Walz and Vance meet in their first and perhaps only vice presidential debate

NEW YORK (AP) — Tim Walz and JD Vance each highlighted current crises Tuesday as reasons why voters are choosing their respective presidential running mates, opening their vice presidential debate by addressing growing fears of a regional war in the United States. The Middle East and a natural disaster ravaging the southeastern United States

Walz, responding to a question about whether he would support a preemptive strike against Iran as that country launches missiles at Israel, quickly turned to Donald Trump as too dangerous for the country and the world in a period of instability.

“What’s fundamental here is consistent leadership,” said Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota. “And the world saw it in that debate a few weeks ago, an almost 80-year-old Donald Trump talking about crowd sizes is not what we need right now.”

Vance, in his response, argued that Trump is an intimidating figure whose presence on the international stage is itself a deterrent.

“Donald Trump actually brought stability,” he said.

The debate hosted in New York by CBS News opened with a sober tone that reflected growing national and international concerns about safety and security. This gives Vance, a new Republican senator from Ohio, and Walz, a two-term Democratic governor of Minnesota, the opportunity to introduce themselves, make their running mates’ arguments and go on the attack against the opposing list.

The two men found their unity during Hurricane Helene, which devastated several states and caused massive flooding in North Carolina in particular. Walz mentioned the devastation of the storm and talked about working with governors across the country, saying they weren’t letting politics get in the way of collaboration.

Vance said, “I’m sure Governor Walz joins me in saying our hearts go out to these innocent people. »

Tuesday’s game could have an outsized impact. Polls showed that Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump faced off in a tight race, giving added weight to anything that can influence voters at the margins, including the impression left by vice-presidential candidates. It could also be the final debate of the campaign, with the Harris and Trump teams unable to agree on another meeting.

A vice presidential candidate’s role is typically to serve as an attack dog for the person at the top of the ticket, arguing against the opposing presidential candidate and their proxy on stage. Both Vance and Walz took on this role.

Vance’s sometimes confrontational interviews and appearances on the campaign trail have underscored why Trump chose him for the Republican ticket despite his past harsh criticism of the former president, including once suggesting that Trump would be “the America’s Hitler.”

Walz, meanwhile, catapulted himself onto Harris’ campaign by calling Trump and Republicans “just weird,” creating a line of attack for Democrats seeking to argue that Republicans are out of touch with the American people.

A new AP-NORC poll found that Walz is more well-liked than Vance, which could give the Republican an additional challenge.

After a Harris-Trump debate in which Republicans complained that ABC News moderators were fact-checking Trump, Tuesday’s debate will feature no corrections from the hosts. CBS News said it would be up to the candidates to point out inaccuracies, with moderators “facilitating these opportunities.”

Trump on Tuesday night said his advice to Vance was to “have a lot of fun” and praised his running mate as a “smart guy” and “a real warrior.”

During their campaigns, Walz and Vance both highlighted their roots in small towns in Central America, broadening the appeal of Harris and Trump, who hail from California and New York, respectively.

Walz, 60, frequently brings up his former job coaching a high school football team when talking about his campaign with Harris bringing “joy” back to politics and pairs his criticism of the GOP with a message to Democrats that they must “drop everything”. on the ground. »

Walz, a Nebraska native, was a geography professor before being elected to Congress in 2006. He spent a dozen years there before being elected governor in 2018, winning a second term four years later.

He also served 24 years in the National Guard before retiring in 2005. His departure and the description of his service drew sharp criticism from Vance, who served in the Marine Corps, including in Iraq.

Vance, 40, became nationally known in 2016 with the publication of his memoir, “Hillbilly Elegy,” which recounts his childhood in Ohio and his family’s roots in rural Kentucky. The book was frequently cited after Trump’s 2016 victory as a window into the white, working-class voters who supported his campaign. Vance went to Yale Law School before working as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley.

After his book was published, he was a prominent critic of Trump before transforming into a staunch defender of the former president, particularly on issues such as trade, foreign policy and immigration.

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Price and Megerian reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Josh Boak in Baltimore and Meg Kinnard in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this report.

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