The first presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden sparked a vocal response from voters all over the country.
The first of potentially three outings, as the president’s recent COVID-19 diagnosis compromises any future appearances, was met with criticism, mainly aimed at Trump’s performance.
Trump’s plan seemed to consist of attacking Biden personally, taking shots at Biden’s children while comparing turnouts at each other’s voter rallies. Biden avoided being baited by Trump’s remarks and instead focused on answering the questions the best he could.
Moderator Chris Wallace spent much of the debate reminding Trump of his numerous interruptions and struggled to control the chaos that ensued from the President’s non-compliance on the debate stage. The 90-minute bout left many with lots to say afterwards.
Aedin Vetere, student at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford, stated, “Well in my opinion I feel as if the debate was pretty poorly organized, it felt as if it was constant interruption after interruption and not very much was said to be influential. I hope the VP debate is a whole lot better.”
Matthew Davies, Yardley resident, shared, “Donald Trump’s lack of listening and constant interruption was comparable to that of a 2nd grader. His constant changing of subject goes to show his ill preparedness for topics important to the American people.”
Albert Wilson, Bensalem resident, said, “Biden wasn’t a clear victor but he achieved his goal: avoid gaffes and let Trump implode. It’s also hard to say that Trump truly lost the debate, as moderator Wallace took a hefty beating.”
Bucks student Kayla Gidzinski said, “I found it to be incredibly frustrating, yet entertaining at the same time. On a serious note, I felt it was extremely disrespectful on Trump’s behalf to mention Joe Biden’s sons, especially the one who sadly passed away in 2015. Trump basically called the former vice president’s son, Beau, a ‘loser.’ That part in particular amid the debate rubbed me the wrong way, considering Biden sent his condolences to Trump once his brother, Robert, died a little over a month ago.”
With future debates being up in the air due to Trump contracting COVID, many hope it will be better organized than the first.
As the election approaches, undecided voters have less than a month to figure out which candidate they prefer. Will Trump earn another four years in office, or will Biden be able to rebuild the legacy former President Obama left behind?