Former President Trump veered off course about a half-hour into the debate with Kamala Harris on Tuesday, recycling a viral rumor accusing Haitian immigrants in Ohio of eating household pets.
“They’re eating the dogs,” he said. “The people that came in — they’re eating the cats.”
David Muir, one of the ABC moderators, corrected Trump, saying the city manager of Springfield, Ohio, said there were “no credible reports” of animals being harmed by immigrants.
See also: As Haitians in Alabama face ‘baseless attacks,’ JD Vance parrots debunked Springfield, Ohio claims
Harris chuckled when asked for a rebuttal. “Talk about extreme…” she said.
Moments earlier, Harris warned that Trump would likely make wild claims, inviting viewers to take a look at his rallies where he talks about Hannibal Lecter, a fictional character.
“People start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom,” she said. “You will not hear him talk about your needs, your dreams and your needs and your desires.”
The first 30 minutes offered a relatively cogent argument on issues including abortion, trade and immigration.
Harris took aim at Trump on abortion, saying he was responsible for overturning Roe v. Wade and for abortion bans in 20 states.
“The government, and Donald Trump, certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,” she said.
Trump said he was proud to have helped overturn Roe.
“I did a great service in doing it,” he said. “It took courage to do it, and the Supreme Court had great courage in doing it.”
The abortion issue led to the another moment when a moderator intervened. Linsey Davis corrected Trump, saying there is “no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it’s born.”
Harris argued that Trump would raise costs for American consumers with a tariff of up to 20% on imports, while giving tax cuts to millionaires.
Trump, meanwhile, sought to portray Harris as an empty suit, saying that she had copied President Biden’s plans and had even borrowed from his positions on trade.
“She’s going to my philosophy now. In fact, I was going to send her a MAGA hat,” Trump said. “But if she ever got elected, she’d change it, and it will be the end of our country. She’s a Marxist. Everybody knows she’s a Marxist. Her father’s a Marxist professor in economics, and he taught her well.”
Trump and Harris were meeting for the first time, and perhaps the last during the campaign. There are no plans for further presidential debates, though JD Vance and Tim Walz are set to hold a vice presidential debate on CBS on Oct. 1.
In August, Trump floated the possibility of a second debate against Harris on NBC in late September. Harris has not committed to an additional debate.
© 2024 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
