Beginning with a discussion about the economy, Harris laid out her economic plan. It includes child tax credits and tax reductions for small businesses. She also emphasized the need to address the pricing of housing in the country. Harris quickly pivoted to attacks on Trump’s proposed economic plans, calling his idea to enact tariffs on all imported goods a “Trump sales tax”.

Trump defended his tariff plans by pointing out the current administration had kept many of the tariffs on Chinese goods he enacted during his term in place. He placed the blame for inflation and rising costs on Harris and President Joe Biden’s time in office and promoted his tariff plan as the solution for voters. Both voiced some details of their plans, but the discussions on the economy tended to revolve around blasting the other’s proposals.

During many points of the debate, Trump moved to discussing illegal immigration, despite being reminded repeatedly by moderator David Muir the topic would be discussed later. In one of many remarks made on migrants, he claimed that immigrants in the town of Springfield, Ohio were “eating the dogs,” referencing a growing right-wing falsehood of alleged pet consumption by Haitian immigrants.

Trump voiced support for mass deportation efforts, attacking Harris on allegations of letting in millions of what he called dangerous and criminal migrants.

While record numbers of migrant encounters have occurred over the past few years at the southern border, those same numbers have been on the decline according to the latest U.S. Customs and Border Patrol report. Harris in responding to Trump’s allegations brought up her background in drug and human trafficking prosecution as California Attorney General. She also hit Trump for his role in the failure to pass a bipartisan border bill through the Senate earlier this year.

Questions about abortion had Harris on the attack. Harris pressured the former President on his appointment of Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe V. Wade. When asked if he would sign a bill adopting a national abortion ban, Trump avoided the question, instead stating that he would leave the decision up to the states. In an attempt to get back on the offensive, Trump spouted false claims of Democrats supporting abortion after the birth of a baby, which is illegal in every state.

When it came to foreign policy topics, Trump said that he believes Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if he were in office. He also said that he could negotiate an end to the war before taking office as President-elect. He did not answer clearly if he wanted Ukraine to win the war when asked by Muir, and argued that Harris “hates Israel”.

He claimed Harris’s election would lead to the extermination of the country should she be elected. Harris voiced support for the Ukrainian efforts to expel Russia’s invasion and argued that Biden’s diplomacy with other nations to help arm Ukraine was effective. She also restated support for Israel's right to self-defense but stressed a need for a ceasefire and the existence of a two-state solution.

Beyond all individual topics and the consistent dodging of questions from the moderators, the two candidates had emerging themes in all their attacks. Harris touted endorsements from Republicans and voiced the desire to be a president for all Americans. She cast Trump as exhausting to even his most loyal supporters, at one point provoking the former President by claiming people would leave his rallies of boredom.

In contrast, Trump said she was “the worst Vice President” in history. He argued that the proposals she put forth as a new candidate were irrelevant as she could have done them in the past three and half years of her time in office. His pitch was that the country is in decline, and that only he could fix it.

Overall, the debate was not the most shocking or unpredictable. Attacks were thrown out, policy ideas were touted, and both campaigns claimed their candidate won the night. However, having to follow up a debate that likely ended an entire Presidential campaign, perhaps the expectations were simply too high for this debate to live up to.