Kamala Harris and Donald Trump began with their talking points, and she threw the first punches.

Asked at the ABC debate by moderators David Muir and Linsey Davis whether the country was better off than four years ago, the VP said she was ‘raised as a middle-class kid,’ wants to raise up those voters, she wants to tackle the housing shortage, and has a ‘passion’ for small business. Trump’s plan, she said, was to cut taxes for his billionaire friends and big corporations.

The former president started on the high road, talking about the tariffs he imposed on China.

But he soon resorted to personal attacks. ‘Everything she believed four years ago, she’s a Marxist.’

And: ‘She hates Israel.’ If she wins, ‘Israel will not exist in two years.’

Trump also said of Joe Biden, without substantiation, ‘He hates her. He can’t stand her.’

Trump pushed a completely debunked rumor that Haitians in Springfield, Ohio, ‘they’re eating the dogs, they’re eating the pets.’ Muir said the city manager confirmed there were no such reports.

Trump looked angrier as the debate wore on, with Harris at one point laughing at him. She pivoted between looking at him and the cameras; he barely glanced at her.

‘We did a phenomenal job with the pandemic,’ Trump said, which is, well, debatable.  

Harris grew most animated when asked about abortion, and declared that Trump would sign a national abortion ban. 

‘You’re going to hear a bunch of lies,’ the veep said. Pregnant women were being denied emergency care, a 12-year old survivor of incest was forced to carry the baby to term. 

Trump said, as he did to me at Mar-a-Lago, that ‘every legal scholar’ wanted the abortion issue returned to the states. That is not true.

Trump said the Democrats are the radicals because they support abortion through the ninth month, and quoted a dumb comment by the former Virginia governor about making a decision after birth, which is illegal.

‘This is so rich by someone who has been found liable for sexual assault,’ Harris said, referring to the E. Jean Carroll case and rattling off various indictments.

That’s because the administration has ‘weaponized’ law enforcement against him, Trump said in an oft-repeated charge. He added, without substantiation, ‘They’re the ones who made them go after me.’

In another charge without evidence, the ex-president accused Harris of ‘paying people’ to attend her rallies.

Referring to the attempted assassination, Trump said, ‘I probably took a bullet to the head because of their rhetoric.’ Then he said ‘Russia Russia Russia’ – the kind of shorthand that may have puzzled casual viewers.

Harris also said things that weren’t true. She said she made clear in 2020 that she was not against fracking, but what she actually said was that Biden would not ban fracking. She said he had threatened a ‘bloodbath’ if he loses, but he actually said that about the American auto industry.

ABC pressed Trump about Jan. 6, asking why he didn’t make the video earlier asking protestors to go home. He said what was left out was that in his speech he had asked the demonstrators to be ‘peaceful and patriotic.’

Harris countered that Trump had ‘incited a violent mob’ in which 150 law enforcement officials were injured, and ‘some died.’

ABC did press Harris on her past opposition to fracking and for abolishing private health insurance, but she stuck to varying versions of ‘my values haven’t changed.’

On another crucial issue, ABC asked twice: ‘Do you want Ukraine to win this war?’ Trump would not say yes. ‘I want the war to stop,’ he said. ‘I think it’s in the U.S.’s best interest to get this war done, negotiate a deal.’

Harris responded: ‘If Donald Trump were president, Putin would be sitting in Kyiv right now.’ She said she met with Volodomyr Zelenskyy days before the invasion to share U.S. intelligence.

My scorecard:

Kamala Harris did everything she could have reasonably done to brush off Trump’s attacks, make her case, and repeatedly attack him while largely maintaining her composure.

Trump turned in a strong performance and landed numerous blows, but Harris increasingly got under his skin rather than the other way around.

ABC tilted against Trump, with a series of tougher questions, more followups, more fact-checking, and more corrections by the network. This vindicated Trump’s pregame criticism of ABC as the ‘meanest’ network.

Now the partisan spinning gets under way in earnest.

A voter taking part in the Fox News Digital panel reacting to the debate slammed Vice President Kamala Harris for some of the rhetoric she used against former President Donald Trump.

‘Race baiting and fear mongering was a big part of her tactics tonight,’ one voter on the panel said of Harris’ debate performance.

The comment comes after Trump and Harris squared off in what could be the only debate between the two candidates before election day in November, beginning the stretch run of a campaign that promises to end in a razor tight finish.

But one voter didn’t come away impressed with Harris’ rhetoric.

