Trump Biden debate: Candidates' best (and worst) moments from first US presidential showdown

David Gardner30 September 2020

The first US presidential debate last night between Donald Trump and Joe Biden was a rancorous affair that has been panned by some commentators as the "worst ever".

Here are the highlights...and lowlights.

Donald Trump’s best moments

"I’m not elected for three years, I’m elected for four years"

The president left Joe Biden stumped with his argument that he was entitled to nominate Amy Coney Barrett to replace the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, saying a Democrat president would do the same thing.

Donald Trump during the presidential debate
AP

"How ya doin,’ man?"

His greeting before the debate began was the only civil thing the president had to say to Mr Biden all night.

His worst moments

"Proud Boys: stand back and stand by."

With growing violence on American streets, Mr Trump was asked if he was willing to condemn white supremacists. "Sure," he said, and then named an extreme right wing group, the Proud Boys, telling them to "stand back and stand by". The phrase was immediately picked up by the group who made it part of its new logo. Civil rights groups are demanding an apology.

Joe Biden’s best moments

"I’m proud of my son."

Donald Trump had been baiting Joe Biden all night about his son Hunter’s business dealings and brought up his struggles with drugs after his rival paid tribute to another son, Beau, for his military service. Mr Biden had appeared flat at times, irritated by the interruptions, but he was fired up and took umbrage at the personal attack, saying: "My son, like a lot of people you know at home, had a drug problem. He’s overtaken it. He’s fixed it. He’s worked on it, and I’m proud of him. I’m proud of my son."

Joe Biden said he was proud of his son, who has battled a drug problem
AP

"Oh, give me a break."

Joe Biden’s response when Donald Trump said he was the smarter one.

His worst moments

"Will you shut up, man?"

This was the moment 20 minutes into the debate when Joe Biden finally cracked. Right from the off, Donald Trump had been talking over him, trying to dominate the debate. No doubt, the former vice president, experienced politician that he is, had been rehearsing his answers and preparing himself to not be rattled by the combative former TV reality show star. But as Mr Trump bickered at him over healthcare, Mr Biden had finally had enough. "This is so unpresidential," he added, but his best bet was to stay out of the gutter.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Sign up you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy notice .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in