TV debates have mattered more than ever before in this year’s US presidential election.
President Joe Biden’s pitiful performance on 27 June effectively knocked the incumbent out of the race for the White House.
Then on 10 September Biden’s replacement, vice president Kamala Harris, proved she is a real contender, baiting her opponent Donald Trump into wild statements such as “they’re eating the pets!”.
The Democrats have recovered in the polls since Harris took over the nomination, including in so-called swing states, to the point that she is now narrow favourite to beat Trump, according to some respected analysts.
Others still reckon the Republican Trump will be re-elected. Either way, all agree the contest is on a knife edge with voting already under way in a handful of less populated states, and opening next week in Illinois.
With things so close, the televised debate next Tuesday could even tip the balance.
“All the needle needs to be moved is 0.1% in either direction, and that could be the difference in four or five states,” according to Steven Maviglio, a Democratic strategist.
More on Jd Vance
Related Topics:
Spreaker
This content is provided by Spreaker, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Spreaker cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Spreaker cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Spreaker cookies for this session only.
Harris and Trump will not be on stage. This latest debate in CBS studios in New York City on 1 October is between their running mates, JD Vance and Tim Walz.
Advertisement
In most years vice presidential debates are sideshows which have little impact on the voters. Not this year.
The rise of Harris to presidential candidate has shown Americans that VPs are important. Just as Trump had to scramble to find a new running mate following stinging condemnation from Mike Pence, the man who served as his vice president for four years.
Adding to the excitement, the two men who will be facing off this week are also the best phrase-makers in this campaign.
Image: Donald Trump and JD Vance. Pic: AP
Vance wrote bestselling book Hillbilly Elegy, based on his rough upbringing in the Appalachians. He likes to launch sweeping attacks on his foes, including dismissing Democratic women as “childless cat ladies”. Taylor Swift embraced this jibe for herself in her recent post endorsing Harris.
Walz probably owes his place on the ticket to the single word “weird”, which he spent the summer sticking on Trump and Vance to devastating effect in multiple media interviews on behalf of the Democratic campaign.
The confrontation between the two men promises to be spicy.
There is a generation gap between them. Walz is 60. Vance is 20 years younger. Walz likes to present himself as a folksy centrist dad. In The Manual, a signature campaign commercial, Walz sets about fixing his old car, “a ’79 International Harvester Scout”, while likening it to creating an opportunity economy for all.
He is also a veteran democratic politician having served 12 years in Washington in the US House of Representatives before being elected Governor of Minnesota in 2018, the post he still holds.
Vance’s career has been meteoric. Four years in US Marine Corps provided his ladder to university. Then he became a corporate lawyer for investment firms.
Following the success of his book, his backers included the controversial tech titans Peter Thiel, Eric Schmidt and Marc Andreessen. After a lightning campaign in 2022, he is currently a first-term Republican US Senator for Ohio.
Image: JD Vance wrote the bestseller Hillbilly Elegy based on his upbringing. Pic: Reuters
Both men served in the military in non-combat roles. Vance was a journalist in uniform during his four years which included deployment to Iraq. Walz belonged to the Minnesota National Guard for 24 years.
The Harris campaign admitted he “misspoke” when he described assault rifles as “weapons of war that I carried in war”.
The two “VP picks” share archetypal middle-American backgrounds, Nebraska and Minnesota for Walz and Kentucky and Ohio for Vance, which were major factors in why they were chosen as running mates. Harris is from California, Trump from New York City and Florida, all of which are regarded as coastal fleshpots by citizens in “flyover states”.
Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona; the main candidates are all concentrating their campaigning on the battleground states – those most likely to “flip” decisively for one party or another, delivering a majority in the electoral college.
Image: Tim Walz during a campaign event in Minnesota in 2016. Pic: AP
This weekend Walz has set up his debate camp in Michigan. In between mock debates in which the Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg is standing in for Vance, Walz will meet and greet the locals in the bayside resort of Harbor Springs. Conveniently there is a “Festival of the Book” taking place which will allow Walz to strut his stuff as a school teacher.
Vance has called up US representative Tom Emmer from Walz’s home state for his prep. The House majority whip should know where his old foe’s vulnerabilities lie.
This debate will not be relaxed. Unusually for a vice presidential encounter, the protagonists will not be sitting down, they will be standing at lecterns. The last time that happened was 2008 with Sarah Palin and Joe Biden.
