Democratic elected officials and political activists praised Vice President Kamala Harris for her performance in Tuesday night’s debate with former President Donald Trump.
“Tonight, America saw the leader I’ve been proud to work with for three and a half years. We weren’t far off it. Vice President Harris has proven herself to be the best person to lead this country forward. We won’t be turning back.” President Biden posts on X Early Wednesday morning after the debate had concluded.
“Well, that was shocking. I’m curious to see how the Republicans interpret this.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer He posted another message to X in favor of Harris.
Trump and Harris appeared together for the first time this election season on Tuesday night at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, where the two sparred over the issues that matter most to voters, including the economy, immigration and abortion.
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Harris’ Democratic allies and Democratic commentators praised her for “destroying” Trump’s career and giving voters a glimpse of a “serious leader who works hard every day” for the American people.
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Harris’ campaign also released a statement Tuesday night boasting of her victory, saying, “Harris led on every issue that matters to the American people.”
“Under the bright lights, the American people were able to see the choice they face at the ballot box this fall: move forward with Kamala Harris or move backward with Trump. That’s what they saw tonight and that’s what they will see in October at the second debate. VP Harris is ready for debate 2. What about Donald Trump?” the Harris campaign posted.
Trump and Harris sparred Tuesday night on the issues that matter most to voters, including abortion, with Harris arguing that Trump’s policies would create a nationwide ban on abortion with no exceptions for the procedure.
Harris claims Trump’s abortion policy “makes no exceptions,” while Trump says the opposite
“More than 20 states now have Trump’s abortion bans on their books, making it a crime for doctors and nurses to practice medicine in their state, punishable by life in prison. Trump’s abortion ban makes no exceptions for rape or incest, and we know what that means,” Harris said Tuesday night at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
“Victims of disembodied crimes do not have the right to decide what to do with their own bodies. You don’t have to abandon your faith or deeply held beliefs to agree that this is immoral and that the government and Donald Trump should not dictate what women do with their bodies.”
However, shortly before that, Trump had said, as former President Reagan had done, that exceptions should be made for abortion.
“I believe there should be exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother,” Trump said during the debate. “I believe strongly in that. So did Ronald Reagan. 85 percent of Republicans knew that the exceptions were very important.”
Trump and Harris also traded sharp stern terms on America’s crime problem, with Harris citing Trump’s legal troubles to defend charges that immigrant crime has increased under his administration.
“Yes, crime rates are way higher because of them,” Trump said at a debate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, discussing crimes committed by illegal immigrants who have entered the country under Biden’s administration.
“They’ve forgiven criminals, millions of criminals,” Trump continued. “They’ve forgiven terrorists. They’ve forgiven ordinary street criminals. They’ve allowed drug dealers to come into our country. And now in the United States we have countries like Venezuela telling us not to come back or we’ll kill you. Do you know that crime in Venezuela and in countries around the world has gone down substantially?”
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Harris responded by pointing to Trump’s conviction and expected indictment.
“I find it extremely surprising that someone who has been indicted on national security crimes, economic crimes, election interference and has been convicted of sexual assault would make such a statement,” Harris said.
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“And his next important court appearance is at his own criminal sentencing in November. Let’s make clear where each of us stands on the issues of what’s important about the rule of law and respect for law enforcement.”
After the debate, Harris’ campaign called for a second debate in October. President Trump had repeatedly called for more debates with Harris after having just one presidential debate with President Biden in June.
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“It was fun. Let’s do it again,” Brian Fallon, an adviser to Harris, said on The X after the debate.
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