1st presidential debate between Trump and Biden spirals into chaotic clash
Highlights from the first presidential debate held in Cleveland.
President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee for president Joe Biden faced off from a social distance in the first presidential debate of 2020 in Cleveland, just five weeks out from Election Day.
The first presidential debate at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic came on the heels of bombshell reporting from The New York Times on two decades of Trump's tax records, ahead of a contentious Supreme Court confirmation process in the Senate and as the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll shows Biden maintains a 10-point edge among both registered and likely voters.
The coronavirus pandemic's impact on the race was also on display as the two candidates didn't partake in a handshake, customary at the top of such events. The size of the audience was also limited and everyone attending the debate had to undergo COVID-19 testing and follow other public health protocols.
The debate’s moderator, Chris Wallace of "Fox News Sunday," selected six topics for Tuesday with each segment expected to get approximately 15 minutes: Trump's and Biden's records, the Supreme Court, COVID-19, the economy, race and violence in U.S. cities, and the integrity of the election -- the final topic coming as Trump over the weekend wouldn’t commit to a peaceful transfer of power.
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Debate will be a 'referendum' on Trump’s presidency: Matthew Dowd
ABC News' Chief Political Analyst Matthew Dowd predicted the debate may become the most watched event of the 2020 election cycle with upwards of 70 million viewers expected to tune in before offering his strategy on how each candidate should approach the debate.
"I think Joe Biden has to come across as calm, cool, collected and thoughtful. Present his case about why he wants to be president of the United States, prosecute the case against President Trump about what he's done over the last four years and why he thinks it's been not good for the American public," Dowd said.
Trump, on the other hand, should stay away from a constant attack on Biden, Dowd said.
"The best thing for Donald Trump is to present the reason why his presidency has been good for the American public. Present it in a way that rehabilitates his image because that's the biggest thing that's holding him back right now. It's not the perception of Joe Biden. It's the perception of Donald Trump," Dowd said.
Noting about 14% of Americans still identify themselves as undecided voters, Davis asked Dowd who's the real target audience tonight -- and if this debate will change much.
“Right now, Donald Trump comes into this, by all accounts, seven or eight points behind nationally, behind in every key target state in the electoral college, so Donald Trump has to move those voters. Joe Biden has to reassure his voters that are with him already and try to speak to some of those small segment of undecided voters,” he said.
Dowd noted analysts deemed Hillary Clinton the winner of the 2016 debates, although it was Trump who ultimately won the race, but he said this election cycle presents a “huge difference” from 2016 as it’s not a race about choice but a referendum.
ABC's pre-debate show kicks off
ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos has kicked off the network's live coverage of the first presidential debate of 2020 between Trump and Biden.
The debate will run commercial free for 90 minutes on ABC and ABC News Live.
Pence talks Trump taxes and how he thinks Trump will counter Biden
Ahead of a campaign stop Tuesday night in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Vice President Mike Pence sat down for a live interview with Brett Baer on Fox News, where he discussed the upcoming debate.
"We're literally just counting the minutes from when I know President Donald Trump is going to take our case to the American people and he's going to take the fight straight to Joe Biden. We're going to lay out the contrast tonight," Pence said.
Looking ahead to how Trump might react to bombshell reporting in The New York Times on his taxes, Pence said the president could instead use Biden's record against him.
"I'm very confident that they took advantage of all of the legal deductions and exemptions that were available in the tax code, and the president tonight may point out the fact that when he was out creating jobs Joe Biden was spending 47 years in Washington, D.C., helping to create that tax code," Pence said.
Pressed by Baer pointing out that Trump initially called it fake news, but then tweeted that it was "illegally obtained information" along with an explanation, Pence first laughed and then said it is the "same old, same old" allegations before touting Trump's record as a businessman. Pence also said Trump paid millions in state and local taxes but said nothing about federal taxes.
"This is not where the American people are focused," he added.
The vice president didn't get into any details about his own debate next week against Democratic vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris but said he's "counting the days."
-ABC News' Justin Gomez
Breaking down Trump’s debate preparations
ABC News’ Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl talked through what a typical lead-up to a presidential debate looks like with "ABC News Live Prime" anchor Linsey Davis.
Normally, Karl said a candidate talks about how tremendous a debater his opponent is, hoping to make himself look better during the debate. But Trump’s strategy has been different from years past, trying to downplay Biden instead of build him up.
“For months, Donald Trump has done exactly the opposite -- making it sound like, you know, Joe Biden is somebody who can barely string together a couple of sentences,” Karl said. “So they’ve set the expectations very low, and I think there’s some realization that that is not necessarily a good thing.”
Davis then asked Karl how prepared Trump is for the debate, and Karl said Trump hasn’t done much debate preparation. However, a top Trump adviser told Karl that facing reporters in the White House press briefing room is like preparing for a debate.
Trump, Biden compete for battleground Ohio ahead of 1st debate
Despite Republican successes in statewide races in Ohio since 2016, the Buckeye State has become increasingly competitive as Trump and former vice president Joe Biden prepare to face off in Cleveland for their first debate on Tuesday.
In recent weeks Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have traveled repeatedly to Ohio, where they defeated Hillary Clinton and Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., her vice presidential candidate, in 2016, 51% to 43%.
Republicans also performed well statewide two years ago, winning the gubernatorial race and other down-ballot contests.
“Ohioans showed up for President Trump in 2016 and we expect them to do the same this November,” Trump campaign spokeswoman Samantha Zager told ABC News.
The president’s campaign has had a permanent presence on the ground in Ohio since 2016, and said they have made more than 10 million voter contacts in the state, where they and other GOP groups continue to canvass on the ground during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Biden campaign, meanwhile, has relied on virtual and digital organizing in the state during the pandemic, and has hosted hundreds of events and held 450,000 conversations with voters over the last month. Following Tuesday's debate, Biden will take a train tour of the state on Wednesday.
Biden has delivered a sharp economic message focused on Trump's record, centered on Toledo and Youngstown, home to several car plants and many blue-collar voters who abandoned Democrats and voted for Trump for years ago.
He's run at least eight television ads in recent weeks, including a response to Trump's call for a ban on Goodyear, the Ohio-based tire company than ran in Akron, where the company is based.
In an election year reshaped by the coronavirus pandemic, it’s also playing host to a number of legal battles over access to ballot drop boxes, which are increasingly used by voters as an alternative to in-person voting or relying on the United States Postal Service, amid concerns about service delays.
Read more about the battle for Ohio here.
-ABC News' Ben Siegel and Adia Robinson