Asked to point to a specific incident in the debate where Harris was ‘race baiting’ Trump, the voter pointed to her remarks on the ‘Central Park Five.’

‘I think that’s a hot button issue, especially for a lot of African Americans, but she leaves out a lot of specifics to that,’ the voter said, like the lead prosecutor was a Democrat at the time,’ the voter said.

The voter was referencing a part in the debate in which Harris accused Trump of having a long history of being racially divisive, noting that his family’s company was once investigated for allegedly refusing to rent to black people decades ago and mentioning that he called for the death penalty for the Central Park Five, who were falsely accused of raping a Manhattan jogger in 1989.

‘I think he was gaslit throughout the entire debate, and that is probably why he was so defensive,’ the voter said. ‘Even when he brought up the topic of race, he brought that up because she’s pandering, she’s using being black as a trope to get black votes.’

The voter concluded by arguing that Harris never elaborated about a plan for black voters, something she would have liked to hear the vice president speak on.

‘I would have liked to see her lean into the fact that ‘yes I am a black woman, and this is my plan black America,’’ the voter continued. ‘But she clearly doesn’t have a plan because she’s essentially not black.’

Former President Donald Trump and VP Kamala Harris traded blows on the issue of crime in the United States in the first presidential debate, with Harris defending accusations that migrant crime has increased under her watch by citing Trump’s legal issues.

‘Yeah, it is much higher because of them,’ Trump said during the debate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania discussing crime committed by illegal immigrants in the U.S., some of which entered the country under Biden’s watch. 

‘They allowed criminals, many, many millions of criminals,’ Trump continued, ‘They allowed terrorists. They allowed common street criminals. They allowed people to come in drug dealers to come into our country. And then now in the United States and told by their countries like Venezuela, don’t ever come back or we’re going to kill you. Do you know that crime in Venezuela and crime in countries all over the world is way down?’

Trump continued, ‘Crime here is up and through the roof. Despite their fraudulent statements that they made. Crime in this country is through the roof. And we have a new form of crime. It’s called migrant crime. And it’s happening at levels that nobody thought possible.’

ABC’s David Muir then interjected and said that ‘the FBI says overall violent crime is actually coming down in this country’ without noting that those statistics are down from historic highs or that several large cities did not include their data. 

‘They were defrauding statements,’ Trump responded. ‘They they didn’t include the worst cities. They didn’t include the cities with the worst crime. It was a fraud. Just like their number of 818,000 jobs that they said they created turned out to be a fraud.’

Harris responded by bringing up Trump’s criminal convictions and pending indictments.

‘Well, I think this is so rich coming from someone who has been prosecuted for national security crimes, economic crimes, election interference has been found liable for sexual assault,’ Harris said. 

‘And his next big court appearance is in November at his own criminal sentencing. And let’s be clear where each person stands on the issue of what is important about respect for the rule of law and respect for law enforcement.’

Harris continued: ‘The former vice president called for defunding federal law enforcement. 45,000 agents get this on the day after he was arraigned on 34 felony counts. So let’s talk about what is important in this race.’

‘It is important that we move forward, that we turn the page on this same old tired rhetoric and address the needs of the American people, address what we need to do about the housing shortage, which I have a plan for, address what we must do to support our small businesses, address bringing down the price of groceries.’

Vice President Kamala Harris claimed former President Trump would install a national abortion ban that would allow for no exceptions despite Trump saying moments before he believes in exceptions for abortion. 

‘Now, in over 20 states, there are Trump abortion bans, which make it criminal for a doctor or nurse to provide health care in one state. It provides prison for life. Trump abortion bans that make no exception, even for rape and incest, which understand what that means,’ Harris said Tuesday evening from Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center.  

‘A survivor of a crime of violation to their body does not have the right to make a decision about what happens to their body. That is immoral, and one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree the government and Donald Trump certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,

‘Understand, if Donald Trump were to be re-elected, he will sign the national abortion ban.’ 

Moments before, Trump said he believes in exceptions for abortion, similar to former President Reagan. 

‘I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother,’ Trump said during the debate. ‘I believe strongly in it. Ronald Reagan did also. Eighty-five percent of Republicans knew exceptions are very important,’ he said. 

Trump added in his rebuttal that he does not support a national abortion ban and that Harris’ comments were an ‘absolute lie.’ 

‘As far as the abortion ban, no, I’m not in favor of an abortion ban, but it doesn’t matter, because this issue has now been taken over by the states,’ Trump said. 

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, and Trump praised the decision. His campaign says abortion laws and issues should be left up to individual states after the Dobbs decision. 

