The Loser of the First Presidential Debate: America

2020 has been one of the toughest years, if not the toughest year in modern American history. Racial tension is at an all time high, and COVID-19 is ravaging the country, taking 200,000 American lives. Crime on the rise. We desperately need a leader to help us get us through these tough times. 

Yesterday’s debate was the perfect opportunity for President Donald J. Trump and Democratic Presidential nominee former Vice President Joseph R. Biden to show they are the leader this country needs moving forward. However, yesterday neither Mr. Trump nor Mr. Biden showed they were the leader this country needs. 

Instead of laying out solutions to help solve our problems, both candidates resorted to name calling and bickering. Chris Wallace, the moderator for the debate, was like a babysitter trying to stop squabbling toddlers. ABC News host George Stephanopoulos, who has been involved in politics for over thirty years and moderated multiple presidential primary debates, said after the debate, “That was the worst presidential debate I have ever seen in my life.”  

What was most frightening was that the debate showed us that our country has no real direction going forward. Many liberals and conservatives can agree there were no winners in this debate. There were only losers, the main loser being America. 

This debate represents the state our country is in — a state of chaos with no respect for each other whatsoever. It was disappointing to say the least for us Americans to see our President attack Mr. Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, on his drug addiction, rather than denounce white supremacists. It was a spit in the face to those who have suffered or experienced racism in this country. 

Mr. Biden should have kept his cool as well because calling Mr. Trump a “clown” and saying he is “not smart” is not going to help anything. Instead we Americans want to hear answers, we don’t want to hear insults. If we want to stop being the laughing stock of the world and be the best country we proclaim to be we must elect a leader who will solve our problems and make us the best country in the world.

The United States right now is as broken as it was in the years leading up to the Civil War. President Lincoln once said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” America is currently divided and we are falling. We need a leader to inspire and unite us more than ever so we can stand back up and return to our former glory. 

Unity, however, lies in the hands of we the people. We can choose to keep attacking each other for different opinions and further divide ourselves, or we can wake up and realize we are just hurting ourselves and finally unite. At the end of the day, no matter what race, religion, sexuality, or political party you are, we are all Americans. 

As Americans it is our duty to go out and vote for the right person for this country. Whether you believe it’s Mr. Biden or Mr. Trump is up to you, but please vote because the future of our nation depends on it. 

Don’t let this debate discourage you from voting because no matter how bad it or frightening it was, we need to be the voice for the millions of young people and other people who cannot vote. We must to be the change we desperately need.