The first presidential debate between U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump is now in the history books. Tuesday, ABC News hosted the highly anticipated political meeting in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center which was the first time Harris and Trump met face-to-face. With less than three months until the election, 21Ninety is breaking down of some key highlights from the debate that impact Black women. 

The Economy

In the initial moments of the face-off, both candidates shared their opinion on the state of the economy. Harris explained that she will advocate for the rights of all Americans, including those who are part of the middle class.

“We know that young families need support to raise their children, and I intend on extending a tax cut for those families of $6,000, which is the largest child tax credit that we have given in a long time,” Harris noted during the debate.

Additionally, she claimed that Trump will impose sales taxes and tax cuts for billionaires that will cost American families more money.

When it was his turn to speak, Trump shared how he would protect the American economy by implementing tariffs on foreign goods.

“We’re doing tariffs on other countries. Other countries are going to finally, after 75 years, pay us back for all that we’ve done for the world. The tariff will be substantial in some cases. I took in billions and billions of dollars from China,” Trump said. 

Abortion

Another concern both Harris and Trump were prompted to address was women’s rights, specifically abortion rights. The polarizing discussion began with Trump proudly exclaiming how the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe V. Wade was something many people celebrated.

“Each individual state is voting, it’s the vote of the people now. It’s not tied up in the federal government,” Trump said.

When asked by the moderators if he would veto a federal ban on abortion, he never answered directly, instead stating “he doesn’t have to” because “she [Harris] won’t get the vote.”

Harris stated that Trump’s selection of three members of the Supreme Court have created “Trump abortion bans.” According to the VP, these choices aren’t popularly supported, but have instead manifested devastating effects for women across the country. She explained it’s criminal for doctors in certain states to provide healthcare to women.

“The government, and Donald Trump, certainly, should not be telling a woman what to do with her body. People being denied care in an emergency room because healthcare providers are being afraid of being hauled off to jail,” she said.

The VP made it clear she supports reinstating the protections of Roe V. Wade if reelected. 

Project 2025

The debate also featured discussions around Project 2025, a 900-page proposal by The Heritage Foundation. It features ultra-conservative ideas, including the abolishment of the Department of Education. Many of Trump’s former administration members were involved in the creation of the document. The proposal became so polarizing among Americans that it became a trending topic and was even mentioned by Taraji P. Henson at the 2024 B.E.T. Awards. 

Harris exclaimed that if re-elected, Trump will bring the plan into play. Trump’s response was he had nothing to do with Project 2025.

“This was a group of people, they came up with some ideas, I guess some good, some bad,” he stated during the debate, explaining how he allegedly has not read the proposal. 

Race and Identity

During the debate, moderators asked Trump about VP Harris’s race, and specifically why he previously questioned her Black identity.

“I don’t care what she is. I read that she was Black. Then I read that she was not Black,” he briefly responded.

As the child of Jamaican and Indian parents, Harris identifies as a mixed-race Black woman. She rebutted by showcasing the moments Trump has allegedly been discriminatory to Black people in the past, including placing advertisements in newspapers in 1989 calling for the execution of the Central Park Five. She then urged the American people to unite under the same “dreams and aspirations” and not divide themselves on the topic of race.