The Democratic candidate, on the offensive, puts the former Republican president in difficulty

They had never met face to face before. Less than two months before a historic presidential election, Kamala Harris jostled Donald Trump on Tuesday evening, September 10, during a televised debate with a very offensive tone.

Delivering two opposing visions of America, the Democratic vice president and the Republican candidate have repeatedly accused each other of lying, addressing in turn the economy, abortion and immigration. The former president has constantly shown himself to be on the defensive in the face of a self-confident opponent who is eager to make him appear as a man of the past.

As proof that she had just won the debate, Kamala Harris received a strong endorsement as soon as the televised duel was over: American megastar Taylor Swift announced on Instagram that she would vote for the vice president who “defends rights and causes” which the singer believes in. She signed her post « Taylor Swift, Childless Cat Lady »or “childless cat lady,” mocking past social media posts by Donald Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, who was mocking Kamala Harris.

Upon arriving at the scene of their showdown in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – a key battleground state in the race for the White House – the vice president met the Republican candidate, who had no choice but to shake her outstretched hand. That set the tone for the 90-minute showdown, in which the 59-year-old Democrat relentlessly attacked her 78-year-old rival, whom she had never met in person.

“Marxist”

Assuring to have “put the mess in order” left by Donald Trump after his departure from the White House, Kamala Harris accused her opponent of spreading a “tissue of lies” on abortion and “to insult” American women.

“Donald Trump left us with the worst unemployment since the Great Depression…the worst public health epidemic in a century [et] “the worst attack on our democracy since the Civil War”she said, referring to her challenges to the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.

Taxing his rival, whom he never called by her name, of “Marxist”the Republican, for his part, drew on the dark, sometimes disjointed and often untruth-ridden rhetoric of his rallies. He notably accused Kamala Harris of having “copied” Joe Biden’s program and “destroy the social fabric of America” leaving “millions of people are pouring into our country from prisons, mental institutions and insane asylums”.

On the set, Mr. Trump, whose tone became increasingly aggressive as the debate progressed, appeared serious, his face closed, his gaze fixed on the camera without ever looking at his opponent. In contrast, Mr.^me Harris frequently turned his head towards him, with a doubtful, even mocking, look at his assertions, and pushed him into a corner.

Donald Trump ‘fired’ by voters

Among the highlights of this meeting, Kamala Harris launched at Donald Trump, who repeated his fallacious accusations of « vol » of the 2020 presidential election, which he had been “fired” by the voters.

Shortly after the debate, the Democrat’s campaign team challenged Donald Trump in a statement to meet her in a new televised duel. “The vice president is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?”

Kamala Harris, meeting with her supporters in the evening, warned: “We have a lot of work.” “You won the debate. But we haven’t won anything else yet.”said her partner, Doug Emhoff. Before the meeting, the two candidates were neck and neck in the polls