(VOVWORLD) - US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump clashed on Thursday in the first televised presidential debate of the 2024 election season, with the Republican candidate being given the edge over the incumbent President and Democratic rival.
 The first televised debate of the 2024 presidential election sees incumbent President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump exchanging blows on a range of heated issues. (Photo: Reuters) |
The 90-minute throw-down saw former President Trump dominating most debate topics, from foreign policy and abortion, to immigration.
Incumbent President Biden found his footing with convincing arguments on economic issues and protecting the United States’ relationships with its NATO allies. But his shaky, halting performance likely deepens concerns that the 81-year-old, also the oldest presidential candidate in US history, is too old to serve another four-year term.
David Axelrod, former senior advisor to former President Barack Obama, said: “I think there was a sense of shock, actually, at how he came out at the beginning of this debate, how his voice sounded…You know, his voice seemed a little disoriented.”
“I think the panic has set in and I think you’re going to hear discussions that I don’t know will lead to anything. But there’s going to be discussions about whether he should continue.”
Debate watchers say, 67% to 33%, that Trump turned in a better performance Thursday, according to a CNN’s flash poll. Trump however, was criticized for repeating well-worn falsehoods during the debate, while refusing to accept any responsibility related to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol which occurred after the 2020 presidential election.