VP debate: Mike Pence, Kamala Harris face off in must watch debate
Mike Pence and Kamala Harris occasionally dodged questions on coronavirus, the Supreme Court and trade wars.
- Pandemic, economy dominates debate
- Who won the debate?
- Harris dodges Supreme Court question
- Biden ‘cheerleading for China’
- Plexiglass shields probably won’t help
The vice presidential debate between Mike Pence and Kamala Harris is now over, the rivals sparring over the Supreme Court and trade wars in a mostly courteous debate. Review how it unfolded below.
Cameron Stewart 3.10pm: Pandemic, economic management dominates VP debate
Vice Presidential contenders Mike Pence and Kamala Harris have squared off in their only debate with Ms Harris launching a fierce attack on Donald Trump’s handling of the coronavirus and Mr Pence hitting out Joe Biden’s economic management.
In a strongly contested, but largely civil debate, both Mr Pence and Ms Harris delivered sharp one-liners and evaded difficult questions on a stage in Utah where they were separated by plexiglass.
The most dramatic moment came early when the 55-year-old Ms Harris savaged Mr Pence for the administration’s management of the pandemic which has killed more than 210,000 Americans.
“The American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country,” Ms Harris said
“They knew and they covered it up,” she said. “The president said it was a hoax. They minimised the seriousness of it.”
Mr Pence countered that Mr Trump had saved countless lives by quickening implementing a travel ban from China that Mr Trump’s Democratic challenger Mr Biden had labelled “xenophobic”.
“Our nation has gone through a very challenging time this year,” Mr Pence said. “But I want the American people to know that from the very first day, President Donald Trump has put the health of America first.”
Both candidates interrupted each other often, prompting Ms Harris to say “Mr Vice President – I’m speaking”. They also regularly evaded the questions put to them by the debate moderator.
Mr Pence launched a strong attack on Mr Biden’s economic plans, seeking to portray the Biden-Harris ticket as left wing and anti-jobs.
“On day one, Joe Biden is going to raise your taxes,” the Vice President said. “When Joe Biden was vice president, they tried to tax and spend and regulate and bail our way back to a growing economy. President Trump cut taxes across the board. They want to bury our economy.
“The American economy, the American comeback is on the ballot with four more years of growth.”
Ms Harris said the Trump-Pence economic plan was aimed at making the wealthier richer rather than helping ordinary American workers.
Ms Harris repeatedly highlighted the issue of healthcare, accusing the Trump administration of seeking to use the courts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act in the midst of a pandemic.
She looked into the camera and said: “If you have a pre-existing condition, heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer, they’re coming for you if you love someone who has a pre-existing condition.”
Mr Pence said the president had a plan to protect people with pre-existing conditions, but he did not reveal what it was.
“Senator Harris, you’re entitled to your own opinion, but you’re not entitled to your own facts,” Mr Pence said, to which Ms Harris responded: “Good line”.
Both candidates clashed over the trade war with China, with Ms Harris saying “you lost that trade war”, because she said it cost 300,000 manufacturing jobs and put farmers into bankruptcy.
“Lost the trade war with China? Joe Biden never fought it,” Mr Pence replied. “Joe Biden has been a cheerleader for China for the last several decades.”
On climate change Mr Pence hammered Ms Harris for her initial support for the far-left Green New Deal, a more moderate version of which has been adopted by Mr Biden.
‘They would impose the Green New Deal (and) crush American jobs,’ Mr Pence said.
Ms Harris did not defend the Green New Deal but said Mr Biden believed in the science of climate change, unlike the Trump administration. “Joe believes in science … they don’t believe in science,” she said.
One of Mr Pence’s best moments was when he repeatedly quizzed Ms Harris over whether Mr Biden would “pack” the Supreme court by enlarging the number of justices beyond nine.
Republicans accuse Democrats of planning to pack the court to dilute the impact of the likely appointment of a new conservative Supreme Court Justice Amy Barrett.
Ms Harris evaded the question repeatedly, prompting Mr Pence to look into the camera and say: “they are going to pack the Supreme Court.”
On foreign policy, Ms Harris attacked the administration for cozying up to dictators and neglecting alliances.
“Trump has betrayed our friends and embraced dictators around the world,” she said, adding that America had lost respect around the world because of Mr Trump’s unilateral approach to foreign policy and US isolationism.
Mr Pence said the US had destroyed ISIS, challenged Iran and assassinated Iranian terrorist Qasem Soleimani. By contrast, he said Mr Biden had opposed the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.
READ MORE: Who won the debate? Our experts have their say
2.47pm: Who won the debate? Experts’ verdict
Mike Pence and Kamala Harris gave as good as they got as they clashed over key issues, including the President’s virus diagnosis.
Who won? Read our experts’ analysis here.
Anne Barrowclough 1.45pm: Pence dodges question on Trump defeat
Mr Pence also refused to answer when asked what he, as Vice President, would do if Mr Trump lost the election and refused to accept the result. “Well, we will win the election,” he responded.
He went on to accuse Democrats of trying to steal the 2016 election from Trump, citing the investigation into Russian election interference.
He also repeated Mr Trump’s equivocal phrasing on an election defeat, saying: “If we have a free and fair election, we’ll have confidence in it. And I know and believe that President Donald Trump will be re-elected for four more years.”
The final question was from an eight grader in Utah: “If our leaders can’t get along, how are the citizens supposed to get along?”
Mr Pence answered: “The American people, each and every day, love a good debate and a good argument. But we always come together, and we’re always there for one another in times of need. And we’ve especially learned that through the difficulties of this year.”
Mr Harris said: “I do believe the future is bright. … You have the ability through your work, and eventually your vote, to determine the future of our country and what its leadership looks like. “
Staff writers 1.35pm: ‘I will not be lectured on law enforcement’
Mike Pence and Kamala Harris revealed striking differences in how they would handle policing, criminal justice and civil rights, which have become major campaign themes, due in part to a series of killings and shootings of black people by police this summer.
Ms Harris, a former prosecutor, said she would seek wholesale changes to policing in America, such as banning the use of chokeholds, creating a register of police officers who break the law, and abandoning the use of private prisons.
“Bad cops are bad for good cops.” she said. “We need reform for policing in America and our cops.”
Mr. Pence, emphasised the Trump administration’s strong support for police, who have become some of its strongest supporters. He sought to focus instead on the violence and destruction that sometimes accompanied protests over racial injustice this summer.
“I trust our justice system,” he said. “We will always stand with law enforcement.”
He criticised Ms. Harris for saying she believed Brianna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was fatally shot by police, was denied justice when a grand jury failed to indict all three Louisville, Ky. police officers involved in her death. He pressed her on what critics have described as tough prosecutions of minor drug crimes that took place when she was California attorney general that unduly impacted minorities.
Ms Harris told him: “I will not sit here and be lectured by the vice president on what it means to enforce the laws of our country.”
She noted that when she was California attorney general, she took steps to promote police accountability, like advocating for body cameras and other reforms.
With the WSJ
Anne Barrowclough 1.30pm: Harris dodges question over packing Supreme Court
Kamala Harris dodged a question from Mike Pence about whether a Biden administration would seek to pack the Supreme Court if the Trump administration pushes through Ms Coney Barrett’s nomination.
Last year, Kamala Harris embraced the far-Left agenda to pack the court.
— GOP (@GOP) October 8, 2020
Now, when confronted about whether or not to pack the court, Harris and Biden refused to provide an actual answer.#VPDebate
“This is a classic case of, if you can’t win by the rules, you’re going to change the rules,” Mr Pence said, turning to Harris. “Are you going to pack the Supreme Court to get your way?” he asked.
Ms Harris did not answer but said the Senate should not move forward with Ms Coney Barrett’s confirmation.
“Joe and I are very clear: The American people are voting right now. And it should be their decision about who will serve on (the court) … for a lifetime,” she said.
Mr Pence responded: “You gave a non-answer. Joe Biden gave a non-answer. The American people deserve a straight answer, and if you haven’t figured it out yet, the straight answer is, they are going to pack the Supreme Court.”
Vice President Mike Pence: "I couldn't be more proud to serve as vice president to a President who stands without apology for the sanctity of human life. I'm pro-life. I don't apologize for it" #VPdebate pic.twitter.com/VppihyiCQH
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) October 8, 2020
For his part, Mr Pence refused to answer what states should do if the Supreme Court repealed the Roe v Wade law. Onstead, he concentrated on praising Ms Coney Barrett.
“She’s a brilliant woman and she will bring a lifetime of experience and a sizeable American family to the Supreme Court of the United States,” Mr Pence said. “And our hope is in the hearing next week, unlike Justice Kavanaugh received with treatment from you and others, we hope she gets a fair hearing.”
He also criticised Democrats for “attacks on her Christian faith,” which Harris objected to.
“Joe Biden and I are both people of faith,” Harris said. “And it’s insulting to suggest that we would knock anyone for their faith. And in fact, Joe, if elected, will be only the second practising Catholic as president of the United States.”
Staff writers 1.25pm: Debate turns to Supreme Court and Affordable Care Act
Turning to the Supreme Court and the appointment of Judge Amy Coney Barrett, Ms Harris focused on the Democrats’ central argument that appointing Ms Barrett to the high court could imperil the Affordable Care Act and one of its most popular provisions: protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
Under the ACA, insurers can’t deny coverage to people because of existing conditions or charge them more for plans.
Mr Trump has pledged to repeal the ACA and replace it with a better alternative but hasn’t done either during his time in office. Mr Trump has largely supported a lawsuit from a coalition of Republican-led states to invalidate the ACA. The case is set to be heard by the Supreme Court on Nov. 10, one week after the election.
“Donald Trump is in court right now trying to get rid of the ACA,” Ms. Harris said in the debate. “This means that there will be no more protections if they win for people with pre-existing conditions.”
Mr Pence, asked to speak about the specifics of how the Trump administration would protect people with pre-existing conditions, used his time to refer to an earlier question in the debate.
If the ACA were struck down, insurers would again be able to deny people health coverage or charge higher premiums to consumers with pre-existing conditions. People wouldn’t be denied coverage under employer or government-funded health care if they have a pre-existing condition, but Medicaid imposes income-eligibility limits and Medicare is available only for people who are aged 65 and older. The number of uninsured in the US would increase.
Mr. Trump signed an executive order in September declaring it is the policy of the U.S. to provide insurance protections for Americans with pre-existing conditions, but has provided no detail explaining how it would work.
Mr. Pence during the debate did not answer the question of how the Trump administration would provide protections for people with pre-existing conditions if the Supreme Court invalidates the ACA.
The Wall St Journal
Staff writers 1.12pm: Biden ‘cheerleading for China’: Pence
Mike Pence has accused Joe Biden of “cheerleading for China” as the pair debated the trade war with China.
Mr Pence said the Trump administration was “going to hold China accountable with what they did to America on the coronavirus.”
For much of Mr. Trump’s first term, the president led a more nuanced approach to China — putting pressure on Beijing through tariffs on the one hand, while on the other seeking to working with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on what officials had hoped would be a comprehensive trade deal to level the playing field between the two countries’ economies, a key focus of the 2016 election.
The administration in fact signed a limited “Phase One” deal in January that requires China to purchase more US exports and observe international intellectual property norms. With little sign of a Phase Two, Democratic critics say the Trump administration left too much on the table.
“You lost that trade war. You lost it,” Mr Harris responded. “What ended up happening is because of a so-called trade war with China, America lost 300,000 manufacturing jobs.”
Anne Barrowclough 1.10pm: ‘Joe will take us back to Paris Accord’
The pair have sparred on climate change, with Mr Pence disagreeing with Ms Harris’ assertion that the climate crisis poses an existential threat, saying: “The climate is changing. We will follow the science.”
Mike Pence and Kamala Harris are discussing the Green New Deal at tonight's #VPDebate. Here's what the proposal actually says https://t.co/PuSCF4Vz8K
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) October 8, 2020
He also criticised Joe Biden and Ms Harris for linking hurricanes and wildfires to climate change.
“There are no more hurricanes today than there were 100 years ago, but many climate alarmists use hurricanes and fires to try and sell the Green New Deal,” he said.
