US President Joe Biden and his Republican rival Donald Trump began their opening debate of the 2024 election cycle on Thursday at CNN headquarters in Atlanta.
The two adversaries did not exchange handshakes as they took their positions on podiums just feet apart in a studio without a live audience.
Its goal is to redefine the political landscape by addressing economic issues, foreign policy, international crises, the nation's immigration challenge and the state of American democracy.
Economy
Answering the first question, Biden was quick to criticize his predecessor for overseeing “an economy that was in free fall” and mismanaging a pandemic in which “many people were dying.”
“We had an economy in free fall. The pandemic was so mismanaged that a lot of people were dying. Everything he said wasn't that bad: just inject some bleach in the arm,” he said, referring to Trump's advice during the pandemic of Covid.
Trump responded by saying that under his leadership from 2017 to 2021, “we had the greatest economy in the history of our country,” before the pandemic struck, and said he took steps to prevent the economy's free fall from deepening even further. .
“We've never done so well. Everyone was surprised that other countries copied us,” he said.
“He hasn't done a good job. He's done a bad job,” Trump said.
“And inflation is killing our country. It's killing us completely.”
Biden responded: “Well, look, the largest economy in the world? He's the only one who thinks that.”
Biden acknowledged that inflation had pushed prices up substantially more than at the start of his term, but said he deserves credit for “getting things back on track” after the coronavirus pandemic.
abortion
US President Joe Biden on Thursday attacked Republican Donald Trump for his role in curbing abortion access in the United States, calling it a “terrible thing” after his Republican rival boasted of having nominated Supreme Court justices who helped overturn Roe v Wade.
“What you've done has been a terrible thing,” Biden said, in one of his strongest criticisms of his presidential predecessor as the two faced off in Atlanta in their first in-person debate of the 2024 election season.
Immigration
Biden accused Trump of exaggerating and lying about the state of the country's immigration crisis.
The idea that illegal immigrants are welcome in the United States is “simply not true,” Biden said.
“There is no data to support what he said. Once again, he is exaggerating. He is lying,” Biden said.
Ukraine war
Donald Trump on Thursday blamed US President Joe Biden for the Ukraine war, insisting the invasion would never have happened “if we had a leader.”
“This is a war that should never have started. If we had a leader in this war… He has given 200 billion dollars now or more to Ukraine, he has given 200 billion dollars. That is a lot of money. No “I don't think there has ever been anything like it,” Trump said.
“You are the loser”
Biden attacked Donald Trump in their debate on Thursday, declaring that “you're the loser” and accusing his Republican rival of disparaging veterans and members of the military.
“My son was not a loser, he was not a fool,” Biden said of his late veteran son Beau, referring to Trump's alleged 2018 comments that he refused to visit a European cemetery holding American war dead and called them “losers.”
“You're the fool, you're the loser,” Biden told Trump, who denied ever using that word to describe U.S. troops.
Biden calls Trump a “convicted felon”
President Biden criticized Donald Trump's felony conviction.
“The only person in this scenario who is a convicted felon is the man I'm looking at right now. And the fact is, what he's telling you is simply not true,” Biden told Trump, after his predecessor said that some Democrats should be in prison.
Biden is a bad Palestinian: Trump
Donald Trump has accused Biden of siding with the Palestinians in the brutal Gaza conflict by allegedly refusing to help Israel “finish the job” in the war against Hamas.
“He doesn't want to do it. He's become like a Palestinian, but they don't like him because he's a very bad Palestinian, he's weak,” Trump said.
'You have the morals of a stray cat': Biden
Joe Biden accused Donald Trump of having the “morals of a stray cat” in a vicious attack on the Republican's character during the first debate of the 2024 campaign.
“The crimes you are still accused of. Think of all the civil penalties you have. How many billions of dollars do you owe in civil penalties for sexually abusing a woman in public… for having sex with a porn star?” that night, while your wife was pregnant? What are you talking about? You have the morals of a stray cat,” he told Trump.
Trump, a veteran of rallies and reality TV, spoke forcefully as he ran through a long list of complaints about Biden's record.
“It's a shame what's happened to our country in the last four years,” Trump said.
“I'm friends with a lot of people. They can't believe what happened to the United States of America. They don't respect us anymore.”
Trump tried to seize on Biden's speech, saying at one point: “I really don't know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don't think he knows what he said either.”
Trump challenges Biden to a cognitive test
Donald Trump challenged Joe Biden to take a cognitive test, saying he did not believe his Democratic rival for the White House in 2024 could pass it.
“I took two tests, cognitive tests. I passed them, both of them, as you know, we made it public. He didn't take one. I'd like to see him take one, just one, a very easy one, like go.” through the first five questions, he couldn't do it,” Trump said.
Trump has not said which test he took or what his score was, making it difficult to verify his claims.
Trump refuses to unconditionally accept 2024 vote results
Donald Trump said violence during the US presidential election in November would be “totally unacceptable” but also refused to unconditionally accept the results.
Moderators during the first debate of the 2024 election cycle asked Trump three times whether the Republican would accept the results of the vote before he finally addressed the question directly, saying “if it's a fair, legal and good election, absolutely.”
The current and former presidents are running at a crucial time, with many voters worried about choosing between Biden, the oldest incumbent at 81, and Trump, now a convicted felon at 71.
Both candidates are seeking to change these perceptions in order to win over undecided voters.
Millions of Americans are watching the debate, which marks the start of what is expected to be a tough summer of campaigning in a deeply divided and tense United States, still reeling from the chaos and violence of the 2020 election.
Today's debate adopts a new format, with no studio audience and strict rules on microphone use, to ensure a more orderly debate. The absence of an audience in the studio and the introduction of microphone muting are intended to keep the debate focused on the issues at hand.
Trump holds a slim lead in key states, but the national race remains very close. As the candidates take the stage, they are looking to address their political vulnerabilities and sway undecided voters.
