Final Presidential Debate: What You Should Know

By Katelyn Crume, Haley McAllister, Brenden McRay, and Thomas Weber

The second 2020 presidential debate will take place on Thursday, October 22, from 9 to 10:30 p.m. ET. It will be held at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, and moderated by NBC news host Kristen Welker.

How to watch the debates

Livestream on CSPAN https://www.c-span.org/debates/ or YouTube. The debates will be broadcasted on all major networks and their corresponding streaming channels.

Join JMU Community Livestream Discussions

Join a discussion with the JMU community on Discord during and after the debates: https://discord.com/invite/sYEC27H.Once you are verified in Discord, look for the JMU channel.

Join conversations on social media using #JMUDebateWatch & #DukesVote.

Topics for 10/22 Debate

• Fighting COVID-19
• American Families
• Race in America
• Climate Change
• National Security
• Leadership

Background on Debate Topics

Below are some key facts and information to consider as you watch the debate and hear responses from the candidates about potential topics.

Fighting COVID-19

As of October 18, 2020, Coronavirus cases have increased to 8,081,489. 218,511 people have now died from the virus, and infection numbers continue to climb – especially impacting elderly, minority, and low-income populations. Dr. Michael Osterholm, director for the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, warns that the next 6 to 12 weeks will be the worst of the pandemic.

• There is discrepancy on how masks and quarantine phases should be enforced, or if they should be enforced at all. There is also discrepancy on whether regulations should be enforced at the state or federal level, with many states differing on how they should control their own outbreaks and inter-state travel.
• According to The New York Times, a key issue in the months ahead is the false sense of complacency regarding the virus. Americans are deeply fatigued by the pandemic. This makes returning to the restricted social guidelines much more difficult than in the spring.
• A Pew Research Center survey found that 62 percent of voters say the Coronavirus outbreak and the response to it is a major factor in who they will vote for.
• In regards to a vaccine, the New York Times has reported that we are not likely to get one until next year, according to health officials and companies supporting the vaccine trials. Also, this vaccine will be in very short supply for the first few months following its release to the public, according to CDC Director Dr. Redfield.
• A new Pew Research Center survey finds that, overall, one-in-four adults have had trouble paying their bills since the coronavirus outbreak started, a third have dipped into savings or retirement accounts to make ends meet, and about one-in-six have borrowed money from friends or family or gotten food from a food bank.
• It was announced October 2nd that President Trump tested positive for COVID-19 causing the stock market to plummet.
• The Institute for Economics and Peace reports that despite the devastation to the economy, the United States has enough favorable economic conditions pre-COVID that enable the country to strongly recover from the Coronavirus.

American Families

• According to Pew Research Center, the share of children living in a two-parent household is at the lowest point in more than half a century, with 69 percent in this type of family arrangement today, compared with 73 percent in 2000 and 87 percent in 1960.
• In 2014, women made up half of the work force and were increasingly the household breadwinners but made less than men.
• According to Pew Research Center, 40 percent of families with children under 18 at home include mothers who earn the majority of the family income. This share is up from 11 percent in 1960 and 34 percent in 2000.
• Between August and September, 865,000 women dropped out of the labor force, according to a National Women’s Law Center analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics September jobs report.
• According to American Enterprise Institute and the research center NORC at the University of Chicago, 85 percent of survey respondents indicate that “to have freedom of choice in how to live” is essential to achieving the American dream, and 83 percent indicated that “a good family life” was essential.

Race in America

• The #BlackLivesMatter civil rights movement started in 2015 with a hashtag on Facebook. This summer protests erupted across the nation following the death of George Floyd.
• Breonna Taylor, a Black woman shot and killed by Louisville police officers in her home in March of 2020, sparked protests and discussions across the nation about police reform. Her family will receive a $12 million settlement from the city of Louisville.
• Black Americans are more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19.
• The composition of the U.S. electorate is increasing both in race and ethnicity. Hispanic, Black, Asian, or other race or ethnicity account for 76 percent of growth in the U.S. voter population.
• Disparities exist in the household wealth of Americans. White average wealth in the U.S. is 7 times greater than average Black wealth.
• The Economic Policy Institute found that in the first quarter of 2020, Black workers had the highest unemployment rate at 6.3 percent, followed by Hispanic workers at 4.8 percent, White workers at 3.1 percent, and Asian workers at 2.9 percent.
• In May 2020, the National Center for Education Statistics found that the highest national adjusted cohort graduation rate was Asian/Pacific Islander students at 92 percent, followed White students at 89 percent, Black students at 79 percent, and American Indian/Alaska Native students at 74 percent.

