US President Joe Biden, 81, and former President Donald Trump, 78, engaged in sharp exchanges on inflation, immigration, abortion rights and foreign policy as the two leaders took the stage in Atlanta for the first presidential debate on Friday. The debate is historic as this is the first time ever in the history of the United States that a sitting President is squaring off with a former one.
The debate began with the topic of inflation, with Biden arguing that Trump left him with an economy in shambles and that he had created jobs and brought down the cost of prescription drugs. In response, Trump claimed that job growth under the Biden administration had been only "for illegal immigrants".
Donald Trump, calling the Democrat the worst president in the history of the US, also brought up America's exit from Afghanistan during the first year of Biden's presidency. Trump called it "the most embarrassing day in the history of our country’s life".
During the debate, the President, who is 81, appeared to struggle with his voice at multiple points. Biden was seen clearing his throat and coughing multiple times.
Joe Biden vs Donald Trump: Updates from presidential debate
The debate began on the topic of inflation and the US economy. Joe Biden said Trump, during his tenure, rewarded the wealthy and left him with an economy that was in freefall. "The economy collapsed, there were no jobs, unemployment rate rose to 15%, it was terrible," Biden said.
In response, Donald Trump claimed that job growth under the Biden administration had been only "for illegal immigrants". Trump also said that "inflation is killing us" and claimed that tax cuts "spurred the greatest economy that we've ever seen".
Donald Trump also brought up America's exit from Afghanistan during the first year of Biden’s presidency, which he called "the most embarrassing day in the history of our country’s life".
On abortion, Trump insisted that he would not try to block access to abortion medication and that he supports exceptions to abortion bans for rape, incest and the life of the mother. Biden, on the other hand, said he would restore Roe v. Wade and hit out at Trump for appointing Supreme Court justices who struck down the nationwide constitutional right to abortion.
On immigration, Donald Trump blamed Joe Biden's "open border" policies for the rise in crime. He accused Biden of presiding over a "migrant crime" wave that is endangering American citizens. "We have the largest number of terrorists coming into our country right now. They come from the Middle East, everywhere, all over the world," Trump said.
In response, Biden called out Trump's actions on immigration during his presidency. "When he was president, he was taking - separating - babies from their mothers, putting them in cages. That's not the right way to go," Biden said.
Speaking on the Ukraine war, Trump claimed he could resolve Russia's invasion of Ukraine prior to taking office and assailed Biden for giving Ukraine hundreds of billions of dollars. Biden said Trump emboldened Putin and claimed that if the Republican wins, Russia would extend its war into Europe and beyond. Biden also accused Trump of wanting to pull the US out of NATO.
On the Gaza war, Trump criticised Biden for trying to hold Israel back from winning the war against Hamas, saying that the president was now "like a Palestinian". Biden said his plan included trading the hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and a continued "ceasefire with additional conditions".
On climate, Biden pointed out that the United States re-joined a climate accord that Trump pulled out of during his administration. "He's not done a damn thing for the environment," Biden said. Trump countered by saying that US had "the best environmental numbers ever" during his tenure.
In the first heated moment of the debate, Biden called the former President a "sucker" and a "loser". Biden was referring to claims made by former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly that Trump called military members who died in combat "losers" and those who were wounded or captured "suckers".
