Biden falters in high-stakes debate, Trump spews falsehoods

In a heated moment in response to Trump's claim that the president "doesn't care about our veterans," Biden referenced a 2020 Atlantic article in which Trump was reported to have called Americans killed as "suckers" while on a trip to visit the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France in 2018.

On the subsequently canceled visit, the Atlantic reported that Trump told senior staff members, "Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers."

Referring to his late son Beau during the debate, Biden said to Trump, "My son was not a loser, was not a sucker. You're the sucker, you're the loser."

Trump responded by saying it was in a "third-rate magazine" and the source had "made it up."

During the debate, Trump claimed that Democrats "support abortion up to and even beyond the ninth month," and contended that some Democratic states have had such a stance.

Democrats have never advocated for killing a baby after it is born as this would be murder, which is illegal in every state. Nine states have no abortion restrictions in place; however, it should be noted that late-term abortions are exceedingly rare, representing 1%, according to KFF.

False. Unemployment was near historical lows under Trump. However, growth in gross domestic product was well below what previous presidents achieved, and other metrics such as wages and business investment ranged from decent to mediocre.

The annual increases in GDP under Trump were broadly similar to what they were during the final six years under his predecessor, Barack Obama. And GDP growth under Trump was well below that of prior presidents.

-Analysis by Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

The third topic of the debate is immigration, and unlike abortion, this is Trump's strong suit. In our 538/Ipsos poll, voters said 56% to 44% that Trump would handle immigration better than Biden. That made immigration Trump's strongest issue out of all the ones we asked about.

-538’s Nathaniel Rakich