A divisive debate for a divided nation

As politicians, campaigns, commentators and pundits score the debate between President Trump and former Vice President Biden, one thing is clear:  America is losing right now in the most important contest in the world — the one for health, security and trust.

Each candidate came to the Cleveland debate well armed with talking points and ready to engage in rhetorical combat. But the interrupter-in-chief, Donald Trump, made any real debate impossible. 

Trump repeated his untruths about the pandemic — insisting that the government response to the onslaught of the coronavirus was great, when it is difficult to find any global health experts who agree with his assessment, including experts within his own Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where there is quiet dissent. 

Trump can spin the numbers any way he likes. The fact remains that more than 7,176,500 people in the United States have been infected with the coronavirus, and at least 204,900 of them have died. 

The United States has the highest number of coronavirus deaths, accounting for more than 20 percent of the global count. 

True to form, Biden offered concrete policy guidance for dealing with the pandemic, knowledge of the science and empathy for the victims. He laid out a vision for the next four years that includes a path to both economic and health recovery. Having served as vice president, he knows what it takes to fix a badly broken health system and get workers back to work. 

On the question of the Supreme Court, Trump continued his insistence on flouting judicial norms and choosing a successor to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg before the election. Biden made a persuasive case for letting voters decide the contours of the Supreme Court by honoring their presidential choice before filling the vacancy — something about which the electorate is deeply divided.

Also on the debate agenda: race and violence in our cities, which is how President Trump likes to frame his “law and order” appeal. He labels cities like Portland and Seattle “anarchist jurisdictions” and threatens to curtail their funding or use federal authorities to quell violence.

Trump pointed to escalating crime rates in America as if he didn’t run the country.  He tried to scare people in the suburbs. Biden explained his opposition to defunding the police and was pressed on whether or not he would bring the National Guard in to cities like Portland. He rightly reminded Trump that he, Biden, is not the leader of the country right now.

The most fear-inspiring moment of the night was when Trump, pressed on white supremacy, insisted on pivoting to left-wing extremism and then made a vague threat about a thuggish group, the Proud Boys, standing by. But for what? 

The economy factored high on the debate list of topics. Trump claimed that he built the greatest economy in history and that the “Chinese plague” was to blame for any lowering of employment, arguing for more opening. Biden correctly pointed to how tax breaks have helped the wealthy, and how health and safety should trump the opening of the economy. He promised to lower the corporate tax rate, which is long overdue. Job creation was also a point of contention, with Trump talking about the stock market and Biden talking about the economic recovery that happened under President Obama. 

Climate change was raised as fires rage out west. Trump continued his attack on forest management. He said he wanted clean air and water and talked about planting trees but could not explain why he relaxed fuel emission standards that cause pollution. Biden was clear about renewable energy and a vision for electrical cars and chargers, green buildings, and creating jobs in the new, green infrastructure. Rightly, he said we would re-join the Paris climate agreement, balancing economic and environmental pressures. 

The most important topic of the evening was the integrity of the election, but it got short-changed. Will it be a fair election? How will we count ballots and reassure Americans that the next president will be chosen based on votes? Biden was clear that mail-in ballots would be safe. Trump went back to talking about people spying on his election. He said that “unsolicited ballots” were fraudulent but provided no evidence.   

Biden was clear — he will accept whatever happens after the voting and he would support the outcome. If said that if he wins, he will be a president for both Republicans and Democrats. I hope so.

Did the debate actually change minds? We’ll know soon enough. But it will take more than one debate to undo the deep distrust and division tearing at the fabric of our nation, and many more months of scientific breakthroughs and human patience to get the pandemic under control. 

In the meantime, we can look forward to more debates, and then we can move on to the most important task ahead: voting.

Tara D. Sonenshine served as U.S. under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs and is a fellow at George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs.