim that has circulated on social media and was reinforced by Trump's running mate JD Vance.

“In Springfield they eat the dogs! The people who came in, they eat the cats!” Trump said. “They eat the pets of the people who live there.”

Springfield city officials have said those reports are untrue, as the ABC hosts pointed out after Trump's comments.

“Talk about extreme,” Harris replied, laughing.

PLAY DEFENSE

Another of Harris' goals, as a former California prosecutor, was to call Trump out on his past actions, particularly his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

An hour into the debate, her strategy appeared to be paying off. Trump was constantly on the defensive.

When asked about the siege of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, he insisted that he “had nothing to do with it, other than they asked me to give a speech.” He also claimed, falsely, that he had won the 2020 election.

Harris used Trump's actions as an argument for the country to turn the page.

“Donald Trump got fired by 81 million people, so let's be clear about that, and obviously he's having a very hard time processing that, but we can't afford to have a president of the United States trying as he did in the past to raise the will of the voters in a free and fair election,” Harris said.

The vice president took a little more dig at Trump, saying world leaders were “laughing” at him and calling him a disgrace — language Trump has used at rallies to refer to how he says other countries view President Joe Biden.

Minutes later, Trump lashed out, claiming Harris had received “no votes” in claiming the Democratic nomination and suggesting she replace Biden as part of some kind of coup.
“He hates her,” Trump said of Biden. “He can't stand her.”

The exchanges may have helped Harris' argument that Trump, as she put it, lacks the “temperament” to be president.

RACIAL PROTECTION

Deep into the debate, the simmering topic of race came up. Trump was asked why he had publicly questioned Harris' dual heritage as a black and South Asian woman.

“I don't care what she is,” he replied. “I read she was black. Then I read she wasn't black.”

Asked to respond, Harris accused Trump of using race to divide Americans throughout his career. She cited how he and his father rejected black tenants in the 1970s and how Trump led the public protests against five young black and Latino men who were wrongfully convicted of assaulting a jogger in New York City's Central Park in 1989.

More recently, he openly questioned whether President Barack Obama was an American citizen, Harris noted.

“I think it's a tragedy that we have someone running for president who has consistently throughout his career tried to use race to divide the American people,” she said.

“I think the American people want better than that,” Harris added. “We don't want a leader who is constantly trying to get Americans to point fingers at each other.”

Instead of trying to defend his record, Trump pivoted back to the economy and tried to pin Biden's economic policies on Harris. “She's trying to get away from Biden,” he said.

Harris used the attack to reposition himself as an agent of change.

“Clearly, I'm not Joe Biden, and I'm certainly not Donald Trump,” Harris said, “and what I'm offering is a new generation of leadership for our country.”

HANDSHAKE

Heading into the debate, there was a question of how Harris and Trump, who have never met, would greet each other.

Harris settled the matter definitively. She approached Trump at his podium, held out her hand and introduced herself as “Kamala Harris.”

It was a disarming way for Harris to approach a man who has spent weeks insulting her race and gender.

SAVINGS ABOUT ECONOMY

In the opening minutes of the debate, Trump and Harris went to battle on one of the issues on the top of voters' minds: the economy.

Harris outlined the economic policies she has rolled out in recent weeks, which include a significant tax break for small startups. Trump focused his remarks on tariffs, saying he would protect the U.S. economy from unfair foreign competition.

While both sides got their bearings, Harris got to speak first on a topic where she trails Trump in terms of voter confidence. She appeared to force the former president onto the back foot, with Trump essentially playing defense on one of his strongest issues.

“She has no plan,” Trump said after Harris' opening remarks. “It's like Run, Spot, Run.”

A SCHISM ON ABORTION

The two candidates also engaged in a difficult debate over abortion, an issue where polls show Harris has the upper hand.

Trump defended the 2022 US Supreme Court ruling that ended constitutional protections for abortion and returned the issue to individual states, arguing, incorrectly, that it was an outcome desired by both Republicans and Democrats. Democrats have long supported a constitutional right to abortion.

“I did a great service when I did that. It took courage to do that,” Trump said.

Trump claimed that some states allow babies to be aborted after birth, a point corrected by ABC News moderator Linsey Davis.

Harris showed some outrage over Trump's claim that making abortion a state rights issue was a popular outcome, citing states that have enacted restrictive bans.

“This is what people wanted?” Harris asked. “People being denied care in an emergency room because caregivers are afraid of being taken to jail?”

Trump was asked if he would veto a federal abortion ban if one were passed by Congress. He insisted it would never happen, but refused to answer the question definitively.

FROM WORLDS

One of the hottest political debates came as Trump and Harris clashed over how to handle Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

The candidates' responses revealed the degree to which their views on America's role in the world differ fundamentally.

Trump refused to say he wanted Ukraine to win the war, even when ABC host David Muir pressed him on the point, saying only that he wanted to end the conflict as soon as possible.

Harris fired back, arguing that what Trump really wanted was Ukraine's swift and unconditional surrender.

“If Donald Trump was president, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin would be sitting in Kiev right now,” Harris said.

'VAPONISED JUSTICE

In a heated exchange, Trump and Harris accused each other of conspiring to “weaponize” the Justice Department in an effort to go after their enemies.

Trump said the charges he faces for conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss and for his mishandling of classified documents — as well as his conviction for falsifying documents related to hush money payments to a porn star — are all the result of a conspiracy cooked up by Harris and Biden. There is no evidence for that claim.

Harris fired back by pointing out that Trump has vowed to prosecute his enemies if he wins a second term.

“Understand that this is someone who has openly said that he would terminate, I quote, terminate the Constitution,” Harris said.

The exchange underscored how Harris and Trump see the stakes in this election as existential. Both see their opponent as a threat to democracy itself.