US VP rivals defend Trump and Harris in polite debate

NEW YORK: US vice presidential contenders J.D. Vance and Tim Walz faced off in a surprisingly civil debate on Wednesday, despite tense moments on the hot topics of migration, abortion and the threat of war in the Middle East.

Republican Vance and Democrat Walz dug into policy and avoided the bitter personal attacks that presidential candidates Donald Trump and Kamala Harris exchanged during an often heated clash in September.

But the shadow of their bosses hung over the CBS debate, with Walz attacking Trump as a threat to democracy and unfit to lead America on the world stage, and Vance slamming Harris´s record on the economy and illegal migration as part of President Joe Biden´s administration.

A key moment came near the end, when Vance refused to say whether he backed Trump´s false claims to have won the 2020 election against Biden.

Minnesota governor Walz accused him of a “damning non-answer” and blasted Trump over the January 6, 2021 attacks on the US Capitol by pro-Trump supporters.

There was also a fiery moment when Vance, who mostly restrained his persona as Trump´s attack dog, had his microphone briefly muted when the moderators tried to factcheck him on migration.

Walz said false stories spread by Vance and Trump about migrants in the town of Springfield, Ohio “dehumanize and villainize other human beings.”

Another tough exchange was over abortion, a key issue since a Supreme Court packed with judges picked by Trump overturned the national right to abortion in 2022.

Vance accused Democrats of taking a “very radical pro-abortion stance” who backed what he called “barbaric” laws. Walz hit back saying he was “pro-women.”

But the debate, which is likely to be the last before the November 5 vote, featured a mostly respectful tone despite the deep ideological differences between the two men.

Vance, 40, and Walz, 60, who both claim folksy roots in the US Midwest, said several times that they agreed with each other during the debate, and shook hands at the beginning and the end.

The usually ebullient Walz had a nervy start and stumbled several times, but became more confident, while Vance gave a smooth performance.