The first and only vice presidential debate between Republican JD Vance and Democrat Tim Walz took place in New York on October 1, 2024, moderated by CBS News journalists.
The debate highlighted the deep political differences between both candidates, emphasizing key issues such as immigration, the economy, and gun violence, while maintaining a respectful tone.
Who won the debate?
A recurring question on social media is who won this debate between vice presidential candidates, especially after many analysts in September defined Kamala Harris as the winner of the confrontation with Donald Trump.
This Tuesday, the polls conducted by USA TODAY, YouGov, and CNN indicated JD Vance as the winner of the debate. Experts consulted by The Boston Globe also gave a slight edge to Vance. However, both candidates were criticized for sharing false statements or those that needed more context.
Migration: A central topic of the vice presidential debate
One of the most debated aspects was the immigration crisis in the United States. JD Vance blamed Kamala Harris for the immigration crisis, arguing that her decision to reverse Donald Trump's policies opened the doors to a greater flow of illegal immigrants.
Vance proposed to return to Trump's immigration policies, including the construction of a wall on the border with Mexico and the deportation of illegal immigrants, focusing first on those with criminal records.
On the other hand, Tim Walz defended a bipartisan immigration law, which he claims is one of the strictest in the country. However, he criticized Republicans for blocking the legislation at Trump's request and emphasized that building a wall will not solve the migration crisis in the United States.
Economy, housing, violence, and health in the United States
Both candidates discussed how to address the country's economic issues, although each one's proposals reflected the ideological divisions of their respective parties.
JD Vance said that Trump worked in a bipartisan manner to preserve Obamacare. In reality, Trump tried to repeal it from his first day in office but failed in the Supreme Court. Tim Walz corrected Vance, highlighting that John McCain prevented the repeal.
Tim Walz promised economic assistance for home purchases and the construction of three million new properties, while JD Vance proposed using federal lands and limiting access for illegal immigrants to address the housing crisis in the U.S.
In the debate, the candidates addressed topics such as abortion, child care, and gun violence.
At this point, JD Vance lamented the cases of gun use in the U.S., attributing them to illegal trafficking and the Biden-Harris border policy. The Republican proposed increasing security in schools and stated that taking guns away from criminals is not a realistic solution.
Both candidates failed to respond concretely to some questions, sometimes evading them to attack the leaders of the opposing party, namely Donald Trump and Kamala Harris.
Perspectives on the elections
This vice presidential debate is just a part of the electoral process leading up to the November 2024 elections. Both campaigns have agreed to three debates, two presidential and one vice presidential.
Kamala Harris agreed to participate in a second debate with Donald Trump, but the Republican leader has stated that he does not consider it necessary, as in his opinion he "won the previous one."
What do you think?
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