J.D. Vance, Tim Walz clash on immigration, abortion, democracy in U.S. vice-presidential debate

Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz confronted one another for the first time Tuesday in a policy-heavy vice-presidential debate, wrangling key issues from abortion to immigration and gun violence while defending their running mates' records in office.

The debate between Vance, 40, and Walz, 60, struck a far more cordial tone than last month's meetingbetween Republican nominee Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Kamala Harris.

The vice-presidential candidates, who shook hands before and after the event, focusedalmost exclusively on minute policy standpoints and avoidedtargeted personal attacks toward one another and, as was largely the point of the evening, avoiding any viral missteps that could hurt the presidential hopefuls.

The sharpest moment of the debate came at its close, when Vance dodged a pointedquestion from Walz during a final exchange about American democracy.

"He is still saying [Trump] didn't lose the election," Walz said, before turning to Vance. "Did he lose the 2020 election?"

"I am focused on the future," Vance responded, beforeaccusing Harris of censoring opposing online views.

"That is a damning non-answer," Walz said.

WATCH | Walz questions Vance on 2020 election results:

Walz calls out Vances damning non-answer on Trumps 2020 election loss

18 days ago

Duration 0:24

During the CBS News Vice-Presidential Debate on Tuesday, , when Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz asked his Republican counterpart J.D. Vance if Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential election, Vance said he is focused on the future which drew a rebuke from Walz.

Chris Cillizza, a political commentator and former CNN editor-at-large, said the moment was Walz's strongest after a shakier start onstage.He said Vancewas confident from the outsetand clearly tried todefend "some things that Donald Trumphas said and done that are, frankly, indefensible."

As with past vice-presidential debates, Cillizza said he didn't think the night waslikely to affect the outcome of next month's election.

"Not significantly, no,"he told CBC's The National, before adding: "Do I think J.D. Vance did himself a major solid in terms of what he looks like going forward? Yes."

WATCH | Breaking down the biggest moments of the debate:

Breaking down the biggest moments in the vice-presidential debate

18 days ago

Duration 12:03

The National asks U.S. political analysts Tia Mitchell, Chris Cillizza and CBC News correspondent Katie Simpson to break down key moments from the U.S. vice-presidential debate between Tim Walz and J.D. Vance and how it could impact the presidential race.

Walz, an affable former high school teacher and football coach, and Vance, theconservative firebrand whose Hillbilly Elegy memoir became a Hollywood film, have both paintedthemselves as two family-first men with humble American Midwest roots.

They argued Tuesdayover the Middle East crisis, immigration, abortion, climate change and the economy.CBS News hosted the 90-minute event from its New York City broadcast centre, with CBS Evening News anchor Norah O'Donnell and Face the Nation host Margaret Brennan serving as moderators.

In contrast to the debate between Trump and Harris, the potential vice presidentsat timesthanked each other on Tuesday and conceded they might even agreeon finer policy theories. Despite having gone after one another's character on the campaign trail, they saved personal jabs for the presidential nominees.

Vance and Walzlingered on stage after the debate, shaking hands again meeting each other's wives before thanking the two debate moderators.

Political scientists have noted the majority of U.S. voters typically don't cast their ballot based on the potential vice-president. In recent campaigns, vice-presidents are typically used to rally the party's voter base and shore up support for the presidential candidate.

But vice-presidential hopefuls are not insignificant:Vance or Walz would have the constitutional duty to step up and lead the United States in the event the president was unable to perform their duties.

On Tuesday, the longest exchanges came on the topics of immigration and abortionthe former being a strongcampaign issue for Republicans and the latter for Democrats.

WATCH | Walz and Vance discuss access to abortion in America:

Letting states decide abortion rules puts American lives in danger, Walz says

18 days ago

Duration 1:41

During the CBS News Vice-Presidential Debate on Tuesday, Democratic nominee Tim Walz countered Republican nominee J.D. Vances comment that states should make their own decisions about abortion by referring to the case of a Georgia woman who died while trying to access a legal procedure out of state. 'There's a very real chance, had Amber Thurman lived in Minnesota, she would be alive,' Walz said.

