Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his running mate Sen. Kamala Harris sat down with ABC’s David Muir and Robin Roberts for their first joint interview since accepting the Democratic nomination.
No question was off limits during the one-hour special and the candidates did not hold back on their thoughts on the direction of the country, President Donald Trump, and how they’ll campaign in amid COVID.
In case you missed it, here are five key moments from the interview:
Biden says the wealthy will pay their fair share of taxes
Mr. Biden was asked about President Trump’s claims that a Biden-Harris administration would raise taxes on every American if they are elected. However, in Sunday’s interview the Democratic presidential nominee shot down those claims and said the wealthy would start to pay their fair share in taxes.
I will raise taxes for anybody making over $400,000,” he said. “Let me tell you why I’m going to do it. It’s about time they start paying a fair share of the economic responsibility we have. The very wealthy should pay fair share, corporations should pay a fair share.”
Muir pressed Biden if anyone below $400,000 would pay more in taxes.
“So no new taxes $400,000 and down?”, Muir asked.
“No new taxes, there would be no need for,” Biden replied.
Biden shuts down rumors he’ll only serve term if elected
If elected, Mr. Biden would the oldest president to ever be elected to the office. Ronald Reagan was 77 when he left office and due to Biden’s age, there were rumors he would only serve one term if he wins. However, he quickly shot that down.
“So when I want to do is make sure when this is over, we have a new Senate, we won back statehouses, we’re in a position where we transition to a period of bringing people up to the visibility that they need to get to be able to lead nationally,” Biden said. “And that’s about raising people up. And that’s what I’m about.”
Muir pressed Mr. Biden if he would serve more than one term.
“So you’re leaving open the possibility you’ll serve eight years if elected?”, Muir asked.
“Absolutely”, Biden answered.
The debate attack is a distraction
Both Mr. Biden and Mrs. Harris were question multiple times on that debate attack heard around the political world. Even President Trump commented Harris treated Biden “very badly” but both dismissed the questioning as a big distraction.
“What is hurtful to me is that black families own one-tenth of the wealth of white families,” Harris said. “What is hurtful to me is that black and Latinos are twice as likely to die from COVID as white families. What is hurtful to me is that when you look at the disparities, and everything from health care to education, to the economic wellbeing of families in America, there are real racial disparities that are rooted in systemic racism. And a failure to address the truths that may be difficult truths.”
Biden answered he understands where Harris was coming from during the debates and the two discussed the matter privately.
“I sense exactly where she’s coming from and I think — look, I think a lot of people, and maybe even the senator at the time didn’t know the depth of my record,” he said. “I’m also someone who has — we have the eighth largest Black population in America in this state. The reason I’m sitting here with you now is because African Americans vote over 90% for me. I don’t take anything for granted.”
Harris responds to Trump’s comments about her
Donald Trump has called Mrs. Harris “nasty,” a sort of “madwoman,” and “a disaster”. Sunday night, she had the chance to respond to him and she kept it classy with her answer.
“I think that there is so much about what comes out of Donald Trump’s mouth that is designed to distract the American people from what he is doing every day,” she said. “That is about neglect, negligence and harm to the American people.”
Biden stuck up for his running mate as he did in their first press conference the day after his selection.
“No president — no president has ever said anything like that,” he said. “No president has ever used those words, and no president has said people coming out of fields with torches and spewing anti semitic bile and met by people who oppose them, and someone dies and he says they’re good people on both sides. No president of the United States has ever said anything like that ever.”
Fears over the upcoming election
There are fears among Democrats that Trump is trying to sabotage or install fear among voters with his unfounded claims of “rigged” mail-in voting, including new restrictions at the Post Office from the Postmaster General, a Trump supporter.
Both Mr. Biden and Mrs. Harris agreed that American people will not allow anyone to stop them from voting in the election.
You know, here’s the thing about Donald Trump. You can — I’m not gonna spend too much time getting into his brain,” Harris said. “I’m just watching what he does and the effect of it. And the effect of what he is doing on this subject is hurting small businesses, seniors, people across our country in rural communities where that is the only method by which they receive mail or packages. This is what’s happening in real time.”
Biden also said Trump’s unproven claims are all a distraction from him currently being down in the polls.
“Three weeks later he said, maybe we should delay the election until he got so laughed out of that position he said well I didn’t really mean that,” he said. “Then he comes along and says we should defund the post office because vote-by-mail as he’s sitting there, signing his absentee ballot he’s mailing the Florida, is fraudulent. Zero, zero evidence that that’s true, and he’s going to do everything he can. And that he also when asked, “Will you leave the White House if you lose?” He said it will depend, or something to that effect.”
