--- title: What the Debate Made Clear About a Second Trump Term description: ‘Tuesday’s debate made clear that the stakes of the November election could not be higher,’ writes Barbara McQuade. canonical: https://time.com/7020197/debate-second-trump-term-essay/ author: Barbara McQuade article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2024-09-11T16:00:26.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-19T07:46:39.535Z article:section: Ideas og:title: What the Debate Made Clear About a Second Trump Term og:description: ‘Tuesday’s debate made clear that the stakes of the November election could not be higher,’ writes Barbara McQuade. og:url: https://time.com/7020197/debate-second-trump-term-essay/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55e3f02a1251a9b3/698a5ac986f68edbf66f5907/donald-trump-kamala-harris-presidential-debate-2024-10.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Election 2024 Debate og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: What the Debate Made Clear About a Second Trump Term twitter:description: ‘Tuesday’s debate made clear that the stakes of the November election could not be higher,’ writes Barbara McQuade. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt55e3f02a1251a9b3/698a5ac986f68edbf66f5907/donald-trump-kamala-harris-presidential-debate-2024-10.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # What the Debate Made Clear About a Second Trump Term > Sponsored content. 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A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=3151bc1e-8490-43d1-b7a1-9c704c0d7b8a&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1) ## Video: The Biggest Moments From the First Debate Between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump [Watch (HLS stream): The Biggest Moments From the First Debate Between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/tOI0PQNs.m3u8) (2:46)  _Published 2024-09-11. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump faced off in their first—and possibly only—debate on Tuesday night, tackling issues like abortion, immigration, the economy, and foreign policy. The debate, hosted by ABC News in Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, was also the first time the two candidates have ever met in person, after Trump broke tradition in 2021 by skipping the inauguration of his successor._ by [Barbara McQuade](https://time.com/author/barbara-mcquade/) ## Barbara McQuade Sep 11, 2024 4:00 PM UTC Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump faced off in their first—and possibly only—debate on Tuesday night, tackling issues like abortion, immigration, the economy, and foreign policy. The debate, hosted by ABC News in Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, was also the first time the two candidates have ever met in person, after Trump broke tradition in 2021 by skipping the inauguration of his successor. by [Barbara McQuade](https://time.com/author/barbara-mcquade/) ## Barbara McQuade Sep 11, 2024 4:00 PM UTC Tuesday’s [debate](https://time.com/7019837/harris-trump-debate-highlights/) made clear that the stakes of the November election could not be higher—a second term for Donald Trump will mean a president unchecked by the criminal law. During the faceoff between the former president and Vice President Kamala Harris, each candidate discussed their views about abortion, immigration, and the economy. But one moment laid bare the consequences of returning Trump to the White House. Harris pointed to the Supreme Court’s [decision](https://time.com/6994189/supreme-court-donald-trump-presidential-immunity-decision/) in July 2024 holding that a president is immune from criminal prosecution for official acts. Then she warned: “Understand what it would mean if Donald Trump were back in the White House with no guardrails, because certainly we know now the court won't stop him. It's up to the American people to stop him.” In the Supreme Court’s view, immunity is required to ensure that a president may engage in “bold and unhesitating action.” The dissenting justices noted that the Court’s decision means that a president could not be criminally prosecuted for using his official power to, for example, order Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival, organize a coup to hold onto power, or accept a bribe in exchange for a pardon. The majority called these examples “extreme hypotheticals.” But they did not disagree. After Republican senators twice demonstrated their reluctance to convict a member of their own party for misconduct in office, the elimination of criminal prosecution has transformed the presidency into a position of unbridled power. A return to the White House would mean that Trump would certainly direct his attorney general to dismiss the federal criminal cases against him. Trump has been charged in federal court with unlawfully retaining national defense information and conspiring to interfere with the 2020 presidential election, both of which remain pending in the courts. During the debate, he referred to these prosecutions as the “[weaponization](https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/harris-trump-presidential-debate-election-2024/card/trump-claims-weaponization-in-criminal-cases-T93Trb3k06aNm6Y6LhPM)” of the Justice Department, [even arguing](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/09/10/us/harris-trump-debate) without basis that the criminal cases against him in New York and Georgia were directed by the Department of Justice. **_Read More:_** [_Trump Spent the Debate Walking Into Traps Harris Laid For Him_](https://time.com/7019837/harris-trump-debate-highlights/) During Trump’s first term, Special Counsel Robert Mueller investigated Trump for potential crimes for obstructing [Mueller’s investigation](https://time.com/5610317/mueller-report-myths-breakdown/) into conspiring with Russia to interfere with the 2016 election. Following the Court’s recent immunity decision, a federal criminal investigation would not be possible because a president