The 2024 Vice Presidential debate between Republican candidate Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance and Democratic candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was filled with sharp exchanges and policy differences such as abortion, immigration, and democracy.
CBS introduced a unique feature for viewers this year— a QR code on screen allowing real-time fact-checking by CBS journalists.
There were many highlights that captured concerns that the American citizens held highly during this election.
First, the topic of abortion was in question. While parties expressed their agreement of women having rights to their bodies, Walz debunks claims that Former President Donald Trump made during the Presidential Debate, saying that Vice President Harris and Walz supported abortion in the ninth month.
“No we do not. We are pro-women,” Walz said. “We are pro-freedom to make your own choice.”
Vance voiced his agreement with Walz’s statements, mentioning how the country was affected by the deaths of many women due to the strict laws on abortions. He reassures that he and Trump must “earn the trust of the American people” again so that the future of the country will respect women’s reproductive rights.
While making this claim, Vance made it clear regarding his stance on the national abortion ban.
“I never supported a national ban,” Vance said. “I did, when I was running for Senate in 2022, talking about setting some minimum national standard.”
He does reiterate and agree with Trump’s position of allowing individual states to decide on abortion rights.
Immigration was once again brought into question for both candidates.
Vance claimed that Vice President Harris is to blame for immigration being the worst the country has seen. He further stated that illegal immigrants are coming into this country because of Harris’s open-door policy that has taken away housing, jobs, and resources from the citizens.
“You’ve got housing that is totally unaffordable because we brought in millions of illegal immigrants to compete with Americans for scarce homes.” Vance stated, “The people that I’m most worried about in Springfield, Ohio, are the American citizens who have had their lives destroyed by Kamala Harris’ open border.”
This was later fact-checked to be partially true that immigrants are just one factor leading the housing demand.
According to CBSNEWS, “Research indicates that growth in immigration under the Biden administration is one-factor fueling housing demand. However, the housing shortage in the U.S. of an estimated 1.5 million to 7 million housing units has been a longstanding issue since the Great Recession.”
Walz addressed this issue by stating that the treatment of immigrants in this country was not only inhumane but also did not align with the country’s basic rights.
He referred to Vice President Harris’ efforts to help draft a bill that would enforce stricter border restrictions while still being fair to the immigrants.
Walz responded by stating that during Trump’s presidency, he had fallen through on most of his promises as it pertains to controlling the issues with immigration. Walz referenced the claims made by Trump regarding the Haitian immigrants of Springfield, Ohio, highlighting the recklessness of Trump’s actions and supporting his claim of the treatment of immigrants.
Vance did not address Trump’s previous statements.
One of the ending topics of the debate was the strength of America’s democracy.
Walz agrees that not only is America’s democracy in question, but so is the maturity of candidates when the election is over.
Walz referred to the January 6 insurrection, where Trump led what should have been a peaceful protest but to the raiding of the capital, where many deaths and injuries occurred.
He also calls out Trump for questioning the 2020 election and making statements that it was “rigged” or “fixed.”
Walz asked Vance, “Did Donald Trump lose the 2020 presidential election?”.
Vance avoided the question by stating that the democracy of the United States is still intact and was shown gracefully on Jan 20, the day of President Joe Biden’s official inauguration.
Vance said, “Tim, I’m focused on the future—Did Kamala Harris censor Americans from speaking their mind in the wake of the 2020 COVID situation?”
Immediately redirecting the question to focus on Harris’s shortcomings as Vice President.
The media applauds this debate for being professional, respectful, and politically sound as both parties argue their positions on various issues.
After the debate, CBS surveyed voters nationwide to get their reactions or thoughts on the debate.
“Watchers felt the overall tone of the debate was positive.” and “Both candidates sounded “reasonable.” These were a few of the comments from the survey.
Harris and Walz continue their campaign by kicking off the Historical Black College and Universities (HBCU) tour across battleground states.
While Trump and Vance will continue to hold rallies in many states across America, the next one will be hosted on Wednesday, Oct 2, in Auburn Hills, Michigan.