US Presidential debates are televised spectacles, which bring in hefty moolah from advertisers, but have little or no impact on the election. One such continuity of the traditional debates of presidential hopefuls was Donald Trump-Kamala Harris’ face-off yesterday ahead of the election.
Many US media outlets have declared Harris the clear winner. The New York Times highlighted how she effectively put Trump on the defensive from the start, and controlled the debate throughout. “Ms. Harris was for the most part able to deliver a crisp and clear message. Mr. Trump seemed angry and defensive,” the publication stated.
The presidential debates usually inform voters on the issues and temperaments of the candidates, and can also make for good TV, creating soundbites and moments that resonate for decades to come.
From the candidates’ physical appearances to gaffes to off-the-cuff remarks, here are some memorable moments from US presidential debate history.
1960: The first and possibly considered the most famous televised American presidential debate was between Democrat John F Kennedy and Republican vice-president Richard Nixon on September 26. The debate created some defining moments for both presidential debates and television itself. The debate propelled Kennedy to stardom because of his young and charismatic persona while Nixon old and looked tired. Those who watched the debate on TV declared Kennedy as winner but radio listeners thought Nixon had fared better. Kennedy won a narrow election. He was assassinated three years later.
1976: Republican president Gerald Ford, who succeeded Nixon after the Watergate scandal, had been closing the gap on Democrat Jimmy Carter but then remarked: “There is no Soviet domination of eastern Europe, and there never will be under a Ford administration.” The remark came across as naive, leading the media to portray Ford as clumsy and “not up for the job”. It was seen as a critical gaffe in the context of the Cold War and Carter went on to win the election. Carter beat Ford by just 11,000 votes in Ohio, which determined the election outcome. The state had the families of Catholic immigrants from Eastern Europe and formed a significant share of the vote.
1992: In a three-way contest with Democrat Bill Clinton and businessman Ross Perot, President George HW Bush made the fatal mistake of looking at his watch. It gave the impression of a haughty, aloof incumbent who did not want to be there and took too much for granted. Bush later admitted what had been on his mind: “Only 10 more minutes of this crap.” He lost to Clinton. The debate had three unique aspects: first, all of them took place over the course of only nine days, creating a “mini-series”. Second, the debates had different formats, including the first-ever townhall-style debate in which the candidates sat on stools and walked around the open stage, surrounded by the audience on three sides. Third, these debates featured three candidates unlike the traditional two — Republican Bush Sr, Democrat Clinton, and Reform Party nominee Ross Perot, who went on to win 18.9% of the popular vote in one of the most successful third party runs in American history.
2000: George W Bush, the eldest son of former President George HW Bush, lost the popular vote to Vice President Al Gore but won one more than the required majority of 270 votes in the electoral college to claim the presidency. The live mics caught Gore sighed loudly when his rival Bush spoke. He was seen on the TV screen rolling his eyes or shaking his head in frustration multiple times. In another incident, Gore criticised Bush’s personal space when Bush strolled forward and Gore rose and moved towards his rival, as if looking for a fight. As TIME Magazine wrote in 2000: “Last week, George W. Bush and Al Gore stood at podiums, and Gore, as befitting the furniture, gave what came across as a lecture: correcting his opponent, holding forth, sighing in exasperation at Bush’s answers. The pundits and the polls agreed: Gore had won the debate. Then he lost: within a week, Bush had opened up a lead in several polls, as voters apparently decided they were tired of Professor Know-It-All.”
2012: Viewers felt that President Barack Obama had “phoned in” his first lackluster debate performance against Republican Mitt Romney, who performed above expectations. But in the second debate, Romney, responding to a question about gender pay equality, said he had “binders full of women” as candidates for cabinet posts. The phrase became a meme on social media and Romney lost in November.
2020: Donald Trump debated Joe Biden in his characteristically testy way. At one point, an exasperated Biden pleaded, “Will you shut up, man?”. That line came as the debate schedule was affected by a new virus, Covid-19, spreading through the country. Trump tested positive for the virus, leading to the cancellation of the second debate.
2024: Biden vs Trump’s debate effectively ended the political career of the former on the night of June 27, 2024, and was labelled as the most “embarrassing” performance of all time. Biden, 81, came across weak, his voice trembling, and his answers unintelligible, with blunt retorts. He committed gaffe after gaffe in the debate, compelling many to wonder if he was even fit to finish the current term. Although he put up a brave and defiant tone in the debate’s immediate aftermath, Biden was dropped out of the US presidential race less than a month later.