Ms Harris, spruiked Mr Biden’s proposed stimulus package, and said Mr Biden would rejoin the Paris climate accord, which Mr Trump had left.
“Let’s talk about who is prepared to lead our country over the course of the next four years on what is an existential threat to us as human beings. Joe is about saying, ‘We’re going to invest in renewable energy, it’s going to be about the creation of millions of jobs, we will achieve zero emissions by 2050, carbon neutral by 2035. Joe has a plan.”
Anne Barrowclough 1.00pm: ‘Stop interrupting me’
For the most part the debate has been an oasis of courtesy compared with the shambolic and abusive first presidential debate. But both candidates have had to be reprimanded for occasionally interrupting each other.
When Mr Pence tried to interrupt Ms Harris when she was speaking about coronavirus, she hit back: “Mr. Vice President, I am speaking.”
"Mr. Vice President, I am speaking," Sen. Kamala Harris says, hitting back at Mike Pence for trying to interrupt one of her answers about coronavirus. The moment comes in the wake of last week's chaotic Trump-Biden debate https://t.co/IGhEvicbCw
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) October 8, 2020
Ms Page has repeatedly told each candidate they had time to answer “uninterrupted.”
But that didn’t stop Mr Pence trying again to interrupt his rival, saying: “I have to weigh in.”
When Ms Page tried to tell Mr Harris her time was up, the senator took advantage of the interruptions, saying: “He interrupted me, and I’d like to just finish, please.”
Mr Pence also told Ms Harris twice: “You’re entitled to your own opinion but not your own facts.”
Anne Barrowclough 12.50pm: Rivals dodge age questions
Both candidates have dodged a question about the age of Donald Trump and Joe Biden and whether they had discussed “safeguards or procedures when it comes to presidential disability.”
Ms Page said: “One of you will make history on January 20, you will be the vice president to the oldest president the United States has ever had.
Kamala Harris says if there is a coronavirus vaccine that is embraced by scientific advisers, she will "be the first in line to take it. ... But if Donald Trump tells us that we should take it, I'm not taking it" https://t.co/W0e3lx5aB2 #VPdebate pic.twitter.com/AdDFHAhWyK
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) October 8, 2020
“Donald Trump will be 74 years old on Inauguration Day. Joe Biden will be 78 years old. That already has raised concerns among some voters, concerns that have been sharpened by President Trump’s hospitalisation in recent days. Vice President Pence, have you had a conversation or reached an agreement with President Trump about safeguards or procedures when it comes to presidential disability? And if not, do you think you should?”
Mr Pence didn’t answer, instead criticising Ms Harris again for saying she wouldn’t be vaccinated if Mr Trump recommended it.
When the question was posed to her, Ms Harris didn’t answer it but spoke about her own record and the barriers she has broken throughout her career.
Staff writers 12.40pm: ‘Americans have right to know’ about Trump taxes
In a discussion about financial transparency and President Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns, Kamala Harris said the American people have a right to know to whom President Trump owes money.
“The American people have a right to know what is influencing the president’s decisions,” she said. “And is he making those decisions on the best interests of the American people, of you, or self-interest. “
Ms Harris cited a New York Times report saying Mr. Trump paid $750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017.
Mr. Pence said the president had paid tens of millions of dollars in taxes, but he offered an expansive definition that included payroll taxes and property taxes. That would go far beyond typical definitions of tax payments.
With the WSJ
Staff writers 12.30pm: Pence defends Rose Garden super spreader event
Susan Page asked Mike Pence how Americans can trust the administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic when the White House’s celebration of a Supreme Court justice nomination last week has been seen as a potential “superspreader” event.
Mr. Trump and at least 17 White House workers have tested positive for coronavirus in recent days, though the source of the virus isn’t clear. Three GOP senators, two of whom were at the event, also tested positive.
“President Trump and I have great confidence in the American people and their ability to take that information and put it into practice.†-@Mike_Pence pic.twitter.com/xelffv32fG
— GOP (@GOP) October 8, 2020
“There’s been a great deal of speculation about it,” Mr. Pence said, but argued the work of the administration must go on even during the pandemic.
“The reality is, the work of the President of the United States goes on. A vacancy in the Supreme Court of the United States has come upon us and the president introduced Judge Amy Coney Barrett,” he said.
