In a debate that featured frequent interruptions, President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden sparred for the first of three meetings between the two candidates.
Despite frequent interruptions and personal attacks, several important questions on policy were asked, but not always answered.
1) Biden opposes Green New Deal
Biden said he is not in favor of the so-called “Green New Deal,” and instead prefers the “Biden Plan.” But on Biden’s website, he says, “Biden believes the Green New Deal is a crucial framework for meeting the climate challenges we face.”
During Tuesday’s debate, Biden said, "No, I don't support the Green New Deal. I support the Biden plan I put forward, which is different than what he calls the radical Green New Deal."
When pressed on the cost of his plan, Biden said his plan would add millions of jobs.
"We are going to be in a position where we can create good jobs by making sure the environment is clean and we are all in better shape," Biden said.
2) A vaccine is coming, Trump says
Trump said that the US will see coronavirus vaccines faster than some public health experts say the country should expect to see them.
“We have our military that delivers soldiers and they can do 200,000 a day,” Trump said.
Trump said that the federal response to the coroanvirus has saved thousands of lives.
"We got the gowns, we got the masks, we made ventilators, you wouldn't have made ventilators, and now we are weeks away from the vaccine, we are doing therapeutics already, fewer people are dying when they get sick, far fewer people are dying. We've done a great job," Trump said.
3) Biden won’t answer if he’d pack the Supreme Court
As Senate Democrats have toyed with the idea of adding Supreme Court justices if he is elected along with a Democratic-majority Senate, Biden would not answer whether he would agree with the plan.
“Whatever position I take on that, that will become the issue,” Biden said. “The issue is, the American people should speak. You should go out and vote. You're in voting now.”
Trump then pressed Biden to answer the question, Biden responded, "Will you shut up, man?"
4) Trump lacks specifics on health care plan
Trump was pressed by moderator Chris Wallace to explain how he would replace the Affordable Care Act if given a second term. Trump has been trying to get the remaining provisions of the act revoked in federal court after getting the individual mandate struck down.
Trump signed an executive order in July to offer Medicare prescription drug rebates. The effects of that rebate are too early to tell.
“I'm cutting drug prices into going,” Trump said, "which no president has encouraged to do because you are going against big pharma. At the prices, they will be coming down 80 to 90%. You could have done it during your 47 year period in government, but you didn't do it. Nobody has done it.”
“He has no plan for healthcare,” Biden responded. “He sends out wishful thinking. He has executive orders that have no power. He hasn't lowered drug costs for anybody. He has been promising the plan since he got elected. He has none, almost like everything else he talks about. He does not have a plan.”
5) Biden, Trump disagree on trusting election results
While Biden said he would accept the results of the upcoming election once the votes are counted, Trump would not make the same declaration.
“The fact is I will accept it and he will too. You know why? Because once the winner is declared after all the, all the ballots are counted, all the votes are counted. That'll be the end of it. That will be the end of it,” Biden said.
Trump said that the Supreme Court might need to be involved with the election.
“ I think I'm counting on them to look at the ballots, definitely. I don't think, well, I hope we don't need them in terms of the election itself, but for the ballots, I think so," Trump said.
