Stateside Stories

This week, JD Vance and Tim Walz faced off for what could be the only Vice Presidential debate before next month’s election. In stark contrast to the Presidential debates, this one largely occurred without incident and appeared to be very civilised. Both candidates found common ground on many issues. Both, for instance mentioned how they personally benefitted from the GI Bill. Vance used it to go to university and Walz used it to become a teacher. However, supporters from both parties believe that their candidate came across as too moderate. Have Vance and Walz become victims of polarisation? Or will both men allow their parties to gain support from moderate, undecided voters?

Past Comments

Both men had to address comments that they made in the past. Walz had to address the false claim that he made about being in Hong Kong during the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. He had actually arrived a few months later. He owned up to the mistake and referred to himself as a “knucklehead”. Vance had to address previous comments he made about running-mate Donald Trump. This included one comment he made in 2016 where he compared Trump to Hitler. Vance stated that he was wrong about Trump in the past, and his previous comment was a mistake.

Gun Control

Gun Control is a major issue that has plagued America for decades. A recent shooting in Georgia which killed four teenagers once again hammered home that America has a problem with guns. The fact that the shooter was only fourteen shocked many, and reinforced the idea that something had to be done. Young people in America are not safe. This debate seemed to reach a disappointing conclusion on the matter. Democrats were especially disappointed with Walz’s stance on the issue. Rather than mentioning gun control as hoped, he instead spoke about stronger background checks on gun owners. Walz himself used to be completely against gun control until the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Whilst this tragedy did convince him that gun ownership needed to be better regulated, he does not have the radical stance on gun control that many others in the Democrat Party do. Vance’s suggestions were that security in schools needs to be increased, and doors and windows need to be stronger. There was one emotionally-charged moment where Walz revealed that his seventeen-year-old son witnessed a shooting at a sports centre. Vance seemed to show genuine concern and asked Walz if his son was okay. However, the overall message that the American people were given was that mass shootings will never be eliminated, just occurrences that need to be worked-around.

Abortion

Since the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe V Wade in 2022, abortion and reproductive rights has become an increasingly polarising issue. Many states have already taken measures to either ban or place restrictions on abortions, and many women have suffered as a result. Walz did emphasise this issue, and provided a list of names of women who have either died or suffered after abortion restrictions in Texas. He made it clear that the Democrats would always defend women’s rights to reproductive care. For his part, Vance admitted that the Republicans needed to do better on the issue. He knew that Americans did not trust the Republicans on this issue. However, this statement seems hollow when Vance’s past comments come into consideration. In 2022, he stated that he wanted abortion to become “illegal nationwide”. In this week’s debate, he denied ever making that comment.

Immigration

Once again, Vance found himself on the defence. He denied pushing false claims that Haitian immigrants were eating people’s household pets in Ohio. Vance did take a negative stance on immigration during the debate. He mentioned how prices were going up and wages stagnating as local people had to compete with immigrants. He also claimed that thousands of illegal immigrants had entered the country thanks to the Biden administration’s relaxed border policy. This claim could not easily be backed up. Walz stated that demonising groups of people would not solve any problems, and that everyone deserves to be treated with compassion. He pointed out the Republicans have frequently highlighted immigration as a problem, but have never come up with solutions.

The 2020 election

The only major source of tension in the debate was the outcome of the 2020 election. To this day, Trump maintains that he won the election and that the process was fraudulent. There is no evidence to back this up, with Biden winning both the popular vote and the electoral college. Vance, previously a Trump critic, also holds the view that Trump won. When Walz asked him if he believed that Trump lost the election, Vance dodged the question, replying “Tim, I’m focused on the future.” Walz responded by stating “that is a damning non-answer.” He also said that Americans can see “who’s going to honour democracy and who’s going to honour Donald Trump.” This was probably Walz’s finest moment in the debate, as he did not allow the legacies of the 2020 election to be forgotten. The disregard for democracy is something that the Republican Party has struggled with over the last four years, and the refusal to admit that Biden won may hurt their chances with some voters.