He dismissed questions that the event could have been a “super spreader” as “a great deal of speculation, and noted that “many,” though not all, people at the event “actually were tested for coronavirus.”
He also highlighted that the event was outside, “Which all of our scientists regularly routinely advise.”
However he didn’t mention that there were indoor events, as well.
Mr. Pence said he and the president trust people to make wise choices about their health, while he said, while Kamlaa Harris and Mr. Biden want to put mandates on everything, from coronavirus response to health care in general.
With the WSJ
Anne Barrowclough 12.25pm: ‘If Trump says take vaccine, I won’t’
Kamala Harris is asked if she would be vaccinated if a vaccine became available during the Trump presidency. She replies: “If the doctors, the scientists tell us to take it I will but if Donald Trump tells us, I will not.”
Mr Pence says her response is “unconscionable” and that she should stop “playing politics with people’s lives, stop undermining people’s confidence in a vaccine."
Anne Barrowclough 12.15pm: ‘Biden virus plan looks like plagiarism’
The first question is, of course, about the coronavirus pandemic. Ms Harris is asked what a Biden administration would do differently from the Trump administration.
“(The Trump administration’s response) was the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of this country,” she responded. Ms Harris said Mr Trump and Mr Pence knew on January 28 how serious the coronavirus was but did nothing about it. “They minimised the seriousness of it,” she says.
She says the Biden strategy would be to put in place a national strategy of contact tracing, testing, administration of the coming vaccine.
Mr Pence spruiked the White House response, asserting there would be “tens of millions” of doses of vaccine byyear end.
“The Biden plan is what we have been doing every step of the way,” he says. “It looks a bit like plagiarism.”
Mr Biden withdrew from the 1988 presidential race after acknowledging he lifted phrases from a British politician without attribution
Anne Barrowclough 12.00pm: Debate opens
Susan Page of USA Today, the moderator of the debate, has opened the debate in front of a small audience, with Mike Pence and Kamala Harris standing 4 metres apart. The debate will be divided into nine segments with 10 minutes for each. Each candidate will have two minutes to answer each question.
Ms Page was asked for a “civil” debate, referring back to the chaotic first presidential debate.
Anne Barrowclough 11.55am: Harris ‘will talk to people at home’
Kamala Harris doesn’t plan to “eviscerate Mike Pence,” but plans to talk to Americans in their homes, according to a senior Joe Biden aide.
“She is there to really talk to people at home and what they’re feeling,” Symone Sanders told CNN.
Before I step on stage, join @MindyKaling, @PadmaLakshmi, @DJCassidy, members of my family, and more guests for a pre-debate event to find out how you can get involved over these last four weeks. https://t.co/mnA9oImLif
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) October 8, 2020
Ms Harris will speak to the pain of Americans, drawing a stark contrast with what the public has heard from President Trump, she said.
For his part, Mr Pence is expected to defend the White House’s response to the pandemic but will also attack Ms Harris’ previous support for Medicare For All.
Caitlin McCabe 11.05am: Plexglass shields probably won’t help
The plexiglass barriers set up at Wednesday’s vice-presidential debate, the subject of much wrangling between the candidates, won’t offer much protection against the new coronavirus, scientists say.
The problem: While the see-through shields appear to be bolstering protection, they do little to prevent tiny airborne particles from spreading around a room.
“It’s like COVID-19 theatre,” said Shelly Miller, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder who has studied coronavirus super-spreading events. “Your plexiglass barrier is not going to protect you from that.”
Other precautions in place for the debate will help, but more should be done to protect against transmission, Dr. Miller and other scientists say.
Preventing the spread of the coronavirus at the debate has taken on renewed urgency in recent days after President Trump and more than a dozen administration staffers and outside advisers tested positive for COVID-19.
Vice President Mike Pence, who was in proximity with the president before he tested positive, has so far remained healthy. He and his wife, Karen Pence, tested negative Wednesday, an administration official said. Sen. Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, also tested negative Wednesday morning, an aide said.
To reduce the risk of infections, the Commission on Presidential Debates has implemented several measures in the debate hall at the University of Utah, including agreeing late last week to seat Mr. Pence and Ms. Harris about 12 feet apart, rather than the original plan of 7 feet.
