Pence, Harris face off in VP debate with diverging views of America

Page turned the conversation toward abortion -- as Supreme Court nominee Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a conservative, awaits her confirmation hearing in the Senate next week.

Pence, asked directly what he would want his home state of Indiana to do if Roe v. Wade is overturned, at first did not answer the question. Instead, he applauded Barrett as a nominee and defended her Christian faith.

"Let me say, President Trump and I could not be more enthusiastic about the opportunity to see Judge Amy Coney Barrett, become Justice Amy Coney Barrett," Pence said. "And our hope is in the hearing next week, unlike Justice Kavanaugh received, with treatment from you and others, we hope she gets a fair hearing. And we particularly hope that we don't see the kind of attacks on her Christian faith that we saw before."

Pence later returned to the original question on abortion, making his pro-life stance clear. 

"I couldn't be more proud to serve as vice president to a president who stands without apology for the sanctity of human life," Pence said. "I'm pro-life. I don't apologize for it. And this is another one of those cases where there's such a dramatic contrast."

Harris, in her response, first said it's "insulting" to suggest she or Biden would attack someone's faith -- before arguing Barrett's nomination should wait as issues like abortion are on the table and Americans are already voting.

"People are in the process of voting right now. And so, Joe has been very clear, as the American people are, let the American people fill that seat in the White House and then we'll fill that seat on the United States Supreme Court," she said. 

"There's the issue of choice, and I will always fight for a woman's right to make a decision about her own body. It should be her decision and not that of Donald Trump and Vice President Michael Pence," she added.

Trump tweeted in support of Pence saying he is, "doing GREAT" and Harris, calling her a "gaffe machine," a criticism he uses often to attack her running mate Joe Biden.

Biden has also tweeted in support of his running mate during the debate, saying that Harris is "showing the American people why I chose her as my running mate."

In speaking to American leadership, Pence brought up the case of Kayla Mueller, a humanitarian worker from Arizona who was kidnapped by the Islamic State in Syria in 2013 and died in the terror group's custody. 

Mueller's parents were in the debate's audience as Pence's guests and appeared last month at the Republican National Convention. 

Pence suggested former President Barack Obama and Biden carried blame for Mueller's death, saying they "hesitated for a month" while she was held captive. 

Harris, in her response to the topic of American leadership, first addressed Mueller's family.

"First of all, to the Mueller family, I know about your daughter's case and I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. What happened to her is awful and it should have never happened," Harris said. "And I know Joe feels the same way. And I know that President Obama feels the same way."

In a discussion of foreign policy and the role of American leadership, Harris brought up Trump’s handling of the Iran nuclear deal and criticized the president's “unilateral” approach. 

“He's walked away from agreements,” she said. “We were in the Iran nuclear deal with friends, with allies around the country. And because of Donald Trump's unilateral approach to foreign policy, coupled with his isolationism, he pulled us out and has made America less safe.” 

“So, Susan, it's about relationships and the thing that has always been part of the strength of our nation, in addition to our great military, has been that we keep our word,” she added. “But Donald Trump doesn't understand that because he doesn't understand what it means to be honest.”