By D. Kevin McNeir
Millions of voters tuned in to the first and perhaps only debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump on Sept. 10.
ABC News’ David Muir and Linsey Davis served as the moderators of the 90-minute debate, held at National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The two maintained moderate control of the flow of the debate, and at multiple points either refuted or clarified statements made by the candidates in real time – something that was not done in the earlier debate between President Joe Biden and Trump.
As one would expect, the two candidates were given questions on all of the major issues facing Americans – some issues being of even greater importance to African Americans: the economy, healthcare, education, immigration, women’s reproductive rights and the separate wars raging between both Hamas and Israel, since Oct. 7 of last year, and Russia and Ukraine in 2022.
Both candidates hoped to win over viewers with their distinct views of how the economy currently stands and what they would do to improve it. Seven swing states (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania) could potentially decide the 2024 election.
The debate kicked off with a question about the economy. Harris said she would invest in small business owners, to the tune of $50,000. Trump spoke on how he would build the economy using tariffs on foreign goods shipped into the country. At that point, Muir noted that economists say tariffs on some foreign products will undoubtedly raise costs on American consumers.
Time and time again, Trump was given a chance to explain the plans he would like to put in place, but instead chose to change the subject, spew incorrect facts or downtalk the formidable opponent before him.
“She doesn’t have a plan,” said Trump, in reference to Harris. “She has four sentences like ‘Run, Spot, run.’ She’s a Marxist like her father who was a professor who taught Marxism.”
There were other highpoints–or low points– during the debate, depending on your perspective.
One interesting moment was Trump’s refusal to respond if he would veto a bill to reinstate Roe v. Wade. Instead, he decided to speak about immigrants and the “millions of criminals that Biden and Harris have allowed to enter the United States.”
He also made a statement that one moderator immediately corrected, saying that in Springfield, Ohio, immigrants were “eating their dogs for dinner.” Muir told the president that he interviewed the City Manager of Springfield, who said there were no reports of immigrants engaging in the act.
The debate was rather tame, compared to Trump’s previous debates, even though both teams haggled over rules for the meet.
In the weeks leading up to the debate, Harris and Trump went back and forth with host network ABC regarding the muting of microphones. Harris preferred to keep the mics on, a contrast to President Joe Biden’s request for mics to be muted while the other candidate spoke. Ultimately, the decision was made to move forward with muted mics for the majority of the debate, allowing for only one candidate to speak at a time.
For the most part, viewers saw two very different candidates.
Harris provided the salient answers and some plans when asked to describe what she would do if she were elected to the highest office in the land. During the debate she mentioned a $6,000 stipend to help families with a new child during the baby’s first year of life, and plans to give $25,000 to new homeowners looking to make a downpayment on a property.
On the other hand, Trump appeared unable, or in some cases unwilling, to say exactly what he would do with a second term in office, but promised it would be “best for Americans.” At one point, he noted that his inability or unwillingness to share a planned course of action on some issues was due to the fact that he has not been elected to a second term in office.
The former president was backed into a corner all together when the time arrived for him to explain his plan to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, known as “Obamacare.” In 2024, after nine years and one term in office to develop a program to replace the Obamacare he has repeatedly claimed is awful, Trump stood on the debate stage on Sept. 10 and could only declare that “something” should replace the act that provides healthcare coverage to millions of Americans– regardless of preexisting conditions like asthma. Harris was adamant that the lifesaving act remain the law of the land.
At one point, Trump taunted Harris for not being able to get relief for borrowers with student loan debt. He failed to mention that Republican judges and elected officials have fought the plan to help millions of Americans crushed by student loan debt at every turn.
In their closing comments, Harris said she is focused on looking to the future while Trump is focused on looking at the past. The former prosecutor used the debate stage to remind the audience that Trump is a convicted felon, who many allege kicked off the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol Building in 2021.
“For everyone watching, who remembers what Jan. 6th was, I say, we don’t have to go back. Let’s not go back. We’re not going back. It’s time to turn the page,” said Harris. “And if that was a bridge too far for you, well, there is a place in our campaign for you to stand for country, to stand for our democracy, to stand for rule of law and to end the chaos and to end the approach that is about attacking the foundations of our democracy because you don’t like the outcome.”
