Presidential debate replay: Democrats sweat after Joe Biden freezes during pivotal debate
Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden brawled in the first presidential debate of the 2024 race for the White House – sparring over issues ranging from reproductive rights to the southern border and inflation – even with a few confusing moments.
In a response that immediately prompted questions, Biden froze as he talked about Medicare services in America. After the debate, Democrats were sweating over the president's performance and his stumbles over talking points, data and more.
The president and the former president for 90 minutes attacked each other's records on the issues facing the nation: childcare costs, the spread of opioids and other challenges. They also waged into America's role on the world stage, with moderators Dana Bash and Jake Tapper pressing the candidate on Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war.
In one of the most heated moments of the night, Biden and Trump also fought over reports that the former president called veterans who lost their lives in war 'suckers.'
Catch up with live updates from the USA TODAY Network.
Donald Trump Veepstakes enter home stretch after Atlanta debate
Now that the first debate is over, the Donald Trump running mate race heads into overdrive.
A bevy of potential Republican vice presidential candidates flocked to Atlanta to carry the flag for Trump before and after his clash with Joe Biden - and amid news reports and informed speculation that the presumptive GOP 2024 nominee could announce his decision any day now.
"He's told some people, yeah," said Lara Trump, the former president's daughter-in-law and a co-chair of the Republican National Committee, speaking to NBC News.
The Trump debate surrogate list included the most often mentioned possibilities: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio, Tim Scott of South Carolina, and Marco Rubio of Florida.
– David Jackson
'Sense of shock': Democrats melt down over Joe Biden's debate disaster
Democrats and other opponents of Donald Trump melted down as Joe Biden struggled during Thursday's debate, with some suggesting he should bow out to allow another Democrat to run instead.
Biden's voice was hoarse and raspy from the start. He stumbled over words and had to correct himself with numbers. He was sometimes hard to follow. On one occasion, the president appeared to lose his train of thought, concluding − confusingly − with the line, "we finally beat Medicare."
"That's a good man. He loves his country. He's doing the best that he can," said Van Jones, a Democratic political analyst on CNN. "But he had a test to meet tonight to restore confidence in the country and of the base, and he failed to do that."
– Joey Garrison
Trump concludes: ‘We’re in a failing nation ... but we’re gonna make it great again’
Trump in his closing statement called Biden a “complainer” and said Biden “doesn’t do anything.”
“This man is just a complainer,” Trump said, mocking Biden. “He said ‘We wanna do this, we wanna do that, we wanna get rid of this tax, that tax.’ But he doesn’t do anything.’”
He also took aim at the Biden administration’s foreign policy, claiming that none of the crises across the world would be happening if Trump was still in office.
“We looked like fools in Afghanistan,” Trump said. Hamas’ attack against Israel on Oct. 7, Trump claimed without evidence, was such a “horrible thing that would have never happened,” if he were still president. “Ukraine should have never happened,” Trump added.
“We’re in a failing nation but it’s not gonna be failing anymore. We’re gonna make it great again,” Trump concluded.
– Ken Tran
Biden zeroes in on bringing down inflation, fixing tax system in closing statement
Biden closed his debate performance by insisting that he would implement “a fair tax system” if he’s reelected, including guaranteeing that people who make less than $400,000 won’t see a tax increase.
He contrasted that by saying Trump increased taxes, caused inflation by fumbling the pandemic response, and will make it worse by implementing a 10% tariff on all imports to the U.S.
Biden also touted policies passed since he became president, including lowering the cost of prescriptions. And he said if he is reelected, he would advance policies to support childcare and fix “bad pipes and other things causing health problems.”
“We’re going to continue to fight inflation and give people a break,” he concluded.
– Riley Beggin
A "childish" argument about golf
It took an argument about golf scores - one of their few direct exchanges - to get the two candidates to accuse each other of childishness.
"Let's not act like children," Trump told Biden.
Replied Biden: "You are a child."
– David Jackson
Trump blames Biden border policies for spread of opioids
Asked what they would do to support people in the throes of opioid addiction, both candidates focused on the situation at the southern border.
Trump said the flow of drugs across the border was under control until the COVID-19 pandemic. “Then we had to get tough,” he said, adding that drugs were “pouring across the border.”
He argued that since Biden has come into office, the flow of drugs is back up. Biden rebutted that he fought to get equipment that could detect fentanyl coming across the border, but that Trump killed the bipartisan deal in Congress that would have funded it.
“He never argued it’s not a good bill. It’s a good bill,” he said.
– Riley Beggin
Your money and the presidential debate: Trump and Biden spar over the economy, inflation
At the top of the high-stakes faceoff, Joe Biden and former Donald Trump sparred over their economic records in a bid to persuade undecided voters theirs is the winning plan to slow rising prices.
Exasperated Americans are paying more for the basics from check-out lanes to the gas pump, souring the national mood and making the inflation surge one of Biden’s greatest challenges going into the November rematch with Trump.
– Jessica Guynn and Bailey Schulz
Joe Biden claim: No American troops died anywhere in the world during his presidency
“The truth is, I’m the only president this century that doesn’t have any - this decade - that doesn’t have any troops dying anywhere in the world, like (former President Donald Trump) did.”
