On Tuesday, Republican Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio.) and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) faced off in the only vice-presidential debate of the 2024 election cycle, in New York City.
The 90-minute debate was moderated by CBS News anchors Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan.
This debate followed the presidential debate last month where Democratic nominee Kamala Harris was declared the winner against Donald Trump — a stark contrast to the previous matchup that led to President Joe Biden’s exit from the race.
What Happened: The debate jumped right into the ongoing Middle East crisis. The candidates were asked if they would support a pre-emptive strike on Iran by Israel. The backdrop of the debate was set on Tuesday when Iran fired nearly 200 missiles at Israel.
The Two Candidates Shook Hands
The debate began shortly after 9 p.m., with Walz stepping out first, followed by Vance. After a handshake, Vance took his position at the lectern, and both candidates started jotting down notes on the provided pen and paper.
Middle-East Crisis
The Minnesota Governor responded to the first question about supporting a potential Israeli preemptive strike on Iran by reaffirming his strong backing for Israel.
He spoke about the importance of Israel’s right to self-defense following the Hamas attack on Oct. 7.
He then quickly shifted to criticize Trump’s foreign policy, citing concerns from the former President’s own national security advisers who warned of the dangers of him being in charge.
"When our allies see Donald Trump turn towards Vladimir Putin, turn towards North Korea, when we start to see that type of fickleness about holding the coalitions together — we will stay committed," Walz said.
Vance started off giving an introduction of himself, speaking about having a blue-collar upbringing.
He then said that Trump actually delivered stability to the world by establishing effective deterrence, people were afraid of stepping out of the line.
"It is up to Israel what they think they need to do to keep their country safe and we should support our allies wherever they are when they are fighting the bad guys," he said in response to the question.
Hurricane Helene And Climate Change
When asked about the Trump administration’s role in addressing climate change, Vance said that he and the former president prioritize “clean air and clean water.”
"Donald Trump and I support clean air and clean water," he said, and then added, "One of the things that I have noticed some of our Democratic friends talking a lot about is a concern about carbon emissions. This idea that carbon emissions drive all the climate change."
"If you believe that what would you want to do: the answer is you wanna restore as much as American manufacturing as possible and you'd want to produce as much energy as possible in the United States of America because we are the cleanest economy in the entire world."
He said Kamala Harris' policies have led to more energy production in China, more manufacturing overseas, and more doing business in some of the dirtiest parts of the world.
Walz targeted Trump saying that the former President once called climate change a hoax and joked that these things would make more beachfront properties to invest in.
The Minnesota Governor said that the current administration has been taking steps to mitigate the effects of climate change.
"To call it a hoax and to take the oil company executives to Mar-a-Lago, say, give me money from my campaign and I’ll let you do whatever you want, we can be smarter about that and an all-above energy policy is exactly what she’s doing, creating those jobs right here," he said.
Immigration And Fact Check
Vance was asked about the Trump-Vance campaign's plan to carry out the largest deportation in the history of the U.S.
"She promised to undo all of Trump's immigration policies," said Vance about Harris and then touched on fentanyl and opiod crisis affecting the U.S.
He stressed on bring back Trump's immigration policies and rebuilding the wall.
"You make it harder for illegal immigrants to undercut the wages of American workers," said Vance on the impact of mass migration in to the country.
"The real family separation policy is unfortunately Kamala Harris' wide-open southern border," said Vance.
Walz responded by saying that opioid crisis was an issue but chose not to respond to Vance's assertion that children were being used as drug mules.
"Most of us want to solve this," said Walz. He singled out Harris' record in California for prosecuting transnational criminals.
"Donald Trump said, ‘No,'" said Walz. What would he talk about if legislation to tackle to immigration issue was passed.
He touched on the failure of Trump to get the wall funded by Mexico, something that Trump had promised to do.
"We already have massive child separation," said Vance on the question of separating children from parents. "We have a record of illegal crossings," said Vance. He referred to the Vice President as the "Border Czar," a term often used by his campaign.
"We fix this issue with a bill that is necessary," said Walz in response to overwhelming support for mass deportations in the U.S. He accused his political opponents of vilification of the issue because they did not want to address it.
"Gross majority" of what needs to be done is just empowering law enforcement, said Vance on whether the immigration issue needed legislation.
Vance mentioned Springfield, Ohio, a city in his home state that recently became a focal point of immigration discussions. Trump falsely claimed last month that Haitian immigrants in the town were eating pet animals.
Vance challenged the CBS host's fact-checking that a large number of Haitian immigrants in the city had legal status. However, his mike was cut while he was explaining the legal nitty-gritty around the status of these immigrants.
Economy And Common Sense
On the economy, Walz commended the Democratic administration for efforts to lower the cost of essentials, such as prescription drugs.
He highlighted the law passed two years ago, capping insulin prices at $35 per month for millions of Medicare recipients.
However, the Minnesota Governor overstated the pre-legislation cost, incorrectly stating that insulin had cost Americans “$800” before the law took effect.
CBS cited the Wharton School's analysis of the Trump plan and said it would increase the nation's debt by $5.8 trillion.
In response, Vance said that you will hear a lot of things from Walz about what Harris would do, and it sounds all good but you won't hear is that she has already done it.
"She's been the Vice President for three and a half years, she had the opportunity to enact all of these great policies and what she has actually done instead is drive the cost of food higher by 25%, drive the cost of housing higher by about 60%."
"If Kamala Harris has such great plans for how to address middle-class problems, then she ought to do them now, not when asking for a promotion, but in the job the American people gave her three and a half years ago."
"Now, Donald Trump's economic plan is not just a plan but it's also a record. A lot of those same economics that attacked Donald Trump's plan and they have Phds but they don't have common sense and they don't have wisdom," said Vance.
The Minnesota governor rebuffed Vance and Trump's campaign saying that they keep on targeting experts including economists, science, and national security folks.
“If you’re going to be president, you don’t have all the answers. Donald Trump believes he does,” he said. “My pro-tip is this: if you need heart surgery, listen to the people at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, not Donald Trump.”
Walz then addressed teachers, nurses, truck drivers, and other Americans, questioning the fairness of their annual tax payments while Trump managed to avoid paying income taxes for 10 out of 15 years.
Photo: J.D. Vance and Tim Walz, via Shutterstock
Read Next:
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
© 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
To add Benzinga News as your preferred source on Google, click here.