Trump used his final moments to further attack Biden and Harris.
“We’re a failing nation. We’re a nation that’s in serious decline. We’re being laughed at all over the world…I know the leaders very well – they’re coming to see me, they call me,” he said. “We’re laughed at all over the world, they don’t understand what happened to us as a nation.”
Trump claimed in his closing statements that he “rebuilt” the “entire military,” in America while Harris “gave a lot of it away to the Taliban” and Afghanistan.
“What these people have done to our country and maybe toughest of all is allowing millions of people to come into our country, many of them are criminals,” he continued on. “They’re destroying our country. The worst president, the worst vice president in the history of our country.”
To help make sense of the information – or in some cases the disinformation – Word In Black, a collaborative news media company developed and supported by 10 Black publishers, put on “Debate Night in Black America: A Virtual Conversation.”
The event, designed to engage the Black American community on debate night and hosted by Word in Black Managing Director Liz Courquet-Lesaulnier and Deputy Managing Director Joseph Williams, was streamed both before and after the debate. Special guests from across the country were invited to provide commentary and perspectives that resonate with the unique experiences and concerns of the Black community.
Before the debate began, Barbara R. Arnwine, Esq., president and founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition, shared her expectations and hopes for the evening with Courquet-Lesaulnier and Williams.
“I expect a strong focus on economic justice, voting rights, the protection of our democracy and women’s issues including maternal health. We all know the third person on that debate stage will be Project 2025. But if we hear those issues, then we will have a real debate. This is Harris’ time to be heard and she needs to speak directly to the American audience.”
Chrissy M. Thornton, president and CEO of Associated Black Charities in Baltimore, said it was important to get to the truth.
“We have to push back against the false narratives including that Harris is an enemy of the Black community. I’m not sure what it will take to effectively counter these false narratives except to rally so that we do not vote against our best interest,” said Thornton. “Our charge is to continue to communicate and focus on what’s best for Blacks. There’s a lot at stake in this election that people are not talking about . . . We need to understand what we have to lose if Donald Trump wins.”
AFRO Managing Editor Alexis Taylor gave her thoughts on the debate during the Word in Black post-debate show.
“I was glad that they started off with the economy,” said Taylor. “There are so many issues at stake here in this election– climate change, healthcare and immigration being some of the big ticket items.”
“It’s important to think about where the candidates stand on those issues- and take action with your vote,” she continued. “But it’s hard to think if you’re hungry. It’s hard to think about climate change and why storms are becoming stronger and more frequent… It’s hard to question why it’s raining when you don’t have shelter from the rain.”
After the debate, several statements were shared with the AFRO regarding the debate.
Maryland Democratic Party Chairman Ken Ulman released the following statement after tonight’s presidential debate:
“Kamala Harris offered a fresh vision for moving our country forward by protecting our fundamental freedoms, safeguarding our democracy, and creating an economy where every person has the opportunity to succeed. Now, it’s on Maryland to deliver Vice President Harris the Democratic Senate majority she needs to get the job done. That means rejecting Mitch McConnell’s handpicked U.S. Senate candidate and proud, self-described ‘lifelong Republican’ Larry Hogan and keeping the Senate in Democratic hands by electing Democrat Angela Alsobrooks.”
Angela Alsobrooks also commented on the event via statement:
“I am so proud of my friend and mentor Vice President Kamala Harris. Tonight, she spoke to us about the issues we care deeply about – fighting for our freedoms including the freedom to access reproductive health care. She talked about the Supreme Court and appointing fair justices who recognize our Constitutional freedoms. She discussed investing in our climate, and lowering costs for hard-working Americans.”
“But make no mistake: The vision Kamala Harris painted for us tonight, a vision for a future that strengthens our democracy and where our freedoms are protected and our families can thrive, is a vision that we know is only possible with a Democratic majority in the Senate.”
“A Republican Senate will stand in the way of Kamala Harris’ agenda – cutting her off with every chance they can get, just as we saw their leader do in tonight’s debate. We must do everything we can over these next 55 days to elect Kamala Harris and give her a Democratic majority in the Senate.”
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