Trump was often on defense, but he did drive the core message of his campaign: Inflation and immigration are hammering Americans.
Immigrants, Trump said, have “destroyed the fabric of our country.”
He repeatedly tied Harris to Biden.
“She is Biden,” he said.
“The worst inflation we’ve ever had,” Trump added. “A horrible economy because inflation has made it so bad. And she can’t get away with that.”
Harris responded: “Clearly, I am not Joe Biden and I am certainly not Donald Trump. And what I do offer is a new generation of leadership for our country.”
Trump also went after Harris for moving away from many of the far left positions she took in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, urging voters not to believe the more moderate tone she’s striking in this campaign.
“She’s going to my philosophy now. In fact, I was going to send her a MAGA hat,” he said, referring to the red “Make America Great Again” baseball caps that many of his supporters wear. “But if she ever got elected, she’d change it.”
Meanwhile, Harris came out swinging in defense of abortion rights, drawing attention to the fact that Trump's nominees to the Supreme Court helped to overturn Roe v Wade.
Trump was just as fierce in defense, saying he returned the issue to the states, an outcome he said many Americans wanted. “I did a great service in doing that. It took courage to do it,” Trump said of the overturning of Roe v. Wade and its constitutional protections for abortion. “And the Supreme Court had great courage in doing it. And I give tremendous credit to those six justices.”
The debate opened with an unexpectedly wonky exchange on the economy: Harris took on Trump for his plan to put in place sweeping tariffs and for the trade deficit he ran as president; Trump slammed Harris for inflation that he incorrectly said was the worst in the country’s history.
Trump said people look back on his presidency’s economy fondly. “I created one of the greatest economies in the history of our country,” he said. Harris flatly told viewers, “Donald Trump has no plan for you.”
Americans are slightly more likely to trust Trump over Harris when it comes to handling the economy, according to various polls in recent months.
After the debate, Trump was quick to reflect on the hostile tone of both the ABC moderators who attacked the credibility of his statements on a number of occasions.
Trump, shortly after he left the stage in Philadelphia, sent out a message on his social media platform: “I thought that was my best debate, EVER, especially since it was THREE ON ONE!”
