Tim Walz Rally in Phoenix

Governor Walz is an example of a servant leader. Between his military service, his public school service, his community service, the dedication to his family, this man has demonstrated that he is worthy of our trust and that he will make a great vice president. (00:19) So Governor Walz, I just want to say to you, thank you for the example that you have set, that we can show to our children, of a great leader. Thank you for putting service over self-interest. And thank you in advance for four years of being an amazing Vice President of the United States. (00:42) It's now my honor to introduce Julia Alexander, who is the Deputy Organizing Director of the Arizona Democratic Party. Julia?

... music in you. Don't let go, you've got the music in you. One dance left, this world is gonna pull through. Don't give up, you've got a reason to live.

Hi, everyone. Let's give it up for Mayor Giles. My name is Julia. I am the Deputy Organizing Director with the Arizona Coordinated Campaign working to elect Vice President Harris, Governor Walz and Democrats at all levels of government [inaudible 00:01:25]. (01:25) First, I really want to thank you all so much for being here. It is so great to see so many supporters ready to take action, in what is, once again, the most important election of our lifetimes. This is my third cycle now, organizing in Arizona. I got my start as an organizer for Joe Biden in 2020. And I'm so grateful to have the opportunity- (01:33) ... first place, but I'm going to tell you a little bit about why I have continued to organize. I do this because of the energy in rooms like this one. I do this because, despite all of our different backgrounds, all of our different experiences, we are all here because we share the same values and the same vision for the future of this country. (02:13) I look around this room and I see so many people- (02:16) ... takes in this election and are willing to do what it takes to win. Right? Sorry, I'm a little bit nervous. Thank you. We know that it's going to be close. The energy around this campaign has given me so much hope. The enthusiasm has been so intoxicating. But we cannot take it for granted. This election is going to be one on the margins. In 2020, Joe Biden won Arizona by 0.3% of the vote, the narrowest win of any battleground state in the country. We know that it is going to be close again, but we know that we can do it. Right? We know what happens when we put in work. As they say, when we fight, we win. We have 56 days to make it happen.

Yeah.

We have 56 days to show up. We need you to show up on the doors. We need you to show up on the phones. We need to have every possible conversation that we can, with every possible voter. Because we know what happens when we show up, we know that we can do this. We know what we need to do, now we just have to do it. So please, join us. Our organizers are around. They're the ones with the clipboards. We'll get you all signed up. We have opportunities every single day for the next 56 days. And we are so excited to see you there. Once again, thank you so much for being here. Thank you so much for your support and your commitment to our shared democratic values. And I'm so grateful to be in this fight with all of you. Thank you.

I've been taking on a new direction, but I have to say, I've been thinking about my own projection. It scares me to feel this way. (05:46) What's love got to do, got to do with it? What's love but a secondhand emotion? What's love got to do, got to do with it? Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken? What's love got to do, got to do with it? What's love but a sweet old-fashioned notion? What's love got to do, got to do with it? (05:46) Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken? What's love got to do, ooh, got to do with it. What's love but a secondhand emotion? What's love got to do, got to do with it? Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken? What's love got to do, ooh, ooh, got to do with it? (05:46) So high you can't get around it. (05:46) So low you can't get under it. (05:46) So high you can't get over it. (05:46) So high you can't get over it. (05:46) So high you can't get over it. (05:46) Ya, ya... This is a chance. This is a chance to dance your way. (05:48) Ya ya... (05:48) Out of your constrictions. How. (05:48) Ya, ya... (05:48) Tell suckah! (06:01) Here's a chance to dance our way, out of our constrictions. Gonna be freakin' up and down, hang-up alley way. With the groove our only guide, we shall all be moved. Ready or not here we come, gettin' down on the one which we believe in. (06:34) Can I get in on [inaudible 00:06:34]. By the time I got down [inaudible 00:06:40]. (06:34) Feet don't fail me now. You're more of what you're funkin' for, keep don't fail me now. Do you promise to funk, the whole funk, nothing but the funk? (06:58) Ready or not, here we come, getting' down on the one which we believe in. (06:58) Here's my chance to dance my way, out of my constriction. (06:58) So low you go, low you go, low you go. So low you go, low you go, low you go. So low you go, low you go, low you go. So low you go, low you go, low you go. (06:58) You can make the world... (06:58) Feet don't fail me now. (06:58) Here's our chance to dance our way, out of our constriction. Gonna be groovin' up and down, hangup alley way. Groove our only guide, we should all be moved. (06:58) Feet don't fail me now. Givin' you more of what you're funkin' for. Feet don't fail me now.