Earlier this year, Trump drew the condemnation of some pro-life conservatives for the GOP’s more muted language on abortion this election cycle and for saying last month that Florida’s six-week abortion ban ‘is too short.’ He has since said he will vote against a Florida amendment that would legalize abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy and has doubled down that abortion laws and issues should be left up to states to decide. 

Former President Donald Trump cited his assassination attempt during his debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, saying he ‘probably took a bullet to the head’ due to rhetoric from Harris and Democrats. 

‘I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me. They talk about democracy. I’m a threat to democracy. They’re the threat to democracy,’ Trump said from the debate stage in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening. 

Trump faced an assassination attempt in July during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The shooter, Matthew Crooks, shot Trump in the ear, injured two audience members and fatally shot local dad and fireman Corey Comperatore. 

‘This is the one that weaponized, not me,’ Trump said, referring to Harris. ‘She weaponized.’

Trump’s remark that he was shot ‘probably’ due to Democratic rhetoric was followed by Harris saying that Trump would ‘weaponize the Department of Justice’ against his political enemies. 

‘Well, let’s talk about extreme, and understand the context in which this election in 2024 is taking place. The United States Supreme Court recently ruled that the former president would essentially be immune from any misconduct if he were to enter the White House again,’ she said. 

‘Understand, this is someone who has openly said he would terminate, I’m quoting, terminate the Constitution of the United States, that he would weaponize the Department of Justice against his political enemies. Someone who has openly expressed disdain for members of our military. Understand, that it means if Donald Trump were back in the White House with no guard rails, because certainly we know now the court won’t stop him,’ Harris added. 

Trump has since recovered from the assassination attempt, after he was seen wearing a bandage over his ear during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee just days after the attempt unfolded. 

Trump and Harris joined the same debate stage at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The debate marks the first time the pair squared off against one another, following President Biden dropping out of the race amid mounting concerns over his mental acuity. 

Trump has said he will return to Butler County, Pennsylvania, in October for another rally following the attempt. 

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is plowing full steam ahead on his plan to avert a partial government shutdown at the end of the month, despite growing uneasiness within the House GOP.

Johnson’s plan involves a six-month extension of the current fiscal year’s government funding levels, known as a continuing resolution (CR), and combining it with a GOP bill to require proof of citizenship in the voter registration process.

As of Tuesday afternoon, House Republican leaders are expected to hold a vote on the measure Wednesday – despite at least half a dozen GOP lawmakers already expected to vote against it.

‘We’re not looking at any other alternative or any other step. I think it’s the right thing to do,’ Johnson told reporters about pairing the CR with the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act.

It passed a key test vote on Tuesday to allow for debate and then a vote on final passage of the measure. It passed 209 to 206 with Reps. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., and Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., in opposition; the latter is one of six Republicans publicly against it.

Multiple GOP lawmakers told Fox News Digital that Johnson made similar comments during a closed-door meeting earlier that morning – the House Republican Conference’s first time in one room since returning from their six-week recess.

Some, like Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., applauded his resolve.

‘He is ready to fight,’ Norman, who said he normally opposes CRs, told Fox News Digital. ‘Certain things I don’t like, but overall, it’s a good thing.’

But House Republicans granted anonymity to speak freely said they saw little point in taking a vote on a measure that, if it passed their chamber, is virtually guaranteed to be a nonstarter in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

‘Doesn’t have the votes, no solution to the problem,’ one GOP lawmaker told Fox News Digital in a text message.

Another House Republican said, ‘I don’t think it’s a good idea.’

‘It’s not going to become law and Biden will never sign it,’ they said, pointing out that it would have no effect on this year’s election. ‘So if anything, you could do this a day after the election, and it would be applied to the following term in the next election, which would be the most reasonable thing to do.’

‘Because now we’re playing with a government shutdown that’s, what, eight weeks before a presidential election?’

Several of the GOP defectors are against CRs as a matter of principle, believing it’s an unnecessary extension of government bloat. Others expressed national security concerns about how a six-month extension with no increases to military funding would affect national security. 

Meanwhile, at least two more lawmakers, Reps. John Rutherford, R-Fla., and Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., expressed skepticism but did not outright oppose it.

‘I’m a lean no, but I’m never going to vote to shut the government,’ Rutherford told reporters, citing defense funding concerns.

Spartz said she opposed the ‘omnibus spending’ she sees CRs representing, and questioned whether Johnson was serious about gambling with a shutdown.

