Unusually polite

The US Vice-President candidates in the debate in the case argued about abortion, migration and the Middle East-but the war in Ukraine was not mentioned at all

In New York, the debate was held between candidates for US Vice Presidents Democrat Tim Whales and Republican James David Wans. They were broadcast by CBS News.

The 60-year-old Wales, the liberal governor of Minnesota and the former school teacher, and the 40-year-old Wence, a conservative senator from Ohio, designated themselves as representatives of the Middle West with deeply opposite views on the problems that excite the country. They discussed mainly on internal issues, and the topic of war in Ukraine remained aside. Candidates for vice presidents were constructive, calm, did not criticize each other and even exchanged smiles. This, perhaps, is the main difference between this discussion and the debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, who took place in September. About how the last planned debates of the election season passed, in the material of Novy-Europe.

What were the rules of the debate?

• The duration of the debate is 90 minutes.

• As in the case of the debate between Vice President Kamal Harris and former President Donald Trump in Philadelphia, there were no spectators in the studio.

• The candidates had two minutes to answers, and then another minute to refute.

• The moderators were the only ones to whom it was allowed to ask questions.

• There are no entrance statements, but at the end of the candidates there were two minutes for final speeches.

• The campaign employees were not allowed to interact with Walz and Wans during breaks.

• Candidates cannot have a props or pre -written notes.

• The microphones of each of the participants are not disconnected until his opponent says.

• CBS News has the right to disconnect the microphones of candidates.

The Middle East

The debate began with the question of the situation in the Middle East and Iran, which Israel exposed to the massive missile shelling a few hours before the air. Walza and Wans asked if they would be ready to support Israel’s premature blow to Iran if they were in the White House.

No one directly answered the question posed. Democrat Wals said that the United States needs to maintain the presence in the Middle East and support Israel, and then moved to criticizing the foreign policy of Donald Trump. According to Walza, Tehran approached the creation of nuclear weapons, since Trump was an “indecisive head of state”, which left the nuclear transaction with Iran in 2018 and contributed to Tehran’s progress in this area. At the end of the answer, Walz repeated Harris's promise about Israel's support.

Vance objected: in his opinion, Trump, on the contrary, made the world “more stable and safer”, since it ensured stability in the world with the help of “effective restraining factors”. In his opinion, the United States should support the allies when they "fight bad guys."

Immigration: again Springfield and disconnecting microphones

The candidate for the post of vice president from the Republican Party said that the “open border of Kamaly Harris” “destroyed” the lives of American citizens in Springfield, Ohio. After that, the moderators Nora O'Donnell and Margaret Brennan briefly turned off his microphone. This has become one of the most controversial points in the evening.

Springfield is the central topic of the discussion about immigration since Trump said in his debate with Vice President Harris last month that immigrants in this city allegedly eat cats and dogs of their neighbors. Local officials have repeatedly said that they could not confirm this. This time Vance did not repeat Trump - but Springfield mentioned.

“In Springfield, Ohio, and in other settlements of the country

Schools are crowded, hospitals are crowded, housing is completely inaccessible, because we brought millions of illegal immigrants to compete with the Americans for scarce housing.

<...> I am most concerned about American citizens whose lives were destroyed due to the open border of Kamala Harris. This is a shame, ”said the senator from Ohio.

Moderators noted that most immigrants in Springfield have legal status. Wence objected, interrupting the moderators and not allowing them to ask the next question. Giving Wance to speak out, Brennan interrupted him and said that it was time to move on to other issues. However, the candidates began to speak with each other until CBS News turned off their microphones.

The conversation about immigration led to an uncomfortable moment for Wans. Trump promised in the event of the president he was electing the “largest deportation in the history of the United States”. However, Wence could not explain how it would work in a country where children of some families can be US citizens born from non-citizen parents. And to the question of whether the administration of Trump will be separated by immigrant parents from their children-citizens of the United States, Vance did not answer twice.

Vance also accused Harris of an increase in the number of illegal immigrants, which he associated with the inaccessibility of housing and fentanil crisis.

What is fentalist and is illegal migrants really import it to the United States?
Fentanil is an extremely potent synthetic opioid used in medicine as anesthesia. Fentalignan itself is not prohibited in the United States, but it is with it that an increase in mortality is associated as a result of an overdose of drugs. In 2021, in the United States, for the first time in one year, more than 100 thousand people throughout the country died from drug overdose, more than 66% were associated with fentanyl.