Do you promise to funk. (09:23) The whole funk, nothing but the funk. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) One nation. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) Do you promise to funk? (09:24) Do you promise to funk? Ha. (09:24) Do you promise to funk? Ha. (09:24) Do you promise to funk, the whole funk? (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) One nation under a grove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) Do you promise to funk, the whole funk? (09:24) Nothing but the funk. (09:24) You can't stop us now. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) One nation and we're on the move. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Nothing can stop use now. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) Feet don't fail me now. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) One nation under a groove. (09:24) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:24) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) Nothing can stop us now. (09:24) You can't stop us now. (09:24) Anymore of what we're funking for. (09:38) Anymore of what we're funking for. (09:38) Feet don't fail me now. Ha. (09:38) Gotta get on the good foot. (09:38) One nation under a groove. (09:38) Getting down just for the funk of it. (09:38) We're one nation and we're on the move. (09:38) Nothing can stop us now. (09:38) One nation under a groove. (09:38) Getting down just for... (12:55) Hit the road, Jack. Don't come back. (13:04) No more, no more, no more, no more. (13:04) Hit the road, Jack. (13:04) And don't you come back no more. (13:05) What you say? (13:12) Hit the road, Jack. (13:14) And don't you come back. (13:14) No more, no more, no more, no more. (13:14) Hit the road, Jack. (13:19) And don't come back no more. (13:19) Old woman, old woman. (13:19) Don't treat me so mean. (13:20) You're the meanest old woman that I've ever seen. (13:22) I guess if you said so. (13:26) I'll have to pack my things and go. (13:28) That's right. (13:28) Hit the road, Jack. And don't you come back. (13:30) No more, no more, no more, no more. (13:30) Hit the road, Jack. (13:30) And don't you come back no more. (13:30) What you say? (13:39) Hit the road, Jack. (13:39) And don't you come back. (13:39) No more, no more, no more, no more. (13:39) Hit the road, Jack. (13:39) And don't you come back no more.

Please welcome local small business owner, Marco Maras.

Yes. (13:57) So crazy right now. (14:12) Most incredibly. (14:13) It's your girl, B. (14:13) It's your boy, Young. (14:13) You ready?

Hi, my name is Marco Maras. I'm the proud father of three beautiful kids and the owner of República Empanada. Thank you. We're a local family-owned restaurant right here in downtown Mesa, and we have a pretty unique Pan-American menu that traverses some of the different regions of America, including Mexico, Central America, Costa Rica, the Caribbean, and South America. And we even have the largest variety of empanadas in the state. Like I mentioned, our restaurant's here in downtown Mesa, just on the other side of Main Street in the Southside Heights neighborhood. And in fact, me and my siblings, we all grew up here in this area on 10th Avenue and also on Hobson. And we love Mesa and we love Arizona. (15:09) We take tremendous pride in República Empanada having always been a place for community gathering and organizing, a safe space that's welcoming for all. With the help of countless friends and family along the way, I'm grateful to have been able to open a small business, a restaurant with my siblings and my hard-working parents, both of whom are immigrants, and they each had to overcome some adversity just to get to this country. I'm sure many of you can relate to that or have a story similar to that in your family. They never took anything for granted, no opportunities for granted. And it's through my parents, their hard work, sacrifice, my father's life-savings that we were able to do this. And I'm really proud that through this we get to continue to honor their legacy. (16:07) I'd like to say that small businesses like ours across the country, collectively, we are the backbone of this economy. And so, it's for those small businesses. And because of my incredibly dedicated parents who believed in the American Dream that I'm standing here proudly today with Vice President Kamala Harris, and Governor Walz. Like the majority of Arizonans, I'm strongly opposed to another Trump Administration and the threat that it would bring to our democracy. And I know that our Vice President, Kamala Harris, and Governor Tim Walz are already fighting for Arizonans' values with regard to freedom and democracy. And so, I know they're also fighting for the small businesses and they're fighting for families like mine and yours. I'm excited now to introduce the next person, the next Vice President of the United States, someone who's going to fight for Arizona. Give it up for coach and Governor Walz.