‘Are we really planning to take that hill? Because we’d better bring the American people with us and communicate what’s going to happen,’ Spartz said.

And while Johnson insisted on holding firm to his plan, which was also advocated for by former President Trump, others in his conference signaled they’re looking for the next step.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., suggested Republicans would eventually agree to a funding extension without other legislation attached, and one that would likely only extend until December – something senior GOP lawmakers and Democrats have advocated for months.

‘There’ll be an agreement across the aisle, but probably a short-term CR, I imagine,’ Bacon said.

When asked whether congressional negotiators were already working on a Plan B, House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital, ‘We always have multiple, you know, things available.’

With just a four-seat majority and at least six defections, Johnson’s bill will almost certainly need Democratic votes to pass the House.

Five Democrats voted for the SAVE Act when it passed earlier this year, but with opposition from their leaders in the House, Senate and White House, it’s not clear whether they would support pairing the bill with a stopgap spending bill.

A high-ranking leader within the United States Secret Service (USSS) has been encouraged to retire nearly two months after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, a source involved at the highest levels of the internal investigation told Fox News.

The official, Assistant Director Michael Plati of the agency’s Office of Protective Operations, led the section in control of planning for protection of Trump, President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Sen. JD Vance and others, and is ending his tenure there this Friday, his 27th anniversary at the agency.

The Secret Service responded in a statement Tuesday that Plati ‘was not asked to resign or retire by anyone. This was a personal decision that he has made and we thank him for his 27 years of dedicated service to the federal government.’ Still, others involved in the investigation have not disputed the underlying narrative that he was encouraged to resign following the July 13 security failure in Butler that has sent shock waves through all levels of the agency.

The USSS is preparing to brief Congress in the coming days about lessons learned from the attempt on Trump’s life.

The Secret Service added that it ‘respects the role of oversight. We have and will continue to make employees available for transcribed interviews and to date we’ve provided over 2,400 pages of responsive documentation to Congress. These efforts will continue as our desire to learn from this failure and ensure that it never happens again is unwavering.’

Plati gave over a month’s notice to make time for a transition. Fox News is told it will come out in the days and weeks ahead when Congress is briefed that the retirement is indeed related to the shooting investigation, but his spokesman said that it was planned and that the timing was coincidental. 

‘Mike has been discussing this for more than a year. He’s retiring on the date of his 27-year anniversary working for the Secret Service. He approached Acting Director [Ronald] Rowe about his retirement last month, before the DNC. He wasn’t asked to retire or resign, and anyone saying otherwise is lying,’ said Greg Henning, the spokesman for Plati.

An agent who asked to remain anonymous was not happy about Plati’s retirement. ‘Mike Plati is known for his integrity and honesty, qualities that are especially commendable at his level of leadership within the Secret Service,’ the agent told Fox News.

USSS Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned under mounting pressure on July 23 following the assassination attempt on the former president, Fox News confirmed. 

The Department of Defense (DOD) has since offered the USSS ‘additional assistance’ in protecting political figures that require personal security.

Anthony Guglielmi, U.S. Secret Service chief of communications, announced last month that the DOD will provide ‘additional assistance including logistics, transportation, and communications, through the 2024 campaign season.’

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are set to face off in their first presidential debate, and the stakes could not be higher. Harris has erased Trump’s comfortable lead in the polls, setting up a razor-thin election with less than two months to go.

The highly anticipated matchup is the first time Trump and Harris will meet in person. It comes just 51 days after President Biden withdrew from the 2024 race and 75 days after his disastrous debate performance.

With Trump set to make a record seventh general election debate appearance, here is a look at what to expect in tonight’s debate as well as his past performances. 

Trump, Harris debate on Sept. 10

Although Tuesday’s debate is the second one of the 2024 campaign season, it is the first time the current nominees will face off. The 90-minute, audience-free debate will take place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. 

While Harris is hunkering down in Pittsburgh, Trump has forsaken traditional debate preparation. Trump has, however, employed former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to help him refine his skills Gabbard, who recently endorsed Trump, had her own famous moment on the debate stage, when in 2020, she attacked Harris for her record as a California prosecutor.

Trump is expected to focus on inflation and immigration, two of the top issues in the 2024 race. The Trump campaign has been linking Harris to some of Biden’s weaker areas, a strategy he is expected to employ in the debate. Harris is expected to focus on abortion rights, which is tied with inflation at 14%, as the second-biggest issue in the race. The overturning of Roe v. Wade has proven to be one of Trump’s greatest political vulnerabilities.

