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The debate was generally civil and arguably quite informative between Democratic nominee Gov. Tim Walz and Republican nominee Sen. JD Vance on Tuesday night has confirmed one thing. We need another presidential debate.
Both Walz and Vance stuck to familiar positions on issues on the debate stage, whether it was the economy, health care, energy or immigration. No new ground was broken, no dramatic changes in policy were unveiled.
However, the debate is, in my estimation, important for a fundamental reason: it is civil, informative, and includes a surprising level of bipartisanship that is absent in the 2024 presidential race.
Of course Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump watched the debate. And both sides, I’m sure, concluded that their fellow walkers did an excellent job of outlining their core positions and also attacking their rivals.
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But most importantly, on Tuesday night there were comments that I both candidates underlined in their own way: That we can do better as Americans, we can solve our problems and provide leadership as a person who disagrees, and sometimes vigorously, but has a purpose which is broader than narrow partisan concerns.
The nearly two-hour show underscored this important point: you can’t walk away with joy and you can’t just run away bitter about what happened in the past.
This is not just a homily. It is much more. This is a large-scale call for political variety, although implicitly made by both candidates, it is an acknowledgment of the extraordinary challenges we face, domestically and internationally, because of Iran’s attack on Israel. And most importantly, I explain why both presidential candidates should quickly accept invitations from various news networks for another debate or another debate in the last 35 days of this campaign.
Of course none of that changed his mind on Tuesday night.
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Of course, pundits will examine what the candidates say or don’t say about immigration and abortion. The two topics are very much in disagreement. But both vice-presidential candidates largely repeated and reiterated what their nominees said and believed.
The key now is to keep the media focused on what Americans want and need as this incredible race reaches the finish line. The two presidential campaigns should face off, at least once, if not more, to discuss and debate their positions on the issue with greater specificity and precision than ever before.
The 2024 presidential race is now effectively a statistical tie. This is especially true when one looks at the seven key swing states in this election. There is a degree of uncertainty about exactly where the candidates stand on important issues facing our country after last month’s raucous presidential debate that was more personally divisive than informative.
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In order to make informed choices as Americans, we need to emulate what happened on Tuesday night with Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. The two presidential candidates must tell us, in programmatic terms, what they will do on the economy, immigration, crime, health care, energy and, of course, on foreign affairs, a critical topic that is unrelated. deserved and needed.
The level of American voters’ dissatisfaction with the candidates and the political process cannot be overestimated. We see what the American people want but haven’t received so far in this presidential election.
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The nearly two-hour show underscored this important point: you can’t walk away with joy and you can’t just run away bitter about what happened in the past.
Both vice presidential candidates were favored on Tuesday night. Vance hadn’t looked like that before. On the debate stage, it’s hard not to empathize with him, even if you don’t agree with him. Besides, Walz is everyone’s favorite figure.
I came away from last month’s presidential debate not wanting to have dinner with Trump or Harris. After the VP debate, I wanted to get to know both candidates better.
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What I’ve learned since Tuesday night is that, for almost the first time in this election cycle, Vance and Walz have quietly acknowledged that voters need more before Election Day. It’s up to Trump and Harris to give him — in person — at least one more shot, if not more.
The country deserves no less.
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