The Latest on the 2020 presidential election (all times local):
10:20 p.m.
President Donald Trump danced around a question from moderator Chris Wallace about whether he was willing to condemn white supremacists and military groups.
“I would say almost everything I see is from the left wing, not the right wing,” Trump responded. “I’m willing to do anything. I want to see peace.”
When pressed further, Trump said, “What do you want to call them? Give me a name. Give me a name?”
Finally, he said, “Proud Boys — Stand back, stand by, but I’ll tell you what, somebody’s got to do something about Antifa and the left because this is not right-wing problem. … This is a left-wing problem."
Antifa followers have appeared at anti-racism protests, but there’s been little evidence behind Republican claims that antifa members are to blame for the violence at such protests.
10:15 p.m.
President Donald Trump and Vice President Joe Biden are making their pitches to win over Black voters in the coming election, with Biden mockingly questioning: "This man, this man is a savior of African Americans? This man has done virtually nothing."
Biden says that 1 in 1,000 African Americans has died because of the coronavirus, and if Trump doesn't do something quickly, it will be 1 in 500.
Trump turned the discussion from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, to a crime bill passed in 1994 that Biden helped write and get passed that, among other things, increased the penalties for certain drug offenses.
Trump says, "I'm letting people out of jail now," and asserted that Biden had treated the Black community "about as bad as anybody in this country."
10:10 p.m.
President Donald Trump and Joe Biden are trading barbs about each other's relatives.
While Biden was making a point during the first presidential debate in Cleveland about the Trump administration's trade deals with China not having the desired effect, Trump jumped in. He resurrected past claims about the former vice president's son Hunter working overseas.
Trump said Hunter Biden reaped millions in ill-gotten profit from China and other overseas interests, accusations that have been repeatedly debunked. Biden shot back, "None of that is true." He then added of Trump, "His family, we could talk all night."
Trump interrupted to respond that his children gave up lucrative jobs to join government and "help people," which left moderator Chris Wallace pleading, "Mr. President, please stop" trying to restore order on the stage.
Biden then turned to the camera and addressed the audience directly, something he did frequently Tuesday night. "This is not about my family or his family," Biden said. "It's about your family."
10:05 p.m.
President Donald Trump won't say when he will finally make his personal taxes public as he has long promised.
During the first presidential debate Tuesday, Trump was asked specifically about a report in The New York Times that revealed he paid only $750 in personal income taxes each of those years.
All presidents except Trump have publicly released their taxes since the presidency of Richard Nixon.
Trump has said since 2016 that he would eventually release them. But when asked by moderator Chris Wallace when, he said only: "You'll get to see it."
Democratic nominee Joe Biden quickly used that as a point of attack, saying Trump "does take advantage of the tax code" and "pays less tax than a schoolteacher."
Trump shrugged off the attack, saying that all business leaders do the same "unless they are stupid."
10 p.m.
President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden are showcasing vastly different approaches during their first presidential debate in Cleveland.
Trump is being aggressive toward Biden on Tuesday, interrupting the former vice president and repeatedly being admonished by debate moderator Chris Wallace of Fox News to stick to the rules that both campaigns had agreed to.
Biden is taking a more personal approach. At several times during the debate, Biden addressed his comments to "you folks at home" watching on television as he looked straight into the camera.
9:50 p.m.
President Donald Trump says he's had "no negative effect" from massive campaign rallies with thousands of attendees not adhering to social distancing recommendations amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Trump said during Tuesday night's debate against Democrat Joe Biden that he thought masks "are OK," pulling one out from his pocket and saying, "I wear masks when needed."
But Trump also bragged that he's drawn "35 to 40,000 people" at his campaign rallies, saying he brings such large crowds to outdoor events "because people want to hear what I have to say." Trump portrayed Biden's socially distanced events as insignificant affairs where the Democrat "has three people some place."
Former Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain, who attended one of Trump's rallies in June without wearing a mask or social distancing, tested positive for the coronavirus nine days after the rally and died a month later. Neither Trump nor Biden mentioned him.
Biden has held smaller campaign events, requiring attendees to spread out and at times sit in taped-off circles. Calling Trump "totally irresponsible" on managing COVID-19, Biden said the president is "a fool on this" and said Trump only worried about masks in the interest of protecting his own health, not others.
9:35 p.m.
The first presidential debate between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden has gotten off to a contentious start, breaking down after just a few moments with Trump interrupting Biden on several occasions and Biden calling the president a clown and a liar.
As the discussion about the Supreme Court quickly turned to COVID-19, Trump claimed without evidence that 2 million people would have died if Biden were president.
Moderator Chris Wallace pleaded with Trump, stating that COVID-19 would be discussed later in the day. He then asked Trump about whether he had a plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, and the president said, "First of all, I guess I'm debating you, not him, but that's OK. I'm not surprised."
Biden laughed at Trump's jabs. But he also appeared to get upset at times, too.
"Here's the deal, the fact is that everything he's saying so far is simply a lie," Biden said. "I'm not here to call out his lies. Everybody knows he's a liar."
Wallace asked Trump to let Biden finish. "Folks, do you have any idea what this clown is doing?" Biden said.
9:25 p.m.
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden says he is the leader of his party.
Biden made the comment during Tuesday night's debate after President Donald Trump accused him of supporting abolishing private insurance.
Biden noted that he won the Democratic nomination partly by arguing against single-payer health care that many of his rivals sought. The former vice president has instead proposed expanding the Affordable Care Act to provide a public option that people could buy into.
Trump responded that Democrats still want to abolish private health insurance and suggested the party would force Biden to do its bidding.
"My party is me," Biden replied. "Right now, I'm the Democratic Party."
9:20 p.m.
The first face-off for President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden is coming over a clash concerning a president's prerogative to put push through an election-year Supreme Court nominee.
Trump says during a debate Tuesday night in Cleveland that Republicans "won the election and therefore we have the right to choose" Amy Coney Barrett as a replacement for the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Trump added that he felt Democrats "wouldn't even think about not doing it" if given the chance to nominate a justice with just weeks until the election.
Biden and other Democrats have decried Trump's nomination of a new justice given Republicans' refusal to consider President Barack Obama's selection following the 2016 death of Antonin Scalia. Biden didn't mention that during the debate, however.
Biden says that Barrett seems like "a very fine person" but that her nomination after "tens of thousands of people have already voted" was troubling.
9 p.m.
President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden are face-to-face in their first presidential debate, the most pivotal moment so far in an election that turns on a historic pandemic, racial unrest and an economy in shambles.
The two are meeting Tuesday night in Cleveland. It's a key opportunity for Trump to improve his standing in a race that polls show has remained stubbornly unchanged. For Biden, the debate offers a chance to show the steadiness he says the nation needs in contrast to Trump's divisiveness.
Biden welcomed Trump to the stage, saying, "How you doing, man?"
The topics are the records of the candidates, the Supreme Court, the coronavirus pandemic, the economy, "race and violence in our cities," and election integrity.
At issue is the coronavirus pandemic that has killed 205,000 Americans and cost the country millions of jobs. Early voting is underway in many states, with the election 35 days away.
