1st presidential debate between Trump and Biden spirals into chaotic clash

On the topic of race in America, Biden said he believes there is a systemic injustice in the U.S. on education, work and law enforcement, before offering praise to the majority of police officers.

"Look, the vast majority of police officers are good, decent, honorable men and women. They risk their lives every day to take care of us. But there are some bad apples and when they occur -- when they find them -- hey have to be sorted out. They have to be held accountable," Biden said. 

"It's a little bit like how this guy and his friends look down on so many people. They look down their nose on people like Irish Catholics like me, who grew up in Scranton. They look down on people who don't have money. They look down on people who are of a different faith. They look down on people who are a different color. In fact, we're all Americans," he continued. 

When confronted by Wallace about the rise in violence this summer in cities across the country -- run by both Democrats and Republicans -- Trump continued to blame the Democrats.

"I think it's a party issue," Trump said, even though Wallace brought up Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Fort Worth, Texas, both Republican-run cities.

Biden finished by urging Americans that the only way we can move forward is by coming together.

"The only way we're going to bring this country together is bring everybody together," Biden said.

"We can take this on and we can defeat racism," Biden added.

TRUMP'S CLAIM: "And now, we're weeks away from a vaccine."

FACT CHECK: Most prominent public health experts have said that a vaccine will not be widely available until mid 2021.

The pharmaceutical company Pfizer has said they may have data from its late-stage trial by October. Moderna has said it could have data from its late-stage trial by November or December. From there, the data will need to be analyzed by the FDA to determine whether the vaccine is both safe and effective. Other companies in late-stage trials are further behind. AstraZeneca's late stage trial is still on hold, and Johnson and Johnson only just started its late-stage trial this month.

Even if a vaccine is authorized by the end of the year, that does not mean it will be widely available. At first, only limited supplies will be available, and they will be prioritized for the most vulnerable.

"By the time you mobilize the distribution of the vaccinations and you get the majority or more of the population vaccinated and protected, that's likely not going to happen until the mid- or end of 2021," Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top expert on infectious diseases, told MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell earlier this month.

In a recent Senate hearing, CDC Director Robert Redfield echoed those sentiments, "I think there will be vaccine that will initially be available some time between November and December, but very limited supply, and it will have to be prioritized," but, he said, "If you're asking me when is it going to be generally available to the American public so we can begin to take advantage of vaccine to get back to our regular life, I think we're probably looking at late second quarter, third quarter 2021."

-- ABC News' Sony Salzman

Moderator Chris Wallace has repeatedly tried to keep Trump from interrupting Biden. 

"It's hard to get any word in with this clown," Biden said, "excuse me, this person."

Amid bombshell reporting in the New York Times on the past two decades of Trump's taxes, Wallace put the first question to the president.

"Is it true that you paid $750 in federal income taxes?" Wallace asked. 

"I paid millions of dollars in taxes," Trump responded. "Millions of dollars of income tax."

But the president never fully answered if that was federal income tax.

Trump paid just $750 in income taxes in 2016, the year he ran for president, and in 2017, his first year in the White House, according to the Times report. 

Biden, meanwhile, paid nearly $288,000 in federal income taxes last year, according to returns he released just hours before his Tuesday night debate, an effort to draw a sharp contrast with the revelations about Trump's tax returns. 

Democrats said if the president is upwards of $400 million in debt as the New York Times has reported, he poses a national security threat to the country. 

Wallace pressed on, asking "Mr. President, I'm asking you a question. Will you tell us how much you paid in federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017?

"Millions of dollars," Trump replied. 

The president then blamed Biden for the tax codes since Biden has worked for so long in Washington. 

"I'm going to eliminate the Trump tax cuts," Biden said. 

"You are the worst president America has ever had," Biden continued. 

"Let me just say, I've done more in 47 months than you've done in 47 years, Joe," Trump replied.