The first one-on-one debate of the 2020 presidential election kicked off on Tuesday, and those watching will now get the chance to decide which candidate came out on top.
President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden met for the first time on Tuesday evening on the stage at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. As CNN reported, the event looked very different than ones in years past, as the socially distant rules in effect meant the traditional audience was not present.
“The audience, at about 70, will be limited compared with previous debates, and everyone attending the event at will undergo testing for Covid-19 and follow other health safety protocols,” the report noted.
The meeting of Democratic and Republican representatives lasted 90 minutes and included Fox News journalist Chris Wallace as a moderator. There were several topics covered, including the history and record of both candidates, the Supreme Court, the economy, race and violence in American cities, the COVID-19 crisis, and the integrity of the election. The segments were scheduled for roughly 15 minutes each, with opponents taking alternating questions and giving two-minute answers.
Ahead of the debate, both candidates hinted at potential lines of attack. As The Inquisitr reported, Trump and his allies made a number of attacks on Hunter Biden, the son of the Democratic candidate, for his business ties in Ukraine and China. Biden’s team has also attacked Trump for a new report showing that he paid nothing in federal income taxes for 10 of the 15 years leading up to the last election, and paid just $750 each in both 2016 and 2017.
“Biden’s campaign quickly jumped on the news, producing a digital ad highlighting how teachers, firefighters and nurses all pay, on average, significantly more in federal income taxes than Trump,” CNN wrote. “And top Democratic operatives believe Biden will use the revelation to attack the President during the debate.”
For Trump, Tuesday’s meeting with Biden presented an opportunity to grab some momentum in a race that has become tilted toward his opponent. As The Inquisitr reported, Biden has led a series of polls, including those looking at critical battleground states. These included states where Trump won in the last race against Hillary Clinton.
Trump has pushed back, with his campaign saying that the internal numbers look more competitive. Many of his allies are reportedly looking at the meeting as a chance to turn the tide.
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