Biden’s comment came following a reference to hostilities in Afghanistan during Trump’s term in office. But the notion that no troops have died in the world during Biden’s time in office is wrong.
Thirteen U.S. service members were killed in a suicide bombing attack near the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul in August 2021, when Biden was president, as thousands tried to flee the Taliban’s takeover of the country, USA TODAY previously reported.
Among the deaths were 11 Marines, one Navy hospital corpsman and one Army soldier. Biden remarked on the deaths at the time, calling them “tragic.”
More recently, three U.S. Army Reserve soldiers were killed in January at a base in Jordan in what was described as a drone attack by Iran-backed militants.
–Andre Byik
Trump's claim: The US southern border is the most dangerous place in the world
“We have a border that's the most dangerous place anywhere in the world”
This is false. While deaths, disappearances and violence do occur at the U.S. southern border, there is no evidence to suggest it is the most dangerous place in the world.
Statistics on border deaths vary. Customs and Border Protection data shows 171 people died at the border in fiscal year 2022, some in CBP custody and others while attempting to cross the border. The International Organization for Migration, a U.N.-related organization, documented 686 deaths and disappearances of migrants on the US-Mexico border in 2022.
Places all over the world and even in the U.S. have more frequent deaths. For example, there were more than 700 murders in Chicago in 2022, according to the Chicago Police Department. Chicago is 228 square miles, while the U.S.-Mexico border is 1,951 miles long.
– Brad Sylvester
Biden: Trump ‘didn’t do a damn thing about’ climate change
Trump claimed he “had the best environmental numbers ever” and said his administration took significant action to address climate change: “My environmental people gave me that statistic just before I walked on the stage actually.”
Biden: Trump ‘didn’t do a damn thing about’ climate change
Trump claimed he “had the best environmental numbers ever” and said his administration took significant action to address climate change: “My environmental people gave me that statistic just before I walked on the stage actually.”
Trump and Biden battle over serving Black communities
Asked what he says to Black voters who are disappointed he hasn’t done more to help their communities during his time in office, Biden said: “I don’t blame you” and noted inflation is hurting them. But he said he has proposed tax credits for first-time homebuyers who are Black and made it easier for Black students to take out loans for college.
He added that he supports other policies that would help Black families, such as cutting childcare costs.
Trump leaned into that response, arguing that Biden’s economic policies have hurt the pocketbooks of families of color and said undocumented immigrants are taking the jobs of workers of color.
“He caused inflation and it’s killing Black families and Hispanic families,” he said. Trump added that he funded historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and supported criminal justice reform and economic opportunity zones.
– Riley Beggin
What happened when Biden froze?
Joe Biden was in the middle of answering a question about the economy during the debate on Thursday night when he began to stutter, froze on stage, and then began talking about the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We'd be able to help make sure that all those things we need to do, child care, elder care, making sure that we continue to spend our health care system, making sure that we're in every single solitary person eligible," Biden said, before taking a long pause.
He then began talking about the COVID-19 pandemic and Medicare.
"For what I've been able to do with the COVID, excuse me, with dealing with everything we have to do," he said, before taking another pause. "If we finally beat Medicare."
– Karissa Waddick
Biden hits Trump over white supremacists in Charlottesville
In going after Trump, Biden cited the incident he says inspired him to run for president in 2020: The violent 2017 rally of white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Biden noted that Trump said supportive things about the Charlottesville rioters. Trump accused Biden of making his criticism up, though Trump did say there were "very fine people on both sides" of the deadly demonstration.
– David Jackson
Biden freeze sparks backlash on Twitter
Biden freezing on stage when discussing healthcare quickly drew fire on X, formerly Twitter.
“Sorry, I’m voting for President Biden but a disaster so far,” wrote Mike Murphy, a Republican strategist and NBC News analyst, on the platform.
Stephen Hayes, editor and CEO of The Dispatch, tweeted, “Let the Dem panic begin.”
“Holy shit. Joe Biden isn’t running. He just froze. Trump is murdering him,” tweeted American writer and lawyer Clay Travis.
– Sudiksha Kochi
Biden hits Trump over his felony conviction
Donald Trump responded to the fact that he is a "convicted felon" by claiming – without evidence – that Biden is a future felon.
"This man is a criminal," Trump said of his opponent, also noting that Biden's son Hunter Biden has already been convicted on a gun charge.
Biden called the accusation "outrageous," and added: "It's simply a lie." For good measure, Biden noted that Trump's criminal case involved hush money to a "porn star."
"You have the morals of an alley cat," Biden told Trump.
This all began with a question about Trump's claims that he may seek retribution against political opponents if he gets back into the White House.
– David Jackson
Trump doesn’t take responsibility when asked about Jan. 6 Capitol attack
Trump didn’t take blame for the Jan. 6 2021 Capitol attack when he was asked about a mob of his supporters breaching the building in a bid to overturn the 2020 election results. Instead, he repeated his false claims that the attack was former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s fault.
