JD Vance and Tim Walz clash in a tense vice presidential debate

Source: Chip Somodevilla/Getty

Senator J.D. Vance And Governor Tim Walz took part in their only vice-presidential debate, which was surprisingly filled with some important exchanges.

On Tuesday evening (October 1), the vice presidential debate between Republican Senator JD Vance of Ohio and Democratic Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota took place at the CBS News studios in Manhattan, New York. The first and only debate between the two took on increasing importance as early voting for the November elections has already begun. The debate was moderated by CBS anchors Norah O’Donnell and Margaret O’Brennan and notably did not have the strict rules present in the ABC News presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump – specifically the the network’s decision not to do so. Heavily fact-check candidates’ claims in real time.

The debate started with the urgent news about the conflict between Iran and Israel that exploded earlier in the day. Walz answered first, starting off a bit unsteadily as Vance defended Trump’s position of “effective deterrence” while pointing out that the situation had weakened under President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris. Walz fired back by claiming that Iran has become emboldened because of Trump’s leadership and that its allies have noticed its weakness. “He will go to the one who has the most flattery,” he said.

Immigration became a heated flashpoint in the debate when Vance was asked whether he would separate children from their parents who have illegally migrated to the US. “We have to stop the bleeding,” he responded, blaming Vice President Harris for a “historic immigration crisis,” before claiming it allowed Mexico’s drug cartels to operate freely. Walz rebuked these claims, pointing to Harris’ record as California’s attorney general. He then called out Vance for spreading false claims about Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio. “This is what happens to a problem when you don’t want to solve it,” he said. “You’re demonizing.” The moderators checked Vance after he again called the migrants “illegal,” which he took offense to, and started talking about Brennan and O’Donnell again, leading to Vance and Walz’s microphones being cut.

The moderators then asked pointed questions of each candidate, starting by asking Walz about a discrepancy regarding his stay in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. He gave a brief overview of his background, but answered the question is not. “I got there that summer and I was wrong about it,” he replied when pressed about the matter. Vance was confronted about his past comments criticizing Trump, including calling him “an American Hitler” before becoming his running mate, acknowledging that he has disagreed with him in the past but that he also made a mistake.

Reproductive rights and abortion proved to be another flashpoint, as Walz criticized Trump for his boast about reversing Roe Vs. Wade, and spoke about how Minnesota has passed reproductive rights into law. “We made sure we put women in charge of their health care,” he said, bringing up Project 2025 and referencing Amber Thurman, the Georgia woman who recently died while seeking help outside the state. Vance, who has been deeply conservative on this issue, acknowledged his past comments but asserted that he and Trump are “pro-family in the broadest sense of the word” and denied that there would be a national abortion ban.

Both candidates were combative but sometimes conciliatory. The topic of gun control was one example, with Vance expressing condolences when Walz revealed that his 17-year-old son witnessed a mass shooting. But that topic also led Vance to blame mass shootings on “mental health issues in this country,” which Walz countered with caution. “What we end up doing is looking for a scapegoat. Sometimes it’s just the weapons. They’re just weapons, and there are things you can do about them,” he said.

Vance also repeatedly tried to tie Vice President Harris to illegal immigration, at one point claiming that “25 million illegal aliens competing with Americans for scarce housing is one of the biggest factors driving home prices in the country.” They also discussed health care, with Walz appearing to shine by citing Minnesota’s status as a national leader in health care policy, and also blasting Vance for falsely claiming that Trump “saved” the Affordable Care Act while he was in power. “Let me tell you the advantages of being an old man. I was there,” Walz said, praising the strength of the ACA and Harris’ proposed policies to expand it.

The topic of the January 6 insurrection proved explosive, as Vance sidestepped the question of whether he and Donald Trump would challenge this year’s election results. Walz was forceful on this point, citing the deaths of Capitol Police officers that day and Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen. “A president’s words matter,” he said as Vance tried to argue that Harris was using “the threat of censorship” over social media platforms during the COVID pandemic “on an industrial scale.” Walz fired back: “Facebook ads did not lead to January 6th,” Vance was again asked whether he and Trump would accept the results of the 2020 election, and he again turned to accusing Harris of censorship. “That’s a damn non-answer,” Walz said, adding, “The winner has to be the winner. This has to stop. It is tearing our country apart.”

The nominees closed the debate after a brief break, with Walz leading the way and citing the broad coalition behind Harris: “They don’t all agree on everything, but they are really optimistic people. They believe in a positive future in this country, and one in which our politics can be better than they are now.” Vance then went further, drawing on his rural upbringing, blaming Harris for the inability of ordinary Americans to “realize their full dreams with the broken leadership we have in Washington.”

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