At first debate, Biden and Trump spar on COVID, economy, election integrity

President Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden on Tuesday night began their first presidential debate on the attack and stayed there for the full 90 minutes – challenging and at times even taunting each other about their respective positions on such key voter issues as the pandemic, the economy, health care and the Supreme Court. 

Trump at the outset defended the ongoing Republican effort to confirm his most recent Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, to the high court. 

"We won the election," he said. "Elections have consequences. We have the Senate, the White House, we have a phenomenal nominee … . We have plenty of time" to confirm her. Democrats would do the same thing if the parties were reversed, he argued.

"The American people have a right to have a say in who the Supreme Court nominee is," Biden countered, arguing in favor of delaying the confirmation. "That say occurs when they vote for United Staes senators and when they vote for the president."

Moderator and Fox News reporter Chris Wallace was more like a referee or playground teacher – imploring the candidates to play by the rules and stop talking over each other.

On the question of health care, Trump accused Democrats of wanting to transform American medicine into a socialistic system. Biden in turn defended his support of the "public option," a government-issued health insurance plan that has been proposed by Democrats numerous times over the years. 

'I don't trust him at all'

Regarding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Trump accused Biden of taking a blasé approach to the virus early on. 

"If we would have listened to you, the country would have been left wide open," Trump told his Democratic opponent. "Millions of people would have died.”

Biden accused Trump of downplaying the virus, arguing that the president at one point claimed that the coronavirus "would be gone by Easter."

The Democratic candidate also claimed that Trump had failed to supply the U.S. with necessary personal protective equipment, including masks. He also criticized Trump for holding packed rallies numerous times over the last several weeks, claiming it risks spreading the virus.

"He’s not worried about [Americans]," Biden said of the president. "He’s been totally irresponsible."

He also echoed earlier insinuations from himself and his running mate Sen. Kamala Harris that a vaccine produced under the Trump administration couldn't be trusted on its face.

"I don’t trust [Trump] at all," Biden said.

Trump in turn argued that Biden sought to keep schools closed and re-impose a nationwide shutdown to fend off the coronavirus.

"More people will be hurt" by such a shutdown, Trump said, also arguing that children "aren't vulnerable" to the disease. 

Debate featured extended arguments

Trump and Biden numerous times lapsed into biting arguments with each other that drew focus away from the political issues and toward the personal animus the two candidates appear to feel for each other. 

Discussing their respective economic polices, Biden at one point claimed that Trump would be the first president in U.S. history to leave office with fewer jobs than when he started.

Trump countered by arguing that a Biden administration would usher in "a depression the likes of which you’ve never seen." 

During a contentious segment on law and order, Biden said he was "totally opposed" to the proposal of defunding police departments, an issue on which he was pressed earlier in his campaign.

Trump, touting the numerous endorsements he has received from law enforcement groups, argued that Democratic cities have seen recent huge increases in crime. 

Biden also didn't name a police organization that supports his candidacy, at the request of Trump.

The two further sparred over their respective political records, with Biden defending the Obama administration's economic and foreign policies and Trump arguing that he has overseen "the greatest economy" in U.S. history. 

The debate finished on the question of election integrity, with Wallace asking both candidates about the upcoming Nov. 3 election, in which significant numbers of Americans will vote by mail due to the ongoing pandemic. 

“This is going to be fraud like you’ve never seen,” Trump said of the upcoming election. “We might not know [who wins] for months."

Biden, meanwhile, encouraged Americans to vote however they feel comfortable doing; he claimed Trump was trying to "dissuade people from voting."

Biden for several weeks ahead of the debate has maintained a steady four-to-six point lead among likely voters, with even generous Republican turnout models still predicting a narrow win for the Democratic candidate. 

In the lead-up to the debate, Trump had requested that Biden submit to a drug test, alleging that Biden may have ingested performance-enhancing substances during the Democratic primaries to give him an edge against his competitors. 

The Trump campaign had also requested that Biden submit to a search for an electronic earpiece prior to the debate. Biden reportedly agreed to the search, though on Tuesday the Trump campaign said Biden had backed out of the agreement.