Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump took the stage in Philadelphia for the first— and so far only— presidential debate ahead of the November elections. During the 90-minute back-and-forth, immigration frequently came into the limelight as the former President repeated misleading or false claims on immigrants and border crossings.
One of those claims, which has just recently been adopted by the Trump campaign, was about Haitian immigrants in Ohio killing and eating pets. Earlier this week, he posted two AI memes of cats to try to drive the message home.
"In Springfield, they're eating the dogs. The people that came in, they're eating the cats. They're eating— they're eating the pets of the people that live here," the former President said during the debate, which was hosted by ABC.
In response, the Harris laughed, with her mic off, and shook her head while appearing to mouth, "what?" and later joking "talk about extremes."
A spokeswoman for the city of Springfield, Ohio, said this week that despite these claims, "there have been no credible reports or specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community." A Clark County, Ohio, official also said that they "have absolutely no evidence of this happening." One of the ABC hosts, David Muir, mentioned these clarifications and fact-checked Trump live.
On immigration, the former President continued with the same rhetoric he's communicated throughout his campaign, which includes the idea of a "migrant invasion," and "migrant crime."He also tried to paint Harris as the "border czar" for her previous role in dealing with the root causes of immigration.
Additionally, Trump claimed that "21 million people" are crossing the border monthly into the United States under President Joe Biden. The truth is, however, that the total number of "encounters" at the northern and southern borders from February 2021 through July 2024, at both legal ports of entry and in between those ports, was roughly 10 million, according to CNN.
Another high-profile issue was the economy, with Harris repeating her plans of an "opportunity economy," highlighting her goals to help middle class voters. While Trump's tariff ideas took the center stage on his economic policies.
Likewise, he mentioned his intention to deport millions of migrants, who he claims are stealing jobs from Americans. But Trump's proposal to deport 10 million to 20 million immigrants would be an "inflation shock." Even a tenth of that proposal would lift inflation by 1.3 percentage points after three years, according to research presented at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Harris' proposals, by contrast, are more standard fare and would keep the economy on pace, according to CNN.
Other issues included abortion, fracking, crime and Jan. 6, all of which resulted in the usual personal attacks from Trump to Harris as the Vice President seemingly unfolded a plan to throw him off his game.
One of the ways in which she carried this strategy was by commenting on his rally crowd sizes, directly taking a jab at the GOP nominee's ego. She invited viewers to attend these events, as they would see how audience members leave out of "boredom."
When the debate drew to a close, Harris delivered a familiar line from her campaign— "we're not going back." She also said Americans on Tuesday night heard "two very different visions for our country: one that is focused on the future, and one that is focused on the past— an attempt to take us backward."
Trump, on the other hand, focused on his grievances, asking Harris why she has not already carried out some of her promises during her tenure in the White House.
"She's been there for 3.5 years. They've had 3.5 years to fix the border. They've had 3.5 years to create jobs and all the things we talked about. Why hasn't she done it?," he said.
Immediate Reactions
Right after the debate, a chorus of Trump supporters took to social media and interviews to criticize ABC News' debate moderators. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was among the prominent voices claiming the moderators, Muir and Linsey Davis favored the Vice President, arguing she was never pressed on inflation or her past suggestions on banning hydraulic fracturing.
"There are all kinds of things the moderators never asked," Rubio said. He added that he wasn't one to frequently criticize debate moderators, but that doing so was warranted in this case.
On the other side, as Democrats cheered their apparent victory, they also received perhaps one of the most awaited endorsements in pop culture and entertainment— Taylor Swift. The superstar posted on Instagram shortly after the debate ended her official support.
"I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I'm voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them."
She signed the message "Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady," an allusion to GOP Vice Presidential nominee JD Vance, who has used the term to criticize women who have no children.
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