As with the other debates this year, the Presidential Debates Commission has not been called upon to organise this one. The two sides agreed their own rules with the broadcaster. This time there will be no studio audience, once again, and two moderators: CBS presenters news anchor Norah O’Donnell and Margaret Brennan of Meet The Press.
As Harris continues to challenge Trump to another debate without success, Vance has countered in advance demanding a second debate with Walz on 18 October. The Democrat is acting modest, protesting of Vance “he’s a Yale Law guy. I’m public school teacher”.
Image: Pics: AP/Reuters
Walz hopes to play the part of a schoolmaster chiding a tearaway pupil. He will do well if he can emulate Lloyd Bentsen’s crushing put down of the younger Dan Quayle in their 1988 vice presidential debate: “I knew Jack Kennedy. You’re no Jack Kennedy.”
Walz has fertile territory to exploit. JD Vance has already had to eat many of his wilder statements. He once likened his boss Trump to “Hitler”. For electoral reasons he has U-turned on his book’s thesis that his fellow poor whites were to blame for their own fecklessness.
Republican strategists hope that Vance will counter Walz’s rebukes over sexism and abortion by sticking to mainstream issues such as inflation and immigration.
Vance can boast a nuanced personal record on some social issues including healthcare. But he is also pugnacious and may be unable to resist going after Walz aggressively for what Republicans regard as his left-wing voting record.
Trump’s groundless claims that Harris is “a communist” seem to be impressing Hispanic voters.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:29
Crowd chants ‘we’re not eating cats’
Walz has more to lose and Vance has more to prove in the debate. Harris has embraced her choice of Walz, notably by appearing with him for her first major TV interview. Trump barely mentions Vance at his rallies. In opinion polls Walz has net approval ratings of 10%, Vance is at around minus 35%.
Debates are proving their value in this election year. Americans are paying increasing attention to them. 51.3 million tuned in to Biden/Trump earlier in the summer, 67.1 million watched Harris/Trump earlier this month.
Follow Sky News on WhatsApp
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
An outcome on Tuesday night as vivid as in the two previous debates this year could well be a defining moment for the next presidency.
On the other hand, both veteran Democrats and Republicans will also remember that while Lloyd Bentsen smashed the debate, George H W Bush and Dan Quayle won the election.
At least 104 people have died in the flash floods that have left a trail of destruction across Texas.
Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said the number of bodies found in the area had risen from 75 to 84 – including 56 adults and 28 children.
The have been seven fatalities in Travis County, six in Kendall County, four in Burnet County, two in Williamson County and one in Tom Green County.
Earlier, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt warned that “the situation on the ground remains dangerous” and that there “could be additional public safety threats with additional incoming heavy rain”.
Image: A view inside a cabin at Camp Mystic after the flooding. Pic: Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images
The floods that first struck on Friday have wreaked havoc and left people in a state of grief – with 27 of the confirmed deaths having taken place at a girls’ summer camp in Kerr County.
Among those killed at Camp Mystic were Renee Smajstrla and Sarah Marsh, both eight, Eloise Peck and Lila Bonner, both nine,and the camp’s director Richard Eastland.
More from US
A photo has now emerged showing the inside of the camp on Saturday after the waters hit.
At least 41 people are still missing in the state – including 10 girls from Camp Mystic.
Image: Renee Smajstrla, eight, died in the flash floods at Camp Mystic, Texas. Pic: Family handout
Image: Sarah Marsh, eight, died in the flash floods at Camp Mystic, Texas. Pic: Family handout
In her news conference, Ms Leavitt criticised people who have claimed the Trump administration’s cuts to the National Weather Service (NWS) have played a role in the worsening the disaster.
It comes after Texas officials criticised the NWS by claiming it failed to warn the public about the impending danger.
Meanwhile, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer asked the Department of Commerce’s acting inspector general on Monday to probe whether staffing vacancies at the NWS’s San Antonio office contributed to “delays, gaps, or diminished accuracy” in forecasting the flooding.
The NWS did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr Schumer’s letter, but earlier defended its forecasting and emergency management.
Image: Flooding near Kerville, Texas. Pic: US Coast Guard/AP
Ms Leavitt has told reporters that claims Mr Trump was responsible for any issues related to the flash floods response were “depraved and despicable”.
“It is not [a political game], it is a national tragedy,” she said.
The press secretary also claimed, in relation to some NWS offices being reportedly understaffed, that one place actually had “too many people”.
