Harris presses a more forceful case against Trump than Biden did on abortion, economy and democracy

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Kamala Harris pressed a forceful case against Donald Trump on Tuesday in their first and perhaps only debate before the presidential election, repeatedly goading him in an event that showcased their starkly different visions for the country on abortion, immigration and American democracy.

The Democratic vice president provoked Trump with reminders about the 2020 election loss that he still denies, delivered derisive asides at his false claims and sought to underscore the Republican former president's role in the Supreme Court's overturning of a national right to abortion two years ago. Trump tore into Harris as too liberal and a continuation of Biden's unpopular administration, as he launched into the sort of freewheeling personal attacks and digressions from which his advisers and supporters have tried to steer him away.

Less than two months from Election Day and hours before the first early ballots will begin to be mailed Wednesday in Alabama, the debate offered the clearest look yet at a presidential race that has been repeatedly upended.

Harris’ performance by nearly every measure seemed to be the opposite of President Joe Biden’s in June, with sharp, focused answers designed to showcase the contrast between her and Trump, whereas Biden at times was muddled, halting and incoherent. Harris used her body language and facial expressions to confront Trump and express that she found his answers ridiculous, amusing or both — a pronounced change from Biden's slack-jawed expression when Trump attacked him.

Harris appeared intent on casting herself as a relief for voters seeking a break from Trump’s acerbic politics — a contrast highlighted as Trump appeared to be set on his back foot by her needling.

In one moment, Harris turned to Trump and said that as vice president, she had spoken to foreign leaders who “are laughing at Donald Trump,” and said she had spoken to military leaders, “and they say you’re a disgrace.”

As Trump, 78, again questioned her racial identity, the 59-year-old Harris, the first woman, Black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president, pointedly gestured to Trump and responded, “I think the American people want better than that, want better than this.”

Trump in turn tried to link Harris to the still-unpopular Biden, questioning why she hadn’t acted on her proposed ideas while serving as vice president. Trump also focused his attacks on Harris over her assignment by Biden to deal with the root causes of illegal migration.

“Why hasn’t she done it? She’s been there for three and a half years,” he said.

Harris promised tax cuts aimed at the middle class and said she would push to restore a federally guaranteed right to abortion overturned by the Supreme Court two years ago. Trump said his proposed tariffs would help the U.S. stop being cheated by allies on trade and said he would work to swiftly end the Russia-Ukraine war — though he twice refused to say he believed it was in America's interest for Ukraine, which bipartisan majorities in Congress have backed, to win the war.

Trump again denied that he lost to Biden four years ago, when a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol to try to stop the certification of his loss based on false or unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud. He tried to reverse the question of threats to American democracy and suggested criticism of him could be linked to the assassination attempt he survived in July.

“I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me,” he said. “They talk about democracy, I’m a threat to democracy. They’re the threat to democracy.”

Trump has in recent days ramped up his threats of retribution if he returns to the White House, saying he would prosecute lawyers, donors, and other officials whom he deems to “cheat” in the election.

“Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people," Harris said, "So let’s be clear about that. And clearly he is having a very difficult time processing that.”

Her campaign ended the debate by expressing openness to another meeting in October — and welcomed an endorsement from megastar Taylor Swift, who labeled herself a “ childless cat lady ” in a dig at Trump's running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, as she encouraged her fans to vote.

Harris sought to defend her shifts away from liberal causes to more moderate stances on fracking, expanding Medicare for all and mandatory gun buyback programs — and even backing away from her position that plastic straws should be banned — as pragmatism.

Asked about her changing positions on a number of issues, she twice repeated a phrase she has used to try to explain it away, saying, “My values have not changed.”

Trump, meanwhile, quickly went after Harris for abandoning some of her past liberal positions and said: “She’s going to my philosophy now. In fact, I was going to send her a MAGA hat.” Harris smiled broadly and laughed.

Harris, in zeroing in on one of Trump’s biggest electoral vulnerabilities, laid the end of a federally guaranteed right to abortion at Trump’s feet for his role in appointing three U.S. Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, leaving more than 20 states in the country with what she called “Trump abortion bans.”

Harris gave one of her most impassioned answers as she described the ways women have been denied abortion care and other emergency care since that ruling, and said Trump would sign a national abortion ban if he wins.

Trump declared it “a lie,” and said, “I’m not signing a ban and there’s no reason to sign a ban.”

The Republican has said he wants the issue left to the states.

Trump, who is trying to paint the vice president as an out-of-touch liberal while trying to win over voters skeptical he should return to the White House, continued to call Harris a “Marxist” and said, “Everyone knows she’s a Marxist.”