On immigration, moderators asked Vance ifa second Trump administration would separate children from their migrant parents, even if those children were U.S. citizens.

Vance did not answer the question directly and dodged it again when moderators came back to him.

At anotherpoint, Vance said 15,000 Haitians in the city of Springfield, Ohio, were contributing to problems with housing, the economy and other issues he said the Biden-Harris administration had ignored.

When debate moderators notedHaitians in the cityhad legal status, Vance objected and saidhe understood CBS moderators would not be fact-checking during the debate.

After Vance continued despite the moderators' attempts to move on, his microphone was cut off and neither man could be heard.

WATCH | 'Gentlemen, the audience can't hear you because your mics are cut':

Thank you for explaining the legal process: Debate moderators mute Vances mic

18 days ago

Duration 0:45

While discussing immigration during the CBS News Vice-Presidential Debate on Tuesday, Republican nominee J.D. Vance saw his audio cut off by moderators Norah O'Donnell and Margaret Brennan.

Throughout the debate, Vance sought to defend Trump's presidential record and questioned why Harris had not done more to address inflation, immigration and the economy since taking office with President Joe Biden in 2021.

"If Kamala Harris has such great plans for how to address middle-class problems, then she ought to do them now not when asking for [a] promotion, but in the job the American people gave her three-and-a-halfyears ago," Vance said.

Coming to Harris's defence, Walz described Trump as an unstable leader who sank a congressional bill aimed at slowing illegal immigration because he saw it as "a campaign issue."

"We all want to solve this," Walz said of the border issue, before adding, "Well, most of us."

The Democrat found some of his strongest footing of the night onthe issue of abortion. In his responses, hespoke about women who've faced grave health consequences trying to navigate strict abortionlaws in states like Texas, Kentucky and Georgia since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022.

He criticized Trump for havingpraisedthe repeal of the landmark decision, which had guaranteed Americans' right to an abortion for nearly half a century.

"Things worked best when Roe vs. Wade was in place," Walz said.

WATCH | Walz and Vance discuss access to abortion in America:

The Current19:39Walz and Vance trade barbs politely

U.S. vice-presidential candidates J.D. Vance and Tim Walz had a civilized and at times even cordial debate Tuesday, in stark contrast to when Donald Trump faced off against Kamala Harris last month. What does the debate tell us about the remaining month of this campaign?

Vance, who has previously held a much more conservative stance on reproductive rights,acknowledged his past anti-abortion statements have been problematic for voters. Striking a more moderate tone than usual,he added many Americans have lost faith in Republicans when it comes to the issue.

"We've got to do a much better a job at earning Americans' trust back," he said.

Both candidates were also questioned about past remarks they'd made.

Walz was asked about having claimed he was in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, when he in fact did not arrive until afterward. He said he "misspoke" and "got there that summer."

"I'm a knucklehead at times," Walz said. "I will talk a lot.I will get caught up in the rhetoric."

LISTEN | National Review reporter, Democratic consultant on the debate:

Similarly, Vance backtracked on his previous criticism of Trump including a past comment thatTrump could be "America's Hitler."

"I was wrong about Donald Trump," Vance said Tuesday."I was wrong, first of all, because I believe some of the media stories that turned out to be dishonest fabrications of his record. But most importantly, Donald Trump delivered for the American people."

The night's tone was a marked change in a campaign characterized by inflammatory rhetoric, two assassination attempts and personal attacks between presidential candidates. Trump has repeatedly attacked Harris's race and gender, while escaping attempts on his life in July and September.

Walz has described his Republican opponents as "weird," whileVance faced criticismfor referring tosome Democrats as "childless cat ladies."

Early voting is underway in nearly two dozen states with 35 days left until election day.While Harris hasedged aheadin national polls, most surveys show voters remain fairly evenly divided in the seven states that will decide the outcome on Nov. 5.

WATCH|Here's why CBC News is following the U.S. presidential election campaign:

The Current19:39Why running mates matter in the race for the White House

Kamala Harris has chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, three weeks after Donald Trump chose Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance. Guest host Susan Bonner discusses the pivotal role that these potential vice presidents will play in the race for the White House.