Climate Change

• In just the past few decades we have seen a vast degradation of our environment. This can be largely attributed to the rise in temperature. Since the 19th century, earth has warmed by 1.5 degrees (Fahrenheit) and is on pace to be up 2.7 degrees (Fahrenheit) by 2030.
• Some of the effects of climate change are irreversible and can leave a lasting impact for generations to come. Among these changes are; temperatures continuing to rise, a frost-free season, changes in precipitation patterns, more droughts/heat waves, sea level rising by 1-8 feet, and the melting of the arctic region.
• Climate change has no boundaries and has already started taking effect in America. Wildfires have become more intense across California and their seasons are prolonged. While hurricanes are more prominent and deal more damage across the south. Without certain policies put in place to reduce the effects of climate change they will only get worse.
• The concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is the highest in human history. It stands at 416 parts per million, as of May 2020.
• 2019 was the second warmest year on record. In fact, the five of the warmest years on record have all occurred since 2015.
• In 2015 the United States, along with 189 countries, agreed to what is known as the Paris Agreement. In 2017, Trump has stated that he plans to pull America out of this which he is eligible to do so on November 4, 2020.
• The Green New Deal is a major policy that will be discussed that essentially provides the basis for how America will tackle climate change. The goal of this deal is to set America’s carbon emissions to a net zero. Some of the solutions may include electric cars, high-paying jobs, and ensure that clean air/water are basic human rights.

National Security

• The Government Accountability Office identified 26 threats that government agencies view as the biggest threats to the security of the United States. The four main categories for these threats are Adversaries’ Political and Military Advancements, Dual-Use Technologies, Weapons, and Events and Demographic Changes.
• The U.S. has been monitoring China’s global expansion as a threat to our security, in 2017 their imports and exports were valued at $4.1 trillion or 12.4 percent of global trade.
• Russian intervention has become one of the United State’s biggest challenges when it comes to warfare, as they have increased their political and military presence on a global scale.
• The decade-long U.N. arms embargo against Iran recently expired and the U.S is currently threatening sanctions on anyone that aids Iran’s weapons program. Tensions between the U.S. and Iran have risen since the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear agreement in 2018.
• On October 10th, Kim Jong Un displayed the newest examples of the North Korean nuclear threat with a parade of weapons, including two ballistic missile frames. They are similar to the one North Korea test-fired in 2017, which drew concern from the U.S. and other countries.
• Terrorist organizations have been able to use online communications to their advantage in recent years, in means of recruitment or to spread information through propaganda online.
• Information operations are a threat for the U.S. as countries like Russia and China have used online communications, such as social media, to engage in information warfare.

Leadership

• Internationally, views of the United States as leader of the world have plummeted, according to a study by the Pew Research Center. In the 13 countries surveyed, majorities or pluralities even named China as the world’s leading economic power.
• Another study conducted by the Pew Research Center finds that 59 percent of Americans have little to no confidence in the political wisdom or political leadership of their fellow citizens.
• 75 percent of U.S. adults feel that trust in the federal government is shrinking. However, an encouraging 68 percent feel that this is a pressing issue, and that trust in the federal government must be repaired to solve the problems that the U.S. is facing.
• According to a study conducted by YouGov, Americans feel that the most important quality in a leader is the ability to take responsibility. The second most important quality is honesty, and the third is competence.

Discussion Questions

• What did you learn by watching the debate or joining in the discussion?
• How did media coverage influence your assessment of the debate or of the candidates’ performance?
• How did online conversations and social media posts influence your assessment of the debates or of the candidates’ performance?
• Did you learn anything new about either candidate or the topics they discussed, and if so what?
• What was your biggest takeaway from the debate?
• What important differences are there between the first debate and this debate? Are there any changes that are concerning?
• What questions went unanswered during this debate? Why were these questions not addressed?
• How well did both candidates perform? How does this compare to the previous debate?
• How did the debate reinforce or challenge your beliefs about the candidates?

How to Vote

Vote early in-person at the local registrar where you are registered. For a list of offices in Virginia localities, visit: https://vote.elections.virginia.gov/voterinformation/publiccontactlookup. If you are registered to vote in Harrisonburg City, the registrar’s office is at City Hall at 409 S Main St., Harrisonburg, VA 22801. If you are registered in Rockingham County, visit the registrar’s office in the county administration building at 20 E. Gay Street.

Request an absentee ballot before the deadline from the local registrar where you are registered and return your ballot by mail. In Virginia, the deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail is October 23. Track your Virginia absentee ballot here: Absentee Ballot Lookup.

More information about voting and frequently asked questions can be found at the Dukes Vote website: https://www.jmu.edu/vote/voting-guide.shtml or contact us at civic@jmu.edu.