Harris’ eyebrows shot up and she made an amused face, bringing her hand to her chin and staring at him.

Trump attacked Harris for the inflation seen under the Biden-Harris administration, a major liability for the vice president. He quickly turned his answer to warning about immigrants coming into the country — one of the subjects he’s focused on most heavily in his campaign.

He called his proposed tariffs a straightforward way to make other countries pay up for what he has long argued is an imbalance that hurts the U.S. Harris called the tariffs an effective national sales tax. Trump reacted swiftly and called that “an incorrect statement.”

Throughout his campaign, Trump has leaned on illegal immigration, an issue that has bedeviled Biden and Harris with rising numbers of illegal border crossings and the arrivals of thousands of people needing shelter in Democratic-led cities. He accused Democrats of abetting large numbers of unauthorized crossings — though they have dropped in recent months in part due to new asylum restrictions by the Biden administration.

But as he often does in his rallies and on his social media account, Trump reeled off a series of falsehoods or unproven claims about migrants. One of those claims was a debunked rumor that Trump and his allies have spread online in recent days, alleging Haitian immigrants in an Ohio town are hunting and eating pets. Officials in Springfield, Ohio, say they have no evidence of that happening.

“Talk about extreme,” Harris said after Trump talked about dogs and cats being eaten.

As the debate opened, Harris walked up to Trump’s lectern to introduce herself, marking the first time the two had ever met, since Trump skipped her 2021 inauguration. “Kamala Harris,” she said, extending her hand to Trump, who received it in a handshake — the first presidential debate handshake since the 2016 campaign.

Trump has at times resorted to invoking racial and gender stereotypes and falsely claiming that Harris, who attended a historically Black university, hid her race during her career.

“I read where she was not Black,” Trump said when asked about comments questioning Harris' race, adding a minute later, “and then I read that she was Black.” He seemed to suggest her race was a choice, saying twice, “That’s up to her.”

“I think it’s a tragedy that we have someone who wants to be president who has consistently over the course of his career attempted to use race to divide the American people,” Harris responded.

While Tuesday’s meeting might be the last time the candidates cross paths on the debate stage, they may cross paths again Wednesday when they both mark the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Harris, Trump and Biden plan to all be at ground zero in lower Manhattan and the Flight 93 National Memorial near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday. Harris and Biden will also visit the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, later in the day for a ceremony there.

Trump at one point launched into an attack on Biden, questioning his mental acuity by making the claim that Biden “doesn’t even know he’s alive.”

Harris quickly tried to turn it around to make Trump look less than sharp.

“First of all, I think it’s important to remind the former president, you’re not running against Joe Biden. You’re running against me,” she said.

Price and Miller reported from Washington. AP Polling Editor Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux in Washington and Thomas Beaumont in Las Vegas, Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report.

People gather across the street from the National Constitution Center, the site of tonight's presidential debate between Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, during his arrival at Philadelphia International Airport, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a ABC News presidential debate with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a debate with Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Members of the press appear in the spin room during a presidential debate between Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, on screen at left, and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, right, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris participate during an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris during an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a presidential debate with Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a presidential debate with Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris participate during an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept.10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

This combination of photos shows Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump, left, and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris during an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump arrives for a campaign rally, July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris arrives on Air Force Two at Atlantic Aviation Philadelphia, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, near Philadelphia International Airport, ahead of the presidential debate with Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

In this combination of photos taken in Pennsylvania, Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign event, Aug. 18, 2024, in Rochester, left, and Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event, Aug. 19, 2024, in York. (AP Photo)

Signage at the media filing center ahead of the presidential debate between Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Signage at the media filing center ahead of the presidential debate between Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

The Harris-Trump debate becomes the 2024 election's latest landmark event

The Harris-Trump debate becomes the 2024 election's latest landmark event

In this combination photo, Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., speaks during a debate, Oct. 7, 2020, in Salt Lake City, left, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a debate, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo)

Sidney Crosby and Leon Draisaitl have their contract extensions, Paul Maurice and the Florida Panthers have the Stanley Cup and a brief but busy summer of moving and shaking is over.

Now, back to hockey.

Less than 90 days since the Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of a thrilling final, training camps open around the league this week with plenty of questions before the puck drops next month on another season.

Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman is the most prominent player left unsigned, camp in Columbus goes on in sorrow after the tragic death of Johnny Gaudreau and players and staff in Utah get a fresh start after the Coyotes relocated from Arizona to Salt Lake City. Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog may be back, Washington winger T.J. Oshie may be gone and it's anyone's guess who will lift the Cup in June.