Trump claimed he offered Pelosi “10,000 soldiers” to stop the attack, but Pelosi’s office has said she was never presented the offer by the former president. Pelosi also would not have had the power to refuse such an offer regardless.
In response, Biden went after Trump for his inaction during the attack, instead watching the riots unfold from the White House. He also slammed Trump for calling Jan. 6 defendants “patriots” and promising to pardon them.
“The idea that those people are patriots? Come on,” Biden said.
– Ken Tran
Biden touts support for Israel, slams Trump on NATO
Asked what additional leverage he would use to end the Israel-Hamas War, Biden said international leaders and experts have endorsed his plan for a ceasefire, which would include trading hostages held by Hamas for a ceasefire.
He added that “the only thing I denied Israel” was 2,000-lb bombs that can do significant civilian damage, and said Israel is getting “all the weapons they need” from the U.S.
Trump said Israel wants to continue its war against Hamas. “You should let them go and let them finish the job,” he said to Biden.
Biden – in one of his more forceful responses of the debate so far – said Trump wants to pull out of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and said U.S. strength relies on alliances. “He has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.”
– Riley Beggin
Trump asked about Russia's invasion of Ukraine
Putin would have never invaded Ukraine if he was president, Trump claimed without evidence. But he added Putin's terms in its brutal invasion of Ukraine should not be accepted.
Biden retorted by saying he'd never heard more malarkey.
– Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
Biden to Trump: 'You're the sucker, you're the loser'
The angriest exchange of the night came when Biden cited reports that Trump has described veterans as "suckers" and "losers."
"You're the sucker, you're the loser," Biden told Trump.
Trump denied making such comments, and demanded an apology from Biden. Not a chance, Biden replied.
– David Jackson
Pressed about his deportation plan, Trump goes after Biden over border
Trump was asked about his plans to carry out the “largest domestic deportation operation in American history” and whether he intended to deport all undocumented immigrants in the U.S., including those currently working critical jobs, whose spouses are citizens and have resided here for decades.
Trump declined to answer and instead criticized Biden over his handling of the southern border and repeated his past anti-immigrant rhetoric at the podium.
“We are living right now in a rat’s nest,” Trump said. “Every state is now a border state and it’s because of his ridiculous, insane and very stupid policies. People are coming in and they’re killing our citizens at a level that we’ve never seen.”
“We’re literally an uncivilized country,” Trump added.
– Ken Tran
Trump: I won’t block abortion pill
Trump said he won’t block abortion medication if he is reelected.
He noted that the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a challenge to mifepristone, the pill commonly used in medication abortions, said he agrees with that decision, “and I will not block it.”
He took credit for appointing the justices that were crucial votes in overturning Roe v. Wade and said the states are “all making their own decisions,” later adding that “the country is now coming together on this issue. It’s been a great thing.”
Biden rebutted that it has been “terrible” since Roe was overturned. He said he would reinstate the protections under Roe if he is reelected.
– Riley Beggin
Trump appears to call Biden 'Brandon'
Trump at one point appeared to call Trump "Brandon," a reference to "Let's go, Brandon," which has become a joke and a rallying cry for Republicans.
The phrase originated at an Oct. 2 NASCAR race at the Talladega Superspeedway in Alabama. Brandon Brown, a 28-year-old driver, had won his first Xfinity Series and was being interviewed by an NBC Sports reporter. The crowd behind him was chanting something at first difficult to make out. The reporter suggested they were chanting “Let’s go, Brandon” to cheer the driver. But it was clear they were saying, “(Expletive) Joe Biden."
– USA TODAY staff
On top earners paying less in taxes
With US facing trillion dollar deficits and record debt, why should top earners and corporations pay even less in taxes than they do now? Trump said the tax cuts spurred the “greatest economy that we've ever seen. “ Just prior to Covid and even after Covid, it was so strong that we're able to get through Covid much better than just about any other country, but we spurred that tax spurred.”
– Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
Biden's voice draws attention
One story so far, at least on social media: Biden's hoarse-sounding voice.
Pollster Frank Luntz, who is conducting a focus group on the showdown, said on X: "My focus group of undecided voters is surprised and concerned about Biden’s voice. This doesn’t bode well for questions about his health."
–David Jackson
Joe Biden: The economy is coming back
The first question is to Biden about inflation.
Biden, sounding somewhat hoarse, said the economy fell apart on Trump's watch thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is coming back under current leadership - slowly, but surely.
"Working class people" are still struggling, Biden said.
Trump replied that Biden's handling of the COVID crisis sparked inflation, and the two argued about who has the best economic approach.
– David Jackson
Donald Trump and Joe Biden skip a handshake
Donald Trump and Joe Biden took the stage on Thursday night without a traditional handshake, walking directly to their podiums.
– Marina Pitofsky
USA Today's Marina Pitofsky, Rachel Barber, David Jackson, Savannah Kuchar, Kinsey Crowley, James Powel, Sudiksha Kochi, Joey Garrison and Maya Homan contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Debate replay: Dems sweat after Biden freezes in pivotal appearance