“Any person who has deliberately lied about the facts around the catastrophic event, you should be deeply ashamed,” she said.
Image: Rescuers at Camp Mystic along the Guadalupe River in Texas after a flash flood swept through the area. Pic: AP
Image: Members from Texas Game Wardens of the Law Enforcement Division works following flash flooding, in Kerrville, Texas. Pic: Reuters
She also said that Mr Trump was going to visit Texas “later in the week”.
Previously, Mr Trump said it was likely he would visit on Friday.
Image: Car is wedged in the ground following deadly floods in Texas
Image: Karoline Leavitt in the press briefing room
Texas Senator Ted Cruz spoke at a news conference and said: “Texas is grieving right now, the pain, the shock of what has transpired these last few days has broken the heart of our state.
“Those numbers [the number of dead] are continuing to go up… that’s every parent’s nightmare, every mum and dad.”
Image: A view inside a cabin at Camp Mystic after the flooding. Pic: Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images
Image: Damaged vehicles and debris are seen roped off near the banks of the Guadalupe River after flooding in Ingram, Texas. Pic: AP
He said he had picked up his own daughter from a camp in the area last week.
Mr Cruz added: “You know what I’d do? What I did when this happened? Just go hug your kids.
“Because I’ve got to tell you, I hugged my girls with tears in my eyes.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:04
Texas flooding: Aerial footage of rescues
Dalton Rice, the city manager of Kerrville in Kerr County, was asked whether evacuation warnings could have been issued earlier.
He said: “It’s very tough to make those calls because we also don’t want to cry wolf.
“You know, we want to make sure that we activated [it] at the right time.”
He added: “We had first responders getting swept away, responding to the first areas of rainfall. That’s how quick it happened.
“They were driving to these areas and one of them got swept off the road.”
Videos and satellite imagery show how quickly Donald Trump’s detention centre in Florida has been constructed – as experts suggest the design of the site is flawed and will compromise the safety of people being held there.
Sky News’ Data and Forensics team has verified footage posted on social media that shows water covering the ground near electricity cables during a storm as the first detainees were due to arrive.
The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), run by Governor Ron DeSantis, posted on X that detainees were at the site on 3 July just before 1pm local time (6pm UK time).
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
Donald Trump held a tour of the facility on 1 July that took journalists around “Alligator Alcatraz”. Its name is a reference to both the local reptile population and the former maximum-security Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in San Francisco Bay, California.
The tour showed the rapid construction of the centre, designed to accommodate up to 3,000 detainees. The purpose of the site is to house individuals detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
James Uthmeier, Florida’s attorney general, posted on X: “And in just a week, Alligator Alcatraz was built.”
Political commentator Benny Johnson, who was on the tour, praised the eight-day turnaround. “I don’t think anyone realises how impressive Alligator Alcatraz is,” he said.
More from US
Amid those positive comments, videos emerged highlighting flooding in the centre, with electricity cables covered with water on the day of the tour.
The flooding was said to have been caused by a small storm. However, the state department claims the structures and tents can withstand category two hurricanes, reaching 110mph winds.
FDEM spokesperson Stephanie Hartman wrote in a statement that “vendors had tightened any seams at the base of the structures that allowed water to come in during the storm”. She described the water intrusion as minimal.
Steff Gaulter, a Sky News meteorologist, said: “In the last 10 years, we’ve seen 13 hurricanes that have hit Florida. Seven of them have been category three or higher.
“As well as needing to know how strong these storms are as they come, it’s also very unpredictable, their track can change at the last minute.”
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the Structural Engineering Institute (SEI) have said structures in risk category two – which Alligator Alcatraz falls under – need to withstand 121mph wind gusts.
If the housing tents exceed 300 occupants per tent, the guidelines go up to 167mph.
Ms Gaulter explained: “You don’t necessarily need a hurricane in order to see a gust of wind over 100mph. In the lowest category of hurricane, category one, the range of winds would be between 74mph and 95mph. But even in that category, you can easily get a gust of wind up to 120mph.”
Dr Patrick McSharry, Professor at Carnegie Mellon University and former head of catastrophe risk financing at Oxford University, told Sky News that in a hurricane “there’s no way that a tent is going to be in any way something that you would advise someone to be in”.
“It’s more the case of having a plan in place that can be mobilised really fast to get people out of that dangerous situation.”
The site is also located in a hurricane-prone region as defined by ASCE.