Also, everyone attending the debate must test negative for COVID-19 and wear a mask while in the debate hall and within a secured perimeter, a University of Utah spokesman said. The candidates and the moderator aren’t expected to wear a mask during the debate.
The Wall St Journal
Agencies 9.50am: Trump back in Oval Office, vows unapproved drug for all
Donald Trump has hailed treatment he received for COVID-19 as a “cure”, pledging to make it available to Americans for free as his doctor says the US President has been free of symptoms for 24 hours.
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT! pic.twitter.com/uhLIcknAjT
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 7, 2020
In a video released via his Twitter account, Mr Trump said Regeneron’s COVID-19 treatment was “much more important” than a vaccine, but that vaccines would be released “very very shortly”.
“I spent four days (in hospital), I wasn’t feeling too so hot,” Mr Trump said.
“Within a very short period they gave me Regeneron … and other things too but I think this was the key. It was unbelievable. I felt good immediately.
“We’re trying to get them on an emergency basis. I’ve authorised it. If you’re in the hospital and you’re feeling really bad, I think we’re going to work it so you get them and get them free. If you’re a senior we’re going to get you in there quick. We have hundreds of thousands of doses that are just about ready. I have emergency use authorisation all set, we’ve got to get it signed now. You’re going to get better, get better really fast.”
Mr Trump added that his illness was actually a “blessing in disguise”.
READ the full story here
Tarini Parti 9.40am: The (Republican) truth about Harris
Kamala Harris has endorsed some high-profile progressive proposals, such as universal health care known as Medicare for All and the Green New Deal multi-trillion-dollar climate policy.
The Democratic vice presidential candidate also has worked with several Republicans in the Senate and when she was California’s lawyer general, but she isn’t known for bipartisan deal making.
Ms Harris’s record will be one of the focal points of Wednesday’s debate with Vice President Mike Pence.
Mr Pence has portrayed her on the campaign trail as an emissary of what he calls the “radical left.” President Trump has seized on stances she took during her own presidential run that his supporters oppose, such as banning fracking. In 2019, the nonpartisan site GovTrack.us rated her “most liberal” in the Senate, where she has largely voted with her party.
Pragmatic streak
A review of Ms. Harris’s record as a senator since 2017 and as lawyer general of California before that, as well as interviews with officials from both parties who have worked with her, show that she also has a pragmatic streak that often favours incremental steps rather than sweeping changes and that she is willing to work across the aisle on individual issues.
READ the full story here
Cameron Stewart 9.00am: Trump poised to lose by a landslide
While the world has been transfixed by the theatrics of Donald Trump projecting a macho image as a self-described survivor of COVID-19, a more terminal political prognosis for the president is closing in.
In recent days, while we have been watching the Trump Covid show, a slew of polls reveals that his Democrat opponent Joe Biden has dramatically extended his lead over the president.
With under four weeks to go until the November 3 poll, Biden now leads Trump by a formidable 9.2 points according to the RCP national average of all polls. This is up from 6.1 points only a week ago; a punishing response from voters to Trump’s poor performance in the first presidential debate.
Some polls, like this week’s WSJ/NBC poll have Biden a thumping 14 points ahead. Biden has also extended his lead in the battleground states that will decide the election and he is even leading in states like Iowa, North Carolina and Ohio which were once expected to be easy wins for Trump.
Put simply, unless Trump can engineer a stunning comeback in just a few weeks, he is on track not just to lose this election, but to lose it in a landslide.
To put this in perspective, Trump supporters point to his come-from-behind victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016, a comeback that began just 10 days out from the election. The polls were wrong then, they said, so they will be wrong again.
Perhaps, but the signs are much more ominous this time. Firstly, in the entire six month period leading up to the 2016 election, Clinton never enjoyed a lead even approaching this size over Trump, and certainly nothing like it with under a month to go.
READ Cameron’s full article here
Agencies 8.50am: Trump ‘Covid free for 24 hours’
Donald Trump has been free of COVID-19 symptoms for 24 hours and has not had a fever in four days, his doctor says.
