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Trump-Harris debate live updates: Candidates go on the attack in zinger-filled showdown
Harris and Trump are sparring in the high-stakes showdown.
The first presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump turned into a heated matchup that lasted more than 90 minutes.
The night started with a handshake initiated by Harris, but quickly escalated as the vice president bashed Trump over his policies and comments, contending that it was time to "offer is a new generation of leadership for our country."
Trump criticized Harris throughout the debate on topics such as Afghanistan and immigration issues, drawing comparisons between the vice president and President Joe Biden.
With Election Day just eight weeks away, the debate came at a critical point as polls show a neck-and-neck race between the candidates.
Latest headlines:
CLAIM: Trump said 'I'd like to give you 10,000 National Guard soldiers. They rejected me. Nancy [Pelosi] rejected me.'
Fact Check: False
The final report by the bipartisan Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol determined there was "no evidence" to support the claim that Trump gave an order "to have 10,000 troops ready for January 6th."
The report quoted President Trump's Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller, who directly refuted this claim under oath, saying, "There was no direct order from the President" to put 10,000 troops to be on the ready for January 6th.
Instead, the report noted that when Trump referenced that number of troops, it was not to protect the Capitol but that he had "floated the idea of having 10,000 National Guardsmen deployed to protect him and his supporters from any supposed threats by left-wing counter-protesters."
Harris claims dictators rooting for Trump to win
Harris slammed Trump on his foreign policy issues contending that he is "weak and wrong on national security and foreign policy."
"It is well known that he admires dictators, wants to be a dictator on Day One, according to himself," she said.
"It is absolutely well known that these dictators and autocrats are rooting for you to be president again because they're so clear they can manipulate you with flattery and favors," she added. "And that is why so many military leaders, who you have worked with, have told me you are a disgrace."
Harris executing a playbook
It's clear that Harris came into the debate with a playbook of relentless attacks on Trump.
On Trump's false claims he won the 2020 race, she said he lacks the ability "to not be confused by fact." And on foreign policy, she claimed "it is absolutely well known that these dictators and autocrats are rooting for you to be president again" because they can "manipulate you with flattery and favors."
CLAIM: Trump said he ended the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, and 'Biden put it back on day one.'
Fact Check: Mostly false
The Nord Stream 2 is an undersea pipeline that would have allowed Russia to increase natural gas exports to western Europe while bypassing Ukraine and depriving Kyiv billions of dollars in access fees. It’s true that in 2019, Trump announced sanctions that halted the pipeline’s construction. But by that point, the pipeline was nearly complete with a majority of the project occurring under Trump’s presidency, according to a 2020 analysis by the Congressional Research Service. Biden later waived sanctions against the pipeline’s builder at the request of Germany in 2021, but reimposed penalties the following year as Russia invaded Ukraine.