Discussing building regulations, Dr McSharry said: “We’re dealing here potentially with human lives so it’s an even more sensitive calculation I think that needs to be made.”
Image: The blue pin marks Alligator Alcatraz. The key shows average wind speeds. Credit: ASCE.
Sky News put these concerns to Ron DeSantis and the Florida state department, but did not receive responses.
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Sky News: “Alligator Alcatraz is a state-of-the-art facility that will play a critical role in fulfilling the president’s promise to get the worst criminal illegal aliens out of America as fast as possible.
“President Trump is grateful to partner with [Homeland] Secretary [Kristi] Noem and Ron DeSantis on this important project.”
Satellite imagery obtained by Sky News shows the rapid construction of the centre, which was formerly Dade-Collier Training Airport.
Five days after the centre was announced by Florida’s attorney general James Uthmeier, more than 60 new trailers can be seen on the right-hand side of the runway.
Satellite imagery obtained by Sky News also shows that from 24 June to the opening date on 1 July, more than seven large housing tents were put up at the site.
Image: Satellite imagery showing the site on 24 June. Credit: Maxar
Image: An aerial photo of the site on 1 July. Credit: AP
The site is reportedly set to open with 3,000 beds, expanding to 5,000 by early July.
It is also reported that the site will cost an estimated $450m (£330m) per year to operate, with a bed costing $245 (£180) per day.
The bill is reported to be covered by the state of Florida, which plans to get money back from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Tessa Petit, director of the Florida Immigrant Coalition, told Sky News: “It was constructed too [quickly]. This is a sign that we’re seeing a disaster [waiting to] happen as we look at it.
“Usual detention centres come up with, you know, their bricks and mortar, right? This is not bricks and mortar. This is just tents and mobile homes that are assembled on an airstrip.”
“There’s a detention of immigrants in a place that has been in the past ravaged by hurricanes and we’re getting into hurricane season,” Ms Petit added.
Follow the World
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
She is concerned that medical support and sanitary provisions, like a sewage system, will not have been properly installed.
“You can’t build a sewage system that can sustain 3,000 people in eight days. You can’t dig in the Everglades. So, what are going be the additional sanitary conditions?” she said.
There are also sustainability concerns about the site.
The Centre for Biological Diversity has filed a lawsuit in US District Court to protect the Florida Everglades. They state it is “a reckless plan to build a massive detention centre for people caught in immigration raids”.
Tania Galloni, an attorney working with the Centre for Biological Diversity, stated the proposed plan “has not undergone the environmental review required by federal law, and the public has had no chance to provide feedback”.
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
Israel’s prime minister has nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Benjamin Netanyahu made the announcement at a White House dinner, and the US president appeared pleased by the gesture.
“He’s forging peace as we speak, and one country and one region after the other,” Mr Netanyahu said as he presented the US leader with a nominating letter.
Mr Trump took credit for brokering a ceasefire in Iran and Israel’s “12-day war” last month, announcing it on Truth Social, and the truce appears to be holding.
The president also claimed US strikes had obliterated Iran’s purported nuclear weapons programme and that it now wants to restart talks.
“We have scheduled Iran talks, and they want to,” Mr Trump told reporters. “They want to talk.”
Iran hasn’t confirmed the move, but its president told American broadcaster Tucker Carlson his country would be willing to resume cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.
More from World
But Masoud Pezeshkian said full access to nuclear sites wasn’t yet possible as US strikes had damaged them “severely”.
Away from Iran, fighting continues in Gaza and Ukraine.
Mr Trump famously boasted before his second stint in the White House that he could end the Ukraine war in 24 hours.
Critics also claiming President Putin is ‘playing’ his US counterpart and has no intention of stopping the fighting.
However, President Trump could try to take credit for progress in Gaza if – as he’s suggested – an agreement on a 60-day ceasefire is able to get across the line this week.
Indirect negotiations with Hamas are taking place that could lead to the release of some of the remaining 50 Israeli hostages and see a surge in aid to Gaza.
America’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, is to travel to Qatar this week to try to seal the agreement.
Whether it could open a path to a complete end to the war remains uncertain, with the two sides criteria for peace still far apart.
President Netanyahu has said Hamas must surrender, disarm and leave Gaza – something it refuses to do.
Mr Netanyahu also told reporters on Monday that the US and Israel were working with other countries who would give Palestinians “a better future” – and indicated those in Gaza could move elsewhere.
“If people want to stay, they can stay, but if they want to leave, they should be able to leave,” he added.