About 90% of illegal fentanyl is withdrawn at official border crossings, almost all this volume by smuggling is escorted by people who have the legal right to cross the border, and more than half of them are US citizens; Almost nothing is withdrawn among migrants looking for asylum.

Wals, in turn, agreed with Harris and stated that the bill on immigration would solve many problems on the southern border. The initiative is aimed at reducing the deadlines for consideration of applications for the provision of asylum, complication for migrants of the qualification process and termination of processing applications from people who crossed the border illegally.

“The Americans just want order. This bill does this. And he will allow us to maintain dignity in relation to how we relate to other people, ”said Wals.

Abortion

The right to abortion is the main question before the elections of 2024. The Republican of Vance defended Trump's position that the regulation of abortion should be left at the discretion of the States.

“I, as a Republican who proudly wants to protect the innocent life in this country, who proudly wants to protect vulnerable ... [I think] my party needs to make much more efforts to return the trust of the American people in this matter [on the issue of abortion], in which, frankly, they simply do not trust us,” Vance said.

Wals convincingly spoke about the need to protect the right to abortion and stated that the provision of abortions at the discretion of the States put pregnant women at risk: he referred to Amber Turman, a woman from the state of Georgia, who died after a long delay in the removal of fruit tissue. The medical commission decided that the death of Turman was "preventive."

“How can we, as a nation, say that your life and your rights, such basic as the right to dispose of our own body, are determined by geography?”

Wals asked. “I agree with you, Amber Turman should be still alive,” Vance answered.

Capitol attack on January 6

One of the most intense moments of the evening: Wales and Wence discussed Trump's statements about their victory in the 2020 elections and January 6, 2021 - the day when thousands of Trump's supporters attacked the US Capitol during the official counting of votes in Congress.

"He lost the election of 2020?" Wells Wans asked. The latter replied that "focused on the future." Wals called this answer “murderously evasive,” retorted.

Vance said that on January 6 is just the day when Biden became president, and Trump left the White House.

“He [Trump] lost these elections, but he said that he had not lost. One hundred forty police officers were beaten in Capitols that day, some with the American flag, and a little later died. <...> Democracy is more important than victory in the elections ",

- answered Wance. "

Vance tried to redirect the discussion of democracy to debate about censorship on social networks. In response to this, Wals said: “Four years later we are in the same boat. The winner must be the winner. This should stop. This breaks our country into pieces. "

Weapon violence

Candidates were asked about the problem of shooting in schools and whether weapons of the AR-15 type should be prohibited in several cases of mass executions.

Vance called school executions “terrible things”, but then turned to criticize Harris and announced the “huge tributary of the illegal weapons owned by Mexican drug carters” ( in most school executions, the weapons that were used were bought legally. - Ed. ).

“We must strengthen safety in our schools. We must make the doors lock better. We must make the doors stronger. We must make the windows stronger, ”said Wence.

Wals, in turn, insisted on a more strict control of weapons and said that he met with his parents who died as a result of shooting at the Sandy Hook school ( December 14, 2012, the shooter opened fire in the Sandy Hook elementary school in the city of Newtown Connecticut, killed 20 first -graders and six adults, and then committed suicide. - approx. ).

At that moment, Wals made a reservation and accidentally said that he “made friends with school arrows”, and not with the victims. Trump himself pointed to the mistake. But Walz continued the answer: “Our main responsibility is our children. <...> I ask you all: your schools, hardened to the state of fortresses, is what we have to go through? " He asked.

The most polite debate

The debates were almost completely focused on internal problems, the candidates did not even discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As CNN notes , unlike the discussion between Vice President Kamal Harris and former President Donald Trump, in this case, Walz and Wence were kind and calm. Starting the evening with a handshake, Wence and Wals continued to turn to each other politely, all their attacks and critical statements were aimed at Harris and Trump, respectively.

The “unusually normal” debate, as CNN calls them, ended with another “refreshing normal moment” that was not over the past decade: the candidates shook hands and chatted far from microphones, and then their wives joined them.

These were perhaps the most polite discussion of the election season: heart and even moments of consent, notes the BBC. The BBC correspondent Anthony Zurker called the discussion “relatively restrained”: in his opinion, the debate was probably more beneficial to Wansa, as they gave him the opportunity to defend Trump and smooth out some sharp corners.