I was born in a small town. (17:46) And I live in a small town. (17:46) Probably die in a small town. (17:46) Oh, those small communities.

Hello Arizona, and hello America. One more round of applause from Marco. Thank you, my friend.

... friend. Also, I've got to say it's great to be in Mesa. And the country has seen what courage looked like. Mayor Giles, thank you for putting country above party. Thank you. And thank you, Arizona, for giving us Mark Kelly. He's a national treasure. We appreciate him. Add Ruben Gallego to that too, now. Get that done. And a point of personal privilege, not only an incredible governor but one of my best friends, Katie Hobbs. Thank you for that. (18:34) And we all know this gets done on the local level. You've got some incredible state legislators here today. You've got Lorraine Austin here. Seth Blattman's here. Senator Eva Burch. These folks are out knocking doors, phone calling, doing the work. They're all running in tight races. Send them back to get the work done. Look, vice president said this: we're the underdogs in this race. We know it, but we're seeing huge crowds all across the country. Whether it's 109 degrees heat out here or whether it's on farms out in Pennsylvania, folks are showing up. You know why they're showing up. They know that our politics can be better, and Kamala Harris has brought back the joy and the optimism to this. (19:21) And there is nobody more ready to do this job. From her day as a prosecutor to a county attorney to the attorney general of the largest state in the country to a United States senator to our vice president. She's gone to work every day fighting for you and your families. Now, I loved this when she said this. She's taken on the predators, she's taken on the fraudsters, she's taken down the career criminals, she's stood up to powerful, greedy corporate interests. And I think about this:

[inaudible 00:19:53].

She is perfectly prepared to take on that debate stage tonight. No one is naive.

USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA! USA!

Donald Trump has debated seven times in a general election. He waved the white flags. His handlers will be the ones making the safe.

[inaudible 00:20:29].

So she understands clearly that she's an underdog in this situation, but the leadership and the contrast between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris could not be greater. We understand clearly that we've got the best fighter on our side in Kamala Harris. So on that debate stage tonight, when she holds him accountable, he's going to have to answer for the absolute train wreck which was his presidency. (21:12) Folks, you're in this room because you know it. We can't take four more years of this guy. Make no mistake, if he goes back it'll be worse. And I'll have to tell you. You've heard it. I said it. Whether it's a playbook when you're a coach or it's a to-do list. Their to-do list is Project 2025. They're absolutely clear what he's going to do. He's going to cut taxes for the rich again while screwing the middle class. He's going to make sure that he does nothing to make groceries less expensive because he's going to impose a national sales taxes as his ridiculous tariffs. (21:44) He is going to clear out the experts in government that are ones, whether they are fighting forest fires or whether they are doing the epidemiology around pandemics. Those are the folks he'll clear out, put his loyalists in instead. And every one of you in here knows. Every one of you knows, no matter what he says, he will ban abortion with or without Congress. He is the one who put those justices in. He may try and change from hour to hour but, guess what? Women don't trust him. Women don't trust it. Look, Republicans used to talk about him. (22:18) You know it out here because you had them. Republicans that contributed great to this country like John McCain. And when they talked small government, they really meant it. These guys, it means small enough to fit in your doctor's office, small enough to be in your school library, small enough to be in your bedroom. So I'll tell you. I know it's true in Arizona because it's true in Minnesota. When we make choices, we want to make the personal choices ourself. That's what freedom means. Who we marry, who we love, when we have a family. We'll make the choices. (22:50) And if our neighbors make a different choice, that's up to them. We may not agree with it but you all live, I know you do, like Minnesotans do, by the golden rule. Mind your own damn business and we'll get along better. You'll get along better. No one asked. No one asked for their agenda to take control over our bodies. When Vice President Harris and I talk about freedom, we mean you make the choices about your healthcare. When we talk about education as a ticket to the middle class, not crippling debt. And yeah, we mean the freedom to send your kids to school without being shot dead in school. (23:27) The heartbreak of two students and two teachers dead in Georgia brought it right back to us last week. Look, I'm a teacher, and many of you know that. Going back to school is a joyous time. It should be a time of excitement, of hope but now, for those folks and for too many of our children, it's a time of terror. And I say this: I know guns. I'm a veteran and I'm a hunter, but I will not allow them to make this about the Second Amendment when our first responsibility is to the safety of our children. (23:59) And I quote from these guys. Donald Trump said, "People traumatized by mass shootings just need to get over it."

