The VP debate: the six most important takeaways from the confrontation between JD Vance and Tim Walz

Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance and Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz went head-to-head in a high-stakes vice presidential debate on Tuesday night, just 35 days before the 2024 election.

It was the first time Vance and Walz faced off on the debate stage, as some voters across the country have already cast their ballots in what could be one of the closest presidential elections in U.S. history.

The debate was hosted by CBS News in New York City and moderated by hosts Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan. With two breaks it took almost two hours.

During the showdown, the Ohio senator and Minnesota governor faced tough questions about their positions on these issues as they could be first in line for president if elected in November.

They were also pressed about the way they framed and presented themselves in previous comments. Both nominees were also called upon to defend their running mates Trump and Harris.

The debate remained largely civil, with the candidates sparring over policy rather than launching personal attacks in what was likely to be their only showdown.

These are the main takeaways from the vice-presidential debate:

Walz calls himself a ‘knucklehead’ who ‘spoke wrong’

Tim Walz was pressured for claiming he was in Hong Kong during the deadly 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, while the media now reports this was not the case. It is the latest in a series of false comments the Democratic governor has made about his past.

First, Walz started talking about his upbringing in rural Nebraska and his teaching career that traveled to China.

“I poured my heart into my community. I’ve tried to do my best, but I haven’t been perfect, and sometimes I’m an idiot, but that’s what it’s always been about,” Walz said.

Brennan followed up and asked him to clarify the discrepancy again.

“I got there that summer and was wrong about it,” Walz said. “So I’ll just do it, that’s what I said. So I was in Hong Kong and China during the democracy protests.’

Vance declined to say whether he would challenge the election results

Moderators pointed out that J.D. Vance previously said he would not have certified the last election and pressed him on whether he would challenge the 2024 election results.

Vance initially sidestepped the question by focusing on the issues he wants to talk about. But he returned to the topic and downplayed Trump’s role on January 6.

He said Trump believed there were problems with the last election but defended the ex-president’s response. He then argued that the real threat to democracy is censorship.

Walz called it disturbing.

“Democracy is bigger than winning elections,” Walz said. “You shake hands and try to do everything you can to help the other side win.”

The governor added that when this election is over “we have to shake hands” and “the winner has to be the winner.”

When Walz asked Vance directly if Trump had lost the 2020 election, Vance responded, “Tim, I’m focused on the future.”

“That’s a damn non-answer,” Walz replied.

Walz stumbles at first, but becomes more and more comfortable

The governor of Minnesota was visibly nervous at the start of the debate, which began with questions about foreign policy as the crisis in the Middle East escalates. Vance was much more polished in his answers.

Walz repeatedly called Trump “fickle” while trying to portray him as unstable in his leadership and old at “almost eighty.” He also denounced Trump’s tweets, but largely avoided taking a targeted approach to the crisis.

But as the debate continued, Walz became more comfortable in his answers. Later, his answers became more direct to the issues and his pace became more steady.

He still had to deal with a few missteps. When talking about preventing school shootings and gun laws, the former school teacher appeared to be mistaken when he first said he attended school with families of shooting victims, but then also said he had “become friends with school shooters.” .

Trump has seized on the comment on social media, so it will likely continue to come up with the Republican nominee.

JD Vance is being fact-checked

Trump’s running mate was ultimately fact-checked by moderators during the debate, even though CBS News indicated it would not be a fact-check of the candidates.

Brennan checked Vance’s facts and noted that the Haitian immigrants living in Springfield, Ohio, are in the country legally.

That prompted an angry response from Vance and ended with the candidates’ microphones cutting out.

During a back-and-forth about immigration, Vance talked about how Haitians were an overwhelming resource in the Ohio community.

“Thank you Governor, and just to be clear, for our viewers, Springfield, Ohio has a large number of Haitian migrants who have legal status, temporary protected status,” Brennan added.

‘Thank you, Margreet. The rules were that you guys weren’t allowed to fact-check, and since you’re fact-checking me, I think it’s important to say what’s really going on,” Vance said.

As Vance and Walz continued to talk about the topic, their microphones went dead.

Vance and Walz had a civil debate

Vance and Walz engaged in a largely civil and substantive debate on policies ranging from immigration to health care, the economy and taxes, abortion rights and more.

Both candidates immediately shook hands before the debate even started. It was different from when Harris had to walk up to Trump at the top of their presidential debate last month.

During the debate, both candidates even acknowledged their agreement at times.

In a CNN focus group afterward, one undecided voter called it an unexpectedly “warm and fuzzy” debate.

After the showdown, the candidates chatted warmly with each other and their wives also came on stage to greet each other.

Regarding the issues, they sometimes spoke over each other and at other times they avoided answering the questions directly, but they were largely responsive to the topics raised in the questions.

Donald Trump is having the debate about him

Former President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social during the vice presidential debate, responding to direct attacks and comments from candidates.

“Everyone knows that under no circumstances would I support a federal abortion ban, and in fact would veto it, because it is up to the states to decide based on the will of their voters (the will of the people!),” Trump wrote in one message.

“LIKE RONALD REAGAN BEFORE ME, I FULLY STAND THE THREE EXCEPTIONS FOR RAPE, INCEST AND THE LIFE OF THE MOTHER,” he continued.

He even added ‘THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER!’

During his own debate last month, the ex-president declined to say whether he would sign or veto a national abortion ban.