Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images(FARMVILLE, Va.) — The face-off between vice presidential candidates Mike Pence and Tim Kaine is expected to focus more on their campaign platforms and a defense of their respective running mates than the bombast of last week’s presidential debate between their running mates, Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Hillary Clinton.
Throughout the evening, ABC News will take stock of some of the debate’s most memorable lines.
“We trust Hillary Clinton, my wife and I, we trust her with the most important thing in our life. We have a son deployed in the Marines overseas and we trust Hillary Clinton as commander-in-chief. But the idea of Donald Trump as commander-in-chief scares us to death.”
Sen. Tim Kaine shared a similar sentiment during his speech at the Democratic National Convention in July, saying then, “On a personal level, as [my son] is serving our nation abroad, I trust Hillary Clinton with our son’s life. Now you know who I don’t trust? Hmm, I wonder. Donald Trump.”
“I can’t imagine how Gov. Pence can defend the insult-driven, selfish, me-first style of Donald Trump.”
Kaine was quick to attack Trump, honing in on the question of why Pence would align himself with such a divisive figure.
“Well, let me say first and foremost that, Senator, you and Hillary Clinton would know a lot about an insult-driven campaign. It really is remarkable.”
After Kaine’s attack, Pence flipped the script, accusing the Democrats of being the aggressors.
“You are Donald Trump’s apprentice.”
“Do you want a hired president in Hillary Clinton or a ‘you’re fired’ president in Donald Trump?”
Kaine delivered two references to Trump’s former reality TV show, “The Apprentice,” within the debate’s first 20 minutes.
“Well, first, let me say I appreciated the ‘you’re hired, you’re fired’ thing, Senator. You used that a whole lot. I think your running mate used a lot of pre-done lines.”
Pence brushed off Kaine’s attack lines, accusing the Democrat — and Hillary Clinton — of coming to the debates with rehearsed remarks.
“His tax returns showed he went through a very difficult time, but he used the tax code just the way it’s supposed to be used and he did it brilliantly.”
“How do you know that? You haven’t seen his tax returns.”
Attempting to defend Trump against a New York Times report that he claimed a loss so large in 1995 that he could have avoided paying federal income taxes for up to 18 years, Pence said Trump took advantage of every deduction afforded to him. Kaine said Trump’s lack of transparency makes it hard to know for sure.
“Gentlemen, the people at home cannot understand either one of you when you speak over each other. I would please ask you to wait until the other is finished.”
Moderator Elaine Quijano of CBS News stepped in after the first portion of the debate was marked by the candidates frequently interrupting and talking over each other.
“That’s small potatoes compared to Hillary Clinton calling half of Donald Trump’s supporters a ‘basket of deplorables.’”
Pence was responding to Kaine’s claim that Trump had a led an “insult-driven” campaign when he turned the attack around to focus on a line delivered by Clinton at a private fundraiser in New York on Sept. 9.
“You will look in vain to see Donald Trump ever taking responsibility for anybody and apologizing.”
After Pence invoked the “basket of deplorables” remark, Kaine said that Clinton’s comment was a mistake and that she apologized the next day. He then listed a number of statements made by Trump, including insults of Sen. John McCain, President Obama and African-Americans, saying that Trump had never said he was sorry.
“Six times tonight I have said to Governor Pence, I can’t imagine how you can defend your running mate’s position on one issue after the next. In all six cases he’s refused to defend.”
Kaine made the case that Pence was altering the Republican campaign platform during the debate rather than standing behind prior claims made by Trump.
“Senator, that was even beneath you and Hillary Clinton. That’s pretty low.”
Pence said Kaine crossed a line after the Democratic vice presidential nominee sought to raise doubts about Trump’s temperament by paraphrasing a Ronald Reagan quote that “some fool or maniac could trigger a catastrophic event” with the proliferation of nuclear weapons.
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