Vice presidential candidates Tim Walz and J.D. Vance faced off in their first and possibly only debate Tuesday night, just five weeks ahead of Election Day in a closely contested race.
The debate, hosted by CBS News in New York, marked what is likely to be the final opportunity for voters to evaluate the campaigns before casting their ballots. With polls indicating a near tie between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, both Walz and Vance approached the evening with one overarching goal: to bolster their running mates while avoiding any self-inflicted wounds.
[time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”]Walz, a two-term Governor of Minnesota, framed himself as a candidate deeply attuned to the needs of working families, attacking the Trump campaign as disconnected. Meanwhile, Vance, a first-term Senator from Ohio and self-proclaimed “policy attack dog” for Trump, sought to highlight what he framed as failures of the Biden-Harris Administration, particularly on issues of the economy and immigration.
Despite hurling insults back and forth on the campaign trail, the two vice presidential candidates approached each other in a generally friendlier manner, pointing at times to areas of common ground while focusing most of their criticisms at the top of their opponent’s ticket.
Historically, vice presidential debates have had limited impact on the overall race. But in this volatile election cycle, the implications of the candidates’ performances could prove more significant than in previous years, as a number of voters remain undecided.
The stakes were especially high for Vance, who has faced scrutiny for a series of controversial statements, including his earlier comments about “childless cat ladies” and misleading claims regarding Haitian immigrants in Ohio, and took the stage on Tuesday following an underwhelming debate performance last month by Trump against Harris.
Here are the biggest moments from the night.
On foreign policy, Walz and Vance offer divergent visions of ‘steady’
The debate began with a question on foreign policy as the escalating war in the Middle East has become a top election issue. Just hours before the debate, Iran fired a wave of ballistic missiles at Israel that made the prospect of a wider war in the Middle East more likely.
Asked if they would support or oppose a preemptive strike on Iran by Israel, both candidates sidestepped a direct answer, instead emphasizing Israel’s right to defend itself.
Walz got off to a slow start, accidentally referring to Iran as Israel and vice-versa. “Iran, or I uh, Israel’s ability to be able to defend itself, is fundamental,” he said. Moments later, he said “the expansion of Israel and its proxies is an absolute fundamental necessity for the United States to have the steady leadership there,” presumably mistaking Israel for Iran.
He added that “Israel’s ability to defend itself is absolutely fundamental” and called for an end to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. “Steady leadership is gonna matter,” he said, taking aim at Trump’s erratic record on foreign policy.
Vance took a more aggressive stance, echoing sentiments expressed by Trump and framing the strike by Iran as a direct consequence of perceived weakness in U.S. foreign policy under the Biden-Harris Administration. He argued that Iran’s actions reflected a broader failure to project strength, claiming the current administration has emboldened adversaries rather than deterred them. “Donald Trump actually delivered stability in the world, and he did it by establishing effective deterrence,” Vance said. “People were afraid of stepping out of line.”
He suggested that a second Trump Administration would achieve “peace through strength.” Responding to the question, Vance said that “it’s up to Israel” to determine what action is needed for its own safety. He added that the U.S. “should support our allies wherever they are when they’re fighting the bad guys.”
Walz criticizes Trump for calling climate change a ‘hoax’
In the wake of Hurricane Helene’s devastating impact on the Southeast, Walz and Vance expressed sympathy for those affected but diverged sharply on the issue of climate change.
Vance acknowledged climate change as “a very important issue,” stating that people are “justifiably worried about all these crazy weather patterns.” He criticized the Biden Administration’s energy policies, asserting that bringing more manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. could help limit carbon emissions: “If we actually care about getting clean air and clean water, the best thing to do is to double down and invest in American workers and the American people,” Vance said.
However, he sidestepped a direct question about whether he aligns with Trump’s controversial characterization of climate change as a “hoax.”
Walz firmly rebutted Trump’s stance on climate change, recalling the former President’s comments earlier this year that climate change would create more beachfront property. “Climate change is real; reducing our impact is absolutely critical,” Walz said. He highlighted initiatives in clean energy development, including a solar manufacturing plant in Minnesota, and argued that it’s possible to tackle climate change while simultaneously boosting the economy.
Vance clashes with moderators over fact check
A clash unfolded between Vance and the moderators over what he termed unfair fact-checking about half an hour into the debate, when Vance asserted that the moderators were misrepresenting his statements regarding Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio.
He reminded the moderators the rules that CBS News established for the debate: “The rules were that you guys weren’t going to fact check, and since you’re fact checking me, I think it’s important to say what’s actually going on.” Margaret Brennan, one of the moderators, noted that many Haitians in Springfield actually hold legal status, specifically temporary protected status.
Vance used the moment to criticize the Biden Administration’s immigration policies, referencing the CBP One app, which allows migrants to register for asylum hearings in advance. He argued that the influx of migrants there has strained local resources, and that “American citizens have had their lives destroyed.” Both of the candidates’ microphones were then manually muted by CBS News, which said before the debate that it “reserves the right” to mute them when appropriate.
Vance had previously made controversial claims that Haitian migrants in Springfield were stealing and eating pets—assertions that have been widely debunked.
Walz seized the opportunity to challenge Vance’s rhetoric: “There’s consequences for this,” he said, highlighting security threats to the community after the spread of the unfounded pet-eating story and the response of Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, who has dismissed Vance’s claims as false. Walz accused Vance of demonizing migrants rather than seeking constructive solutions to immigration issues, pointing specifically to a bipartisan immigration reform bill supported by border patrol that Republican allies of Trump in Congress killed earlier this year. “I believe Senator Vance wants to solve this,” Walz said, “but by standing with Donald Trump and not working together to find a solution, it becomes a talking point, and when it becomes a talking point like this, we dehumanize and villainize other human beings.”
Vance explains past criticisms of Trump
The moderators asked Vance about his transition from a vocal critic of Trump to a staunch supporter—and why Americans should trust that he will give the former President honest advice if elected. “I’ve also been extremely open about the fact that I was wrong about Donald Trump,” Vance said, claiming that Trump’s four years as President changed his perspective.
“Donald Trump delivered for the American people—rising wages, rising take-home pay, an economy that worked for normal Americans, a secure southern border—a lot of things, frankly, that I didn’t think he’d be able to deliver on,” Vance said.
Before he ran for the Senate, Vance called Trump a “cultural heroin” and said he feared he could be “America’s Hitler.”
“When you screw up, when you misspeak, when you get something wrong and you change your mind, you ought to be honest with the American people about it,” Vance said on Tuesday.
Walz also questioned Vance’s credibility and consistency. He said that Vance once deemed mass deportation proposals “laughable” and authored a 2016 opinion piece in which he called Trump “unfit for our nation’s highest office.”
This is a developing story and will be updated.
