WASHINGTON 鈥� Vice presidential hopefuls and focused their criticism on the top of the ticket on Tuesday as they engaged in a policy-heavy discussion that may be the last debate of the 2024 presidential campaign.
It was the first encounter between Minnesota鈥檚 Democratic governor and Ohio鈥檚 Republican senator, following last month鈥檚 between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. It comes just five weeks before Election Day and as millions of voters are now able to cast early ballots.
Tuesday鈥檚 confrontation played out as the stakes of the contest rose again after into Israel, while a devastating and potentially debilitating roiled the country at home. Over and again, Walz and Vance outlined the policy and character differences between their running mates, while trying to introduce themselves to the country.
Here are some takeaways from Tuesday鈥檚 debate.
With Mideast in turmoil, Walz promises 鈥榮teady leadership' and Vance offers 鈥檖eace through strength'
Iran鈥檚 ballistic missile attack on Israel on Tuesday elicited a contrast between the Democratic and Republican tickets on foreign policy: Walz promised 鈥渟teady leadership鈥� under Harris while Vance pledged a return to 鈥減eace through strength鈥� if Trump is returned to the White House.
The differing visions of what American leadership should look like overshadowed the sharp policy differences between the two tickets.
The Iranian threat to the region and U.S. interests around the world opened the debate, with Walz pivoting the topic to criticism of Trump.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 fundamental here is that steady leadership is going to matter,鈥� Walz said, then referenced the 鈥渘early 80-year-old Donald Trump talking about crowd sizes鈥� and responding to global crises by tweet.
Vance, for his part, promised a return to 鈥渆ffective deterrence鈥� under , brushing back on Walz鈥檚 criticism of Trump by attacking Harris and her role in the Biden administration.
鈥淲ho has been the vice president for the last three and a half years and the answer is your running mate, not mine,鈥� he said. He pointedly noted that the on Oct. 7, 2023, happened 鈥渄uring the administration of Kamala Harris.鈥�
Vance and Walz punch up rather than at each otherVance and Walz trained the bulk of their attacks not on their onstage rivals, but on the running mates who weren鈥檛 in the room.
Both vice presidential nominees sought to convey a genial mien as they lobbed criticism at Harris and Trump, respectively.
It was a reflection of the fact that most voters don鈥檛 cast a ballot based on the vice president, and on a vice presidential nominee鈥檚 historic role in serving as the attack dog for their running mates.
Walz pointedly attacked Trump for failing to meet his pledge of across the entire U.S.-Mexico border at the country鈥檚 southern neighbor鈥檚 expense.
鈥淟ess than 2% of that wall got built and Mexico didn鈥檛 pay a dime,鈥� Walz said.
Underscoring the focus on the top of the ticket, during a back-and-forth about immigration, Vance said to his opponent, 鈥淚 think that you want to solve this problem, but I don鈥檛 think that Kamala Harris does.鈥�
It was a wonky policy debate, with talk of risk pools, housing regulations and energy policyIn an age of world-class disses optimized for social media, Tuesday鈥檚 debate was a detour into substance. Both candidates took a low-key approach and both enthusiastically delved into the minutiae.
Walz dug into the drafting of the Affordable Care Act when he was in the House in 2009, and pushed Vance on the senator鈥檚 claim that Trump, who tried to eliminate the law, actually helped preserve it. Vance, defending his claim that illegal immigration pushes up housing prices, cited a Federal Reserve study to back himself up. Walz talked about how Minneapolis tinkered with local regulations to boost the housing supply. Both men talked about the overlap between energy policy, trade and climate change.
It was a very different style than often seen in presidential debates over the past several election cycles.
Vance stays on the defensive on abortion
Walz pounced on Vance repeatedly over abortion access and reproductive rights as the Ohio senator tried to argue that a is the ideal approach for the United States. Walz countered that a 鈥渂asic right鈥� for a woman should not be determined 鈥渂y geography.鈥�
鈥淭his is a very simple proposition: These are women鈥檚 decisions,鈥� Walz said. 鈥淲e trust women. We trust doctors.鈥�
Walz sought to personalize the issue by referencing the death of Amber Thurman, who at the hospital for a routine medical procedure known as a D&C to clear out remaining tissue after taking abortion pills. She developed sepsis and died.
Rather than sidestep the reference, Vance at one point agreed with Walz that 鈥淎mber Thurman should still be alive.鈥�
Vance steered the conversation to the GOP ticket鈥檚 proposals he said would help women and children economically, thus avoiding the need for terminating pregnancies. But Walz retorted that such policies 鈥� tax credits, expanded childcare aid, a more even economy 鈥� can be pursued while still allowing women to make their own decisions about abortion.