Boo!

And when JD Vance was a few miles down the road last week, he said, "Massacres like this one are a fact of life."

No!

You know what's a fact of life? The sky is blue. That's a fact of life. You want to know another fact of life? Trump got his ass kicked in the 2020 election. He's going to do it again. He's going to do it again. This stuff happens nowhere else in the world. These guys do not believe in America. They do not believe in our exceptionalism. They do not trust the American public. They tell us we have to accept this, even though it doesn't happen anywhere else. But I'll tell you what, we're not going to roll over. This is America, for God's sakes, and we can fix this epidemic of shootings. We can do it if we have Kamala Harris in the White House. Look, we'll give you something to vote for. You're going to see a contrast here in about three minutes. You're going to see somebody lay out an agenda for the middle class. Opportunity to start businesses, opportunity to own a home, opportunity to get good education, opportunity to get healthcare and make your own decisions, opportunity to make sure you can buy groceries without being squeezed out, opportunity to buy prescription drugs by taking on the folks who are jacking up the prices. They want to blame everything on immigrants. They don't want to talk about Wall Street, they don't want to talk about the price gougers, and they don't want to talk about the grifters, like the two of them are. (25:37) So what we all know, Kamala Harris will cut the red tape. She'll put in an agenda that puts you first. And no matter who you are or where you live, you make the choices about your life, not Donald Trump and J.D. Vance. (25:55) So look, big part of this is who you fight for. She wakes up every morning fighting for you. Those guys wake up thinking about themselves. It's as simple as that. So here's the deal: get out, talk to folks. We have got 56 days to make a difference for generations in this country. We've got 56 days to make sure that we have an agenda that puts people first rather than billionaires. So think about it. When do you get a chance for 56 days to change things? Keep your foot on the gas. Stay off the damn brake. Don't sleep for the next 56 days. Knock the doors and let's watch her do her work. And let's go do ours. Let's go, Arizona.

[inaudible 00:26:40]. The stakes so high. The presidential debate just moments away. We have the entire news division keeping an eye on everything. We are going to be fact checking on our live blog. It's all going to be happening right here. The debate now just 10 seconds away. And we will be back with our post-game show as

[inaudible 00:27:00] over. (27:00) We are going to toss it right now to David Muir and Linsey Davis.

Tonight, the high-stakes showdown here in Philadelphia between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. Their first face-to-face meeting in this presidential election. Their first face-to-face meeting ever.

A historic race for president upended just weeks ago. President Biden withdrawing after his last debate. Donald Trump is now up against a new opponent.

The candidates separated by the smallest of margins, essentially tied in the polls nationally and in the key battlegrounds, including right here in Pennsylvania, all still very much in play. The ABC News Presidential Debate starts right now.

This is an ABC News special. The most consequential moment of this campaign. Kamala Harris.

Together we will chart a new way forward.

Donald Trump.

We will soon be a great nation again.

Face-to-face, historic. The ABC News Presidential Debate. Here now. David Muir and Linsey Davis.

Good evening. I'm David Muir, and thank you for joining us for tonight's ABC News Presidential Debate. We want to welcome viewers watching on ABC and around the world tonight. Vice President Kamala Harris and President Donald Trump are just moments away from taking the stage in this unprecedented race for president.