“The president this morning says ‘I feel great,’” doctor Sean Conley said in a brief update.
Mr Trump tested positive last week and was hospitalised at the Walter Reed military medical centre late on Friday evening, returning to the White House on Monday evening.
“His physical exam and vital signs, including oxygen saturation and respiratory rate, all remain stable and in normal range,” the doctor’s statement said.
White House physician Sean Conley (C) answers questions surrounded by other doctors, during an update on the condition of US President Donald Trump.
White House physician Sean Conley (C) answers questions surrounded by other doctors, during an update on the condition of US President Donald Trump.
“He’s now been fever-free for more than four days, symptom-free for over 24 hours, and has not needed nor received any supplemental oxygen since initial hospitalisation.”
READ the full story here
Cameron Stewart 8.15am: Pence, Harris face off
In normal times the debate between US vice presidential candidates is a footnote in the presidential race, a moment that many people watch and then struggle to recall a week later.
Not this year. In the year of the great pandemic, the prospect of a Vice President suddenly finding themselves as the leader of the free world because of the coronavirus is no longer a theoretical concept.
With the 74-year-old president Donald Trump having been stricken with COVID-19 and his 77- year-old Democrat opponent Joe Biden trying desperately to win an election without catching it, there is now a fierce spotlight on their back-ups, Mike Pence and Kamala Harris.
These Vice Presidential candidates face off on stage in Salt Lake City at 11.3am on Thursday (AEDT) in a very socially distanced way, with the distance between them increased from 7 to 12 feet along with a plexiglas barrier.
The Harris campaign requested the greater separation after the 61-year-old Pence found himself last week in the midst of the still ongoing White House coronavirus outbreak, even though he has regularly tested negative since.
With a sick president and 210,000 dead Americans, you can expect that the 55-year-old Harris, a Californian Senator, will do all she can to keep the focus on the pandemic, which polls show is a political loser for the White House.
She will have to do this carefully, however, given that both the president and the First Lady Melania Trump, have had the virus. But with Trump’s doctor now saying he is virus free and after his theatrical discharge from hospital, Harris may feel she can resume the attack on the president’s handling of the pandemic.
By contrast you can expect Pence, a former Indiana Governor who served 12 years in Congress, to do all he can to switch the focus onto issues which play well to conservatives such as law and order, the economy and the Supreme Court.
This one-off debate is likely to be a battle of wildly contrasting styles.
Pence is a steady-as-you-go politician, neither exciting and inspiring, nor insipid and ineffective.
He has been an unfailingly loyal deputy to the outsizes personality of his boss Donald Trump, making sure he never outshines the president or disagrees with him in public.
Yet Pence is also a competent debater as he showed in his 2016 tussle with Hillary Clinton’s running mate Tim Kaine.
Pence also impressed in his recent speech in Baltimore at the Republican National Convention when he gave a strong law and order pitch, warning that the safety of Americans and their cities was dependent on the re-election of Donald Trump at a time when violent riots were breaking out across the country.
This is also Pence’s moment to assume a higher profile in the election campaign given that for at least the next 10 days, Trump will be unable to join him on the campaign trail.
Harris, a former prosecutor with only three years experience as a Senator, has a very different style. She has already gained a reputation on State Committees as a lively and fierce cross-examiner and she has been the main Democrat attack dog on the president’s mishandling of the pandemic.
Harris can be sharp on the debate stage, as we saw early this year when she almost torpedoed her chances of the running mate ticket with a cutting attack on Biden over the issue of school bussing of African-Americans.
But Harris also has her weaknesses. Her campaign to win the Democratic nomination fell apart early amid mixed messaging on her stance on health care and other issues. Pence will seek to portray her as someone who will push Biden far to the left if he becomes president.
Harris is likely to try to hold Pence accountable for his leadership of the White House Coronavirus Task Force given its failure to contain the pandemic in the US.
It promises to be a tough contest but without the rancour that marred last week’s Trump-Biden debate. Both Biden and Harris are almost certainly going to run for president one day so this debate deserves attention. Let’s just hope that they don’t get there sooner than they should because of the coronavirus.
(Cameron Stewart is also US Contributor for Sky News Australia)
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