Trump, Biden debate on June 27

The only 2024 debate between Biden and Trump was the first time a sitting president and a former president ever debated. It is also perhaps the most consequential in history as it ultimately led Biden to abandon his 2024 bid.

During the debate, the president struggled to mount a coherent defense or finish his sentences at times. As Biden wrapped up an argument about his record on border security, Trump quipped, ‘I really don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I don’t think he knows what he said, either.’

The Atlanta debate where Trump and Biden clashed overabortion, immigration, foreign policy and inflation amassed 51.3 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. At the time, Real Clear Politics had Trump leading Biden by 1.5 points.

Trump, Biden debate on Oct. 22, 2020

Trump and Biden squared off in Nashville, Tennessee, less than two weeks before Election Day. The debate was more subdued than the first round, in part due to new rules that kept each candidate’s microphone muted. 

As Biden and Trump squabbled over personal finances, Trump claimed Biden had made money from foreign entities. Trump further sought to paint Biden as a typical, corrupt politician. A recent report from House Republicans alleged that Biden ‘participated in a conspiracy to monetize his office of public trust to enrich his family.’

Trump also questioned Biden’s accomplishments over his nearly 50-year public service career. Trump said he decided to mount a run for president because of the Obama administration’s ‘poor job.’

‘I ran because of you, Joe,’ Trump said. ‘I ran because of you.’

Nielsen Media Research recorded 63 million viewers for the final debate of the 2020 cycle. On the day of the debate, Biden led Trump by 7.9 points.

Trump, Biden debate on Sept. 29, 2020

What people most likely recall from this debate is Trump’s constant interruptions that led an exasperated Biden to declare, ‘will you shut up, man?’ The debate quickly descended into chaos as the two sparred over abortion rights and Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. An unrelenting Trump pushed Biden on whether he would ‘pack’ the Supreme Court in the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death. As the two men heatedly talked over each other about the pandemic, Trump declared, ‘I’ll tell you Joe, you could never have done the job that we did. You don’t have it in your blood.’

Trump did not shy away from making personal attacks on Biden, hurling insults about his intelligence, saying, ‘There’s nothing smart about you, Joe.’

With 73.1 million viewers, the debate in Cleveland was the most watched for a Trump-Biden matchup. Real Clear Politics had Biden leading Trump by 6.1 points on the day of the debate. 

Trump, Clinton debate on Oct. 19, 2016

The final debate of the 2016 cycle had Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton focusing more on personal weaknesses than policy. When Clinton attempted to tie Trump to Russia, he retorted that Russian President Vladimir Putin ‘doesn’t respect’ Clinton or then-President Barack Obama and insisted that he did not know Putin. As the two contended over Obamacare and Social Security, Trump proceeded to call Clinton, ‘such a nasty woman.’

Clinton repeatedly used the debate to belittle Trump’s character. Clinton’s strongest language came when she challenged Trump’s behavior toward women. Trump pushed back, vehemently denying any claims of inappropriate behavior toward women. ‘Nobody has more respect for women than I do,’ he said. 

A key highlight of the debate came when Trump declined to say he would accept the results of the election (much like his responses in 2020). Trump doubled down on insisting the process was ‘rigged’ and that he would ‘look at it at the time.’

Trump, Clinton debate on Oct. 9, 2016 

Trump used this debate as an opportunity to launch a blistering attack against Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton. When questioned about his conduct toward women, Trump stated ‘there’s never been anybody in the history of politics that has been so abusive to women,’ about former President Clinton. Hillary Clinton refused to address his comments about her husband.

Trump and Clinton also quarreled over Russian aggression, Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns and his plans for the ‘extreme vetting’ of immigrants arriving from countries with criminal links.

Trump, Clinton debate on Sept. 26, 2016

Trump’s first presidential debate was the first to surpass 70 million viewers in nearly four decades, gaining a record 84 million viewers. 

Trump came out swinging as he addressed the economy and jobs. As Clinton sought to defend her economic proposals, Trump attacked her political record, declaring she was a ‘typical politician: all talk, no action.’ However, as the debate progressed, Clinton put Trump more on the defensive. At one point, Clinton pushed Trump on his past comments on race and sex, prompting him to say, ‘It’s all words, it’s all soundbites.’

An overview of Trump’s past debates reveals an approach of rapid-fire statements, personal affronts, and ripostes – a strategy aimed at overwhelming his opponents. Additionally, with the race proving to be as tight as it is, Harris is anticipated to face greater pressure as the newer and unproven contender.