On Tuesday, September 29th, history was made when one of the most chaotic presidential debates took place. Incumbent President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Vice President Joe Biden faced off for the first time in Cleveland, Ohio as the Republican and Democratic party presidential nominees. 

Moderated by Fox News’ Chris Wallace, the night was broken up into six segments: the Supreme Court, COVID-19, the economy, race, election integrity, and Trump and Biden’s records. Both nominees quickly disregarded the rules that their parties had agreed upon and stooped to personal attacks from either side. According to CBS News, Trump interrupted Biden 73 times. Neither candidate clearly expressed their viewpoints on policies effectively enough for the American people to understand their stances. 

Following the recent passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader-Ginsburg, President Donald Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett to replace her as the new Justice. This decision sparked controversy due to the short timing after RBG’s death. Biden turned this topic into a conversation about reconsideration in the Supreme Court: The Affordable Care Act. Biden argued that it will “strip 20 million people from having health care” if it goes to a conservative Supreme Court. This point was extremely significant to his argument, especially because of the severity and danger of COVID-19. During this segment, Biden made sure to separate himself from the left and the progressives of the Democratic party. The focus shifted to healthcare which is a pressing issue due to the pandemic. Trump repealed Obamacare and claimed that drug prices “will be coming down 80 or 90%.” Trump used the following example of a drug that he has reduced the cost of: “Insulin… [is] so cheap we’re getting it like water.” Fact-checkers claim that this simply is noy true. Insulin is still at about $300 per vial. 

Next, Wallace segued into the next segment by questioning the aspect of healthcare and COVID-19. Biden attacked Trump for being responsible for the 200,000+ deaths in American due to the Coronavirus. He claimed that Trump doesn’t have a plan, and the president insisted on saying “It’s China’s fault” and that Biden would have done a worse job. He also claimed that a vaccine would be out “within weeks”, aiming to lift relief amongst the country. Biden turned to the camera and addressed the Americans at home who were affected by COVID-19, and strongly encouraged them to wear a mask and to trust the scientists. When asked about whether he believes in the effectiveness of masks, President Trump said, “I don’t wear a mask like him. Every time you see him, he’s got a mask. He could be speaking 200 feet away from him and he shows up with the biggest mask I’ve ever seen.” Yet two days after Trump’s large rallies with over 35,000 people, the President announced that he had tested positive for Coronavirus. 

The topic of race and law enforcement took place shortly after the discussion of the pandemic. Vice President Biden stated that systematic racism exists, and law enforcement officials have to be held accountable for their actions. President Donald Trump claimed that racial sensitivity training was “radical.” He was also given an opportunity to condemn white supremacy, yet he told far-right white supremacy group Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by”. The group took this as a call to arms which sparked outrage across social media platforms. The President then attacked Joe Biden’s sons. 

On the topic of climate change, President Trump believed that California wildfires were to be blamed on poor forest management. Biden denounced the Green New Deal and promoted the Biden Plan, which he claims will “create hundreds of thousands of jobs.”

The final topic of the night was election integrity. Biden urged people to vote in any way they could. Trump said he’s “urging his supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully.” He claims that voter fraud is bound to happen in this election. Biden agreed that he will not claim victory and urge his supporters to remain calm until the votes have been counted. At that point, the debate came to a close. 

Going into this debate, expectations for Biden from the public were considerably low. The fact that he could stand on his two feet in front of the nation for those ninety minutes was considered an accomplishment in itself for some. However, despite Trump’s interruptions, the Vice President made sure to address the American people by turning to the camera. He made sure the audience knew he was talking to them and not solely worrying about Trump’s personal attacks. 

Ultimately, there was no clear winner in this debate, and it comes down to the overall message given by each candidate. Polls portray that Biden’s polls were significantly higher after the debate was aired. Within the next few weeks, President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden will proceed to have another debate.