Both candidates put a domestic spin on climate changeIn the wake of the devastation of Hurricane Helene, Vance took a question about climate change and gave an answer about jobs and manufacturing, taking a detour around Trump's past claims that global warming is a 鈥渉oax.鈥�
Vance contended that the best way to fight was to move more manufacturing to the United States, because the country has the world鈥檚 cleanest energy economy. It was a distinctly domestic spin on a global crisis, especially after Trump pulled the U.S. out of the international Paris climate accords during his administration.
Walz also kept the climate change focus domestic, touting the Biden administration鈥檚 renewable energy investments as well as record levels of oil and natural gas production. 鈥淵ou can see us becoming an energy superpower in the future,鈥� Walz said.
It was a decidedly optimistic take on a pervasive and grim global problem.
Walz, Vance each blame opposing presidential candidate for immigration stalemate
The two running mates agreed that the number of migrants in the U.S. illegally is a problem. But each laid the blame on the opposing presidential nominee.
Vance echoed Trump by repeatedly calling Harris the 鈥渂order czar鈥� and suggested that she, as vice president, single-handedly rolled back the restrictions Trump had imposed as president. The result, in Vance鈥檚 telling, is an unchecked flow of fentanyl, strain on state and local resources and increased housing prices around the country.
Harris was never asked to be the 鈥渂order czar鈥� and she was never specifically given the responsibility for security on the border. She was tasked by Biden in March 2021 with tackling the 鈥渞oot causes鈥� of migration from the Central American countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador and pushing leaders there and in Mexico to enforce immigration laws. Harris was not empowered to set U.S. immigration policy 鈥� only the president can sign executive orders and Harris was not empowered as Biden鈥檚 proxy in negotiations with Congress on immigration law.
Walz advanced Democrats鈥� arguments that Trump single-handedly to tighten border security and boost the processing system for immigrants and asylum seekers. Republicans backed off the deal, Walz noted, only after Trump said it wasn鈥檛 good enough.
Both candidates leaned on tried-and-true debate tactics 鈥� including not answering tough questions
Asked directly whether Trump鈥檚 promise to deport millions of illegal immigrants would remove parents of U.S.-born children, Vance never answered the question. Instead, the senator tried to put his best spin on Trump鈥檚 plan to use the military to help with deportations and pivot to attacking Harris for a porous border. Asked to respond to Trump鈥檚 having called climate change a 鈥渉oax,鈥� Vance also avoided a response.
The debate kicked off with Walz being asked if he鈥檇 support a preemptive strike by Israel against Iran. Walz praised Harris鈥� foreign policy leadership but never answered that question, either.
And at the end of the debate, Vance would not answer Walz鈥檚 direct question of whether Trump indeed lost the 2020 election.
Walz has stumbles and lands punches in uneven night
Walz had several verbal stumbles on a night in which he admitted to 鈥渕isspeaking鈥� often. In the debate鈥檚 opening moments, he confused Iran and Israel when discussing the Middle East.
At one point he said he had 鈥渂ecome friends with school shooters,鈥� and he stumbled through an explanation of inaccurate remarks about whether he was in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. ( .)
But the governor noticeably put Vance on the defensive over abortion and, near the end of the debate, with a pointed question about whether Trump won the 2020 election.
Vance stays on a limb on Jan. 6 insurrection
The candidates went out of their way to be polite to each other until the very end, when Vance refused to back down from his statements that he wouldn鈥檛 have certified Trump's 2020 election loss.
Vance tried to turn the issue to claims that the 鈥渕uch bigger threat to democracy鈥� was Democrats trying to censor people on social media. But Walz wouldn鈥檛 let go.
鈥淭his one is troubling to me,鈥� said Walz, noting that he鈥檇 just been praising some of Vance鈥檚 answers. He rattled off the ways Trump tried to overturn his 2020 loss and noted that the candidate still insists he won that contest. Then Walz asked Vance if Trump actually lost the election.
Vance responded by asking if Harris censored people.
鈥淭hat is a damning non-answer,鈥� said Walz, noting that Trump鈥檚 former vice president, Mike Pence, wasn鈥檛 on the debate stage because he stood up to Trump on and presided over Congress鈥� certification of the former president鈥檚 loss.
鈥淎merica,鈥� Walz concluded, 鈥淚 think you鈥檝e got a really clear choice on this election of who鈥檚 going to honor that democracy and who鈥檚 going to honor Donald Trump.鈥�
