Vance speaks out about Trump’s 2020 election loss in a high-profile vice presidential debate with Walz

Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio faced off on Tuesday night’s “CBS News Vice Presidential Debate.”

The nearly two-hour debate remained mostly cordial — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump agreed on several points. However, it was Vance’s refusal to acknowledge that Trump had lost the 2020 presidential election that drew Walz’s ire toward the end of the debate.

“He [Trump] “Still says he didn’t lose the election…Did he lose the 2020 election?” Walz asked Vance.

“Tim, I’m focused on the future,” Vance replied.

“That’s a damn non-answer,” Walz interjected.

Vance added that he and Trump agreed there were problems in 2020 and that they would be “happy to talk about it.”

RELATED STORY | Scripps News fact-checks the Walz-Vance vice presidential debate

The Middle East

The debate covered a range of topics, but none was more internationally pressing than the Iranian missile attack on Israel.

The first question the moderators asked Walz was whether he would “support or oppose a preemptive strike by Israel against Iran.”

Walz, who appeared nervous, paused several times but said, “Israel’s ability to defend itself is absolutely fundamental.”

Walz explained that a second Trump presidency would pose a danger to the world.

“What we’ve seen from Vice President Harris is consistent leadership,” Walz said.

“Donald Trump has ensured stability in the world, and he has achieved this by establishing an effective deterrent,” Vance responded.

“It is up to Israel what it believes must be done to ensure the security of its country, and we should support our allies wherever they are,” the senator added.

immigration

“We have to stop the bleeding,” Vance said of immigration. “We have a historic immigration crisis because Kamala Harris started out saying she wanted to reverse all of Donald Trump’s border policies.”

Vance defended Trump’s proposal for mass deportations.

“We start with the criminal migrants,” Vance said. “You start deporting these people. Then you make it harder for illegal immigrants to undercut the wages of American workers.”

Walz responded by accusing former President Donald Trump of working against a solution.

“We had the fairest and toughest immigration law this country has ever seen,” Walz said, referring to the bipartisan immigration bill that was up for consideration in early 2024. “Donald Trump said no.”

“Give the bill, [Harris] “I’ll sign it,” Walz said.

Vance has been under pressure over Springfield, Ohio, where Trump amplified false claims that immigrants eat pets during the last presidential debate.

“The people I am most concerned about in Springfield, Ohio, are the American citizens whose lives have been destroyed by Kamala Harris’ open border,” Vance said.

The economy

Walz highlighted Harris’ economic plans, including down payment assistance for homebuyers and lower costs for medications like insulin.

“Kamala Harris said we should do the things she wants to do, we’ll just ask the wealthiest to pay their fair share. When you do that, our system works best, more people participate, and people have the things they want and need,” Walz said.

Vance said that Trump’s historic tax cuts as president “were designed to pay higher wages to the middle class and working class in the United States.”

“This is a record I am proud of, and we will return to this common sense wisdom so that you can afford to live the American dream again,” Vance said.

Reproductive rights

Walz tried to portray a second Trump administration as extreme on abortion.

“In Minnesota we have Roe v. “Wade restored,” Walz said, explaining that the state had ensured abortion protections for women after the Supreme Court struck down federal protections in 2024.

“This is a basic human right,” Walz said. “This is about health care.”

Vance tried to take a more nuanced position at the national level — as Trump posted on social media that he would not sign a national abortion ban if elected.

“We need to do a much better job of regaining the trust of the American people on this issue, when, frankly, they simply don’t trust us,” Senator Vance said. “I want us as the Republican Party to be family-friendly in the truest sense of the word.”

“The right way to deal with this, as chaotic as democracy can be at times, is to let voters make those decisions. Let individual states determine their abortion policies,” Vance said.

Gun violence

“The vast majority of gun violence in this country is committed with illegally purchased firearms,” Vance said. “Unfortunately, I believe that we need to increase security in our schools.”

“The idea that we can magically wave a magic wand and take weapons out of the hands of bad guys – that just doesn’t fit with recent experience. We need to make our schools safer, and I think we need to do that.” “There are some common-sense, bipartisan solutions on how to do that,” Vance said.

“We understand that the Second Amendment exists, but our first responsibility is to our children to figure that out,” Walz said. “There are common sense things we can do to make a difference.”

“We have that and we should look at all the problems,” Walz said. But “sometimes it’s just the guns. It’s just the weapons.”

“I think there is an opportunity to find solutions that work — protect the Second Amendment, protect our children. That’s our priority,” Walz said.

The cost of healthcare

“Of course we will cover Americans with pre-existing conditions,” Vance said of a possible Trump administration.

Vance said Trump’s success has helped keep health care cost increases low and created better price transparency in the market.

He also defended Trump’s “concepts of a plan” claim from the presidential debate.

“They are not going to propose a 900-page bill that is on the debate stage. It would bore everyone to tears,” Vance said.

Governor Walz noted that as a legislator he helped draft the Affordable Care Act and that Trump, as president, tried to repeal the measure.

“What [Republicans] They say, ‘If you’re healthy, why should you pay more?’ So what they’re going to do is let the insurance companies choose who they insure.”

Family vacation and childcare

Walz said Harris is making parental leave for new children and health needs an administration priority.

“What we are saying is that the economy works best when it works for all of us,” Walz said.

“When it comes to child care, you have to consider supply and demand,” he said. “We need to make it easier for people to get into this business and then make sure people can pay for it.”

Vance recalled his wife’s own experiences with paid family leave.

“The cultural pressures on young families, especially young women, make it really difficult for people to choose the family model they want,” Vance said. “We should have a family care model that allows for choice.”

“We want to promote choice in providing family care and supporting child care,” Vance said.

Closing statements

“Senator Vance has made it clear that he will support Donald Trump’s agenda. He will continue to pursue this path. Kamala Harris gives us another option,” Walz said in his closing statements. “It brings real solutions to the middle class and puts you at the center.”

“I’ve been in politics long enough to do what Kamala Harris does when she stands before the American people and says she’s going to work on all of these challenges from day one,” Vance said. “She has been vice president for three and a half years. The first day was 1,400 days ago. And their policies have made these problems worse.”

“We need a new direction. We need a president who has done it before, and done it well,” Vance said.

RELATED STORY | These polls showed a clear winner in Tuesday’s presidential debate, but is history on their side?