could not be charged for his directives to the Department of Justice. And if such an investigation were to begin, a president could overtly pull the plug without criminal consequence. As a result, Trump would be undeterred from engaging in the very parade of horribles imagined by the dissenting justices. In another Trump presidency, he could also make good on his threats to prosecute his rivals without fear of criminal accountability. [In June](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/06/06/trump-hannity-retribution-biden/), Trump said in an interview, “Look, when this election is over, based on what they’ve done, I would have every right to go after them,” repeating his claim that the criminal cases against him are politically motivated. [Trump has also said](https://www.cnn.com/2024/06/05/politics/trump-prosecute-political-opponents/index.html), “It’s a terrible, terrible path that they’re leading us to, and it’s very possible that it’s going to have to happen to them,” and [has told supporters](https://www.c-span.org/video/?c5060238/pres-trump-i-justicei-retribution), “I am your retribution.” Without evidence of criminal misconduct, such prosecutions would be unlikely to pass the review of a grand jury, which must find that evidence establishes probable cause to believe that a crime has been committed. And even if a case made it past a grand jury, a judge would surely dismiss a case brought solely for political reasons on the basis of selective or vindictive prosecution. But even subjecting a political opponent to malicious criminal prosecution would harm their reputation, require them to pay legal fees, waste scarce government resources on baseless charges, undermine the reputation of the criminal justice system, sow discord in society, and distract our government from addressing real problems. Finally, a return to the Oval Office for Trump would likely mean clemency for the defendants who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021\. Trump distanced himself from the attack during the debate, claiming that all he did was give a speech, but he also blasted law enforcement for the death of Ashley Babbitt, a rioter who was shot and killed while attempting to climb through a broken window to breach the Speaker’s Lobby during the attack. Though, just this past July, Trump has said he would “[absolutely](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/donald-trump-says-absolutely-pardon-jan-6-rioters-rcna164565)” pardon the attackers who are innocent. To date, more than 1,200 people have been convicted of charges that include assaulting police officers, obstructing official proceedings and seditious conspiracy. In [Trump’s view](https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/Politics/live-updates/trump-harris-2024-presidential-debate-113525682/claim-ashley-babbitt-was-shot-by-an-outofcontrol-police-officer-that-should-have-never-ever-shot-her-its-a-disgrace-113574229?offset=115), “Ashley Babbitt was shot by an out-of-control police officer that should have never, ever shot her. It's a disgrace.” In fact, the disgrace was the attack on democracy and the rule of law, which requires us to settle disputes through arguments in courts of law, not through brute force in the halls of Congress. Trump seeks to return to the world’s most powerful office. The debate showed that this time, the courts will not be able to protect the American people. ## Transcript Coma Harris. So good debate. You have fun. Thank you. She's going to my philosophy now. In fact, I was going to send her a mega hat. She's gone to my philosophy. But if she ever got elected, she'd change it, and it will be the end of our country. She's a marxist. What you're going to hear tonight is a detailed and dangerous plan called Project 2025 that the former president intends on implementing if he were elected again. Have nothing to do with Project 2025. That's out there. I haven't read it. I don't want to read it purposely. I'm not going to read it. This was a group of people that got together. They came up with some ideas. I guess some good, some bad. They have abortion in the ninth month. They even have, and you can look at the governor of West Virginia, the previous governor of West Virginia, not the current governors doing an excellent job. But the governor before, he said, the baby will be born, and we will decide what to do with the baby. In other words, we'll execute the baby. Is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it's born. One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree. The government and Donald Trump certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body. In Springfield, they're eating the dogs, the people that came in, they're eating the cats. They're eating They're eating the pets of the people that live there. ABCDs did reach out to the city manager there. He told us there been no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured, or abused by individuals within the immigrant community. I've seen people on television. Let me just say here. Well, I think this is so rich, coming from someone who has been prosecuted. For national security crimes, economic crimes, election interference has been found liable for sexual assault, and his next big court appearance is in November at his own criminal sentencing. I'm going to actually do something really unusual, and I'm going to invite you to attend one of Donald Trump's rallies, 'cause it's a really interesting thing to watch. You will see during the course of his rallies, he talks about fictional characters like Hannibal Lector. He will talk about windmills cause cancer. And what you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom. And I will tell you, the one thing you will not hear him talk about is you. I probably took a bullet to the head because of the things that they say about me. They talk about democracy. I'm a threat to democracy. They're the threat to democracy. I was a fake Russia, Russia, Russia investigation. We do a lot. 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