The Bruins traded 2023 Vezina Trophy-winning goalie Linus Ullmark to Ottawa, content to give the starting job to Swayman. One problem? He's a restricted free agent without a contract for the season.

“Those things just kind of sort themselves out as they do,” said teammate Brandon Carlo, who pointed to his own late arrival and that of fellow defenseman Charlie McAvoy in recent years as reasons not to be worried. “We have a lot of faith within our organization, in our management, to get the right deal done.”

Swayman, who turns 26 in late November, ranked fifth in the NHL with a .916 save percentage and eighth with a 2.53 goals-against average last season. He was being paid a team-friendly $3.475 million on a one-year contract and will get a raise — but how much and for how long?

“It’s obviously a balance of going back and forth,” Carlo said. “But I’ve had some conversations with Sway. He seems pretty encouraged and in a good mindset with it all, so as long as he’s feeling OK mentally, that’s all we really care about.”

Among the other unsigned players are Detroit's Moritz Seider two years removed from being rookie of the year, Dallas defenseman Thomas Harley and New Jersey forward Dawson Mercer. The Red Wings signed Lucas Raymond to a $64 million, eight-year contract Monday.

The Blue Jackets are getting back on the ice mere weeks after Johnny Gaudreau and younger brother Matthew died when they were struck by a driver of an SUV while riding bicycles on the eve of their sister's wedding. A candlelight vigil was held outside the arena in Columbus, players and team employees attended the tearful funeral and playing hockey was the furthest thing from anyone's mind.

Captain Boone Jenner and general manager Don Waddell hope the rink will serve as a refuge of sorts.

“We both agreed the quicker we can get guys back in the room together, the better it would be for everybody,” Waddell said. “We all mourn and heal differently, but I think as a team, being together like that is going to be critical for them to get moving forward.”

This is the team's second camp in recent years that follows the offseason death of a player. Goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks died in July 2021 of chest trauma from an errant fireworks mortar blast at the wedding of an assistant coach's daughter.

This will be the 45th training camp for the organization that was once the original Winnipeg Jets, then the Phoenix Coyotes and until earlier this year the Arizona Coyotes. It's the first and only season as the Utah Hockey Club after a move from the desert to Salt Lake City.

Ryan and Ashley Smith's Smith Entertainment Group now owns the team, keeping the same hockey operations staff, coaches, players and prospects but starting over with a clean slate in the record books like an expansion franchise.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play with a new organization," said Josh Doan, who's now with Utah after making his NHL debut with the team dad Shane captained for much of his career. “But to do it with all the guys you’ve been with and the people that you’re close with already is something that’s fun to do.”

Utah, which is expected to get permanent name and logo after the season, plays its first game Oct. 8 against Chicago at the downtown Delta Center, the home of the NBA's Jazz.

Six-time 30-goal scorer Max Pacioretty is the biggest player attending camp on a professional tryout agreement. Pacioretty is in Toronto, and agent Allan Walsh has said he expects the 35-year-old winger to sign a contract prior to the start of the season.

Others with the opportunity to earn a deal include Travis Dermott with defending Western Conference champion Edmonton; fellow defenseman Tyson Barrie with Calgary; 2020 and '21 Cup winner Tyler Johnson with Boston; and respected veteran forward Pierre-Edouard Bellemare with Colorado. Longtime New York Islanders enforcer Matt Martin is also back, hoping to stick around and get another contract.

Landeskog's next game will be his first in the NHL since lifting the Stanley Cup over his head when the Avalanche defeated the Lightning in Game 6 of the final in 2022. A nagging right knee injury and subsequent cartilage replacement surgery to attempt to fix the problem have cost the Swedish forward the past two seasons.

“Seeing him around the rink, obviously being more active on the ice, seeing the progressions he’s made from when we were here for playoffs previously, it’s awesome to see,” forward Logan O'Connor said.

Oshie has played through chronic back problems for years and said after Washington lost in the first round of the playoffs he would only return if he and doctors could come up with a solution that keeps him in the lineup. The Capitals seem to have prepared for life without Oshie, but it is not clear if the 37-year-old who was part of their 2018 Cup run intends to try to keep playing.

AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow, AP Sports Writer Pat Graham and AP freelance writer W.G. Ramirez contributed.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Columbus Blue Jackets line up at their blue line for the national anthem with Boston Bruins before the Sabres Prospects Challenge hockey game in Buffalo, N.Y., Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/John Wawrow)

FILE - Boston Bruins' Jeremy Swayman makes a glove save during the third period in Game 6 of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff series against the Florida Panthers, May 17, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)