SALT LAKE CITY – (AP) – Swapping beards through plexiglass shields Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris turned the only Vice Presidential debate of 2020 into a management dissection by Trump administration of coronavirus pandemic, Harris calling it ‘biggest failure of any presidential administration’
Pence, who heads the president’s coronavirus task force, acknowledged that « our country has gone through a very difficult time this year » but has vigorously defended the administration’s comprehensive response to a pandemic that has killed 210,000 Americans
The meeting, which was much more civil than last week’s chaotic clash between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, took place against a coronavirus outbreak that is now reaching the highest levels in the world. UThe Trump administration spent three days in hospital before returning to the White House on Monday, and more than a dozen White House and Pentagon officials are also infected, forcing even more people to quarantine
With less than four weeks to go before Election Day, the debate was one of the last opportunities for Trump and Pence to reset a contest that could get away.They hope to distract from the virus campaign, but the infection of the president – and its minimization of consequences – make this difficult
Trump and Biden are set to debate again on October 15, although the status of this meeting is unclear The president said he wanted to attend, but Biden says he shouldn’t go ahead if Trump still has coronavirus
Republicans desperately want to make the race a choice between two candidates who fight to move the country in very different directions Biden and Harris, they say, would pursue a far-left agenda bordering on socialism; Democrats say Trump administration will stoke racial and other divisions, torpedo health care for people who are not rich and otherwise undermine national strength
Harris, 55, made history by becoming the first black woman to participate in a vice presidential debate.She condemned the police murders of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky and George Floyd in Minnesota and spoke of the protests against racial injustice in policing that followed, which Trump described as « riots » as he calls for law and order
« We’re never going to tolerate violence, but we must always fight for the values we hold dear, » said Harris « I’m a former career prosecutor I know what I’m talking about Bad cops are bad for the good cops «
Pence, 61, has said his heart breaks for Taylor’s family, but he trusts the US court system. He called Harris « remarkable » as a former attorney general and prosecutor, questions the grand jury’s decision in the case not to charge an officer with killing her
He also rejected the existence of systemic racism in the police service and rejected the idea that law enforcement officers are prejudiced against minorities
« I want everyone to know who wears the law enforcement uniform every day, President Trump and I are by your side, » Pence said « We don’t have to choose between supporting law enforcement, proving public safety and supporting our African-American neighbors «
Candidates also clashed over taxes – or more specifically, Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns four years after repeatedly promising to do so The New York Times reported last month that the president pays very little personal income tax but owes hundreds of millions of dollars in debt
« The only thing we know about Joe is that he puts it all over there. He’s honest, he’s frank, » she added. « Donald Trump, from another side, hid everything «
Pence defended Trump as a job creator who paid more than his fair share of taxes and turned to Biden: « Day one Joe Biden is going to raise your taxes »
Pence declined to say whether climate change was an existential threat or whether Trump would accept election results if he lost, while Harris declined to say whether Biden would push for more Supreme Court justices
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But as long as the coronavirus ravages the White House and kills several hundred Americans every day, the campaign will almost certainly be a referendum on the Trump administration’s inability to control the pandemic, which Republicans have sought to minimize or ignore completely several months
Pence’s efforts to focus on other topics were hampered by the simple fact that the contestants and the moderator were separated by plexiglass shields, seated more than 12 feet apart, and facing a crowd of masked members of the public who risked deportation if they removed their masks Candidates on stage revealed test results earlier today proving they were not infected
As the audience was forced to wear face masks throughout the debate, Second Lady Karen Pence removed her mask as she joined her husband on stage at the end of the debate
Although the night was dedicated to Pence and Harris, the men at the top of the post have also made their presence known
Trump released a video just three hours before the debate calling his diagnosis a ‘blessing in disguise’ as it sheds light on an experimental combination of antibodies he attributes to his improved condition – even though neither he nor his doctors have no way of knowing if the drug had this effect
He tweeted several times during the debate, offering this assessment at one point: “Mike Pence is doing great! It’s a blunder machine «
Biden also maintained a flow of tweets; he released his plans to fight the virus, shared snippets from the debate exchanges and praised Harris, who he said « shows the American people why I picked her as running mate »
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Kamala Harris, Mike Pence, Vice President of the United States, Donald Trump, Debate
News from around the world – United States – Pence and Harris fight over COVID-19 during of the vice-presidential debate
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