And I'm Linsey Davis. Tonight's meeting could be the most consequential event of their campaigns, with election day now less than two months away. For Vice President Kamala Harris, this is her first debate since President Biden withdrew from the race on July 21st. Of course, that decision followed his debate against President Donald Trump in June. Since then, this race has taken on an entirely new dynamic.

And that brings us to the rules of tonight's debate: 90 minutes with two commercial breaks; no topics or questions have been shared with the campaigns. The candidates will have two minutes to answer questions, and this is the clock. That's what they'll be seeing. Two minutes for rebuttals and one minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses. Their microphones will only be turned on when it's their turn to speak. No pre-written notes allowed. There is no audience here tonight in this hall at the National Constitution Center. This is an intimate setting for two candidates who have never met.

President Trump won the coin toss. He chose to deliver the final closing statement of the evening. Vice President Harris selected the podium to the right.

So let's now welcome the candidates to the stage. Vice President Kamala Harris and President Donald Trump.

Kamala Harris. Let's have a good debate.

Nice to see you. Have fun.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Welcome to you both. It's wonderful to have you. It's an honor to have you both here tonight.

Good evening. We are looking forward to a spirited and thoughtful debate.

So let's get started. I want to begin tonight with the issue voters repeatedly say is their number one issue, and that is the economy and the cost of living in this country. Vice President Harris, you and President Trump were elected four years ago and your opponent on the stage here tonight often asks his supporters, are you better off than you were four years ago? (30:03) When it comes to the economy, do you believe Americans are better off than they were four years ago?

So I was raised as a middle-class kid, and I am actually the only person on this stage who has a plan that is about lifting up the middle class and working people of America. I believe in the ambition, the aspirations, the dreams of the American people. And that is why I imagine and have actually a plan to build what I call an opportunity economy. Because here's the thing. We know that we have a shortage of homes and housing, and the cost of housing is too expensive for far too many people. We know that young families need support to raise their children, and I intend on extending a tax cut for those families of $6,000, which is the largest child tax credit that we have given in a long time, so that those young families can afford to buy a crib, buy a car seat, buy clothes for their children. My passion, one of them, is small businesses. I was actually... My mother raised my sister and me, but there was a woman who helped raise us. We call her our second mother. She was a small business owner. I love our small businesses. My plan is to give a $50,000 tax deduction to start up small businesses, knowing they are part of the backbone of America's economy. My opponent, on the other hand, his plan is to do what he has done before, which is to provide a tax cut for billionaires and big corporations, which will result in $5 trillion to America's deficit. (31:36) My opponent has a plan that I call the Trump's sales tax, which would be a 20% tax on everyday goods that you rely on to get through the month. Economists have said that that Trump sales tax would actually result for middle-class families in about $4,000 more a year because of his policies and his ideas about what should be the backs of middle-class people paying for tax cuts for billionaires.

President Trump, I'll give you two minutes.

First of all, I have no sales tax. That's an incorrect statement. She knows that. We're doing tariffs on other countries. Other countries are going to finally, after 75 years, pay us back for all that we've done for the world, and the tariff will be substantial in some cases. I took in billions and billions of dollars, as you know, from China. In fact, they never took the tariff off because it was so much money, they can't. It would totally destroy everything that they've set out to do. (32:35) They're taking in billions of dollars from China and other places. They've left the tariffs on. When I had it, I had tariffs, and yet I had no inflation. Look, we've had a terrible economy because inflation has... Which is really known as a country buster. It breaks up countries. We have inflation like very few people have ever seen before. (32:54) Probably the worst in our nation's history. We were at 21%, but that's being generous because many things are 50, 60, 70, and 80% higher than they were just a few years ago. This has been a disaster for people, for the middle class, but for every class. On top of that, we have millions of people pouring into our country from prisons and jails, from mental institutions and insane asylums. And they're coming in, and they're taking jobs that are occupied right now by African-Americans and Hispanics and also unions. Unions are going to be affected very soon. And you see what's happening. You see what's happening with towns throughout the United States. You look at Springfield, Ohio. You look at-