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Republican President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden square off in the first of their three presidential election debates scheduled for Singapore time on Wednesday (September 30) morning.
With more than a million Americans already casting their early votes and time is running out to change their minds or influence the small fraction of undecided voters, the stakes are huge as the two candidates for the White House take the stage five weeks before the elections on November 3.
There was no handshake as the two men took the stage, and while this was due to COVID-19 restrictions, the absence of the traditional greeting symbolized the bitterness engulfing the country in the final countdown to November 3.
From the initial exchanges on health care, where Trump accused Biden of being a “socialist,” the tension was palpable, repeatedly cutting himself off, prompting Biden to lash out at one point: “Shut up, man!”
Biden called Trump a liar; Trump responded harshly to Biden, telling him, “There is nothing smart about you, Joe. Forty-seven years, you haven’t done anything.”
Biden said: “The fact is, everything he’s saying so far is just a lie. I’m not here to shout his lies. Everyone knows he’s a liar.”
Organizers said there were about 80 people in the audience, including the candidates’ families, their guests, campaign staff, hosts, health and safety officials and journalists.
LEE: Trump and Biden fight before the real debate
Before even gathering on stage in Cleveland for the first of three 90-minute live TV showdowns, Biden went public with his tax returns to capitalize on reports that billionaire Trump avoided paying almost any federal income tax for years. .
And Trump, facing the threat of being named president for a term, pushed forward a conspiracy theory that suggests his rival needs performance-enhancing drugs and could use a headset to get answers during the debate.
Biden, with an impressive lead in both national and changing state polls, sought to address public dissatisfaction with Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 200,000 Americans.
