Amid the heated political climate in the USA, vice presidential candidates Tim Walz and JD Vance delivered a surprisingly objective TV duel.
Their first and probably only television debate in this election campaign stood out for its depth of content:
Topics such as irregular migration, the right to abortion and the climate crisis were intensively discussed.
There was also discussion outside the television studio:
Like here at the non-profit organization Braver Angels in New York.
Democrats and Republicans came together here for a TV duel to talk about and discuss the debate.
The organization wants to enable people to better understand each other’s positions and discover common values.
“I’m here because I’m worried about politics and the elections. I came here hoping to hear more discourse about the decisions before us. And I came here knowing that the role of vice president in the US government is not particularly influential, but it is a question of succession. You know, this is the person who would become president if the person elected was no longer able to fulfill the duties of his office. And I came here to see if any of these candidates will have any influence on the president. I had a feeling that Vance wouldn’t do that, that he would apologize on every issue and defer to the president. And that diminishes my trust.”
“I think they were willing to understand, even if they have different opinions, that there is some commonality and that they both want the best for the country, even if they have different solutions to the same problem.
I felt, as people have said, it felt a bit like the ’90s again, when, like in the ’90s, politicians were kind to each other when they disagreed.
And I have the feeling that we are getting closer to that goal again.
I was very grateful for that.”
“I think in some ways American politics is civilized and barbaric at the same time.
You can see this clearly with Vance and Walls. They said things they agreed on.
They subtly accused the other person of doing something that was fundamentally anti-freedom and anti-American.
That’s exactly what politicians do, you know?
Is this good leadership? Probably not.
Is this necessary in order to be able to act politically?
Probably.
But that shouldn’t be something that affects us as people who have relationships and friendships.
That shouldn’t separate us.
We are not the ones running for Vice President of the United States.
Vice debates are not considered decisive for the election, but the duel should still leave an impression on many voters – as it did on the participants in Braver Angels.
