GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Many West Michigan residents are left disappointed after Thursday's presidential debate, seeing the rematch of former president Donald Trump and President Joe Biden plagued by misinformation, personal attacks and worries of an aging incumbent.
Early into the debate, Biden, who is 81, began to lose his train of thought while answering questions—further fueling existing voter concerns of his age. At the other podium, Trump, just three years younger, appeared much more calm and collected, though his statements were plagued by false statements about the economy, Jan. 6th, taxes, the environment and abortion.
A mix of both candidates' issues left many viewers disappointed—like Annie Stormzand, a mother from East Grand Rapids.
"It was really hard to watch. I turned it on and watched a couple snippets, and had to immediately change it," Stormzand said. "It just felt like too much arguing and name calling, and it was just kind of painful."
Stormzand said she was put off by the personal attacks made by candidates, wishing for much more productive conversations on how Trump and Biden imagined America's future.
"Just more decency and kindness and actually answering the question," Stormzand said. "I felt like Trump would say he wouldn't answer the question. He would just try to debunk everything that Biden was saying."
"They just looked like they wanted to put down the other person more than they wanted to talk about their own, like they wanted to show that Biden was worse or Trump was worse than talking about how we can really improve and move forward," Stormzand added.
Stormzand brought up concerns with the civility of the conversation, highlighting how in her mind, flashy comebacks and personal digs work against the best interest of the American people.
"They become SNL skits," Stormzand said. "We have to be kind. We have to do better."
Stormzand also mentioned the impact on future generations. Stormzand said the way the candidates acted was a bad example to both her children and others.
"I have children, and if they're going to watch that and see that the president isn't being, they're not being kind," Stormzand said. "How are we going to teach that to our kids?"
This statement was highlighted by other debate watchers in the city.
"It gets kind of hard after a little bit, because it's like watching two kids, you know, fight with each other after a little while," said Austin Dehaan, a debate watcher on a mission trip to West Michigan. "You know, kids like to call each other names, and that's kind of what it looks like after a little bit."
Dehaan, with his friends Michael Verkaik and Ben Koopman, all believe Trump had the edge in the debate.
"There was, you know, a lot of stuff said from Trump that I think, pleased a lot of people," Dehaan said. "I think he played his abortion card pretty well. I think picking a side where states kind of get to vote on what they what they want to happen, was a good play for him. I think that won a lot of people over."
They also highlighted Trump's demeanor compared to previous debates.
"Trump did a very good job playing it pretty, just neutral and not really super, like, you know, radical," Verkeik said. "It was a lot better than last time, when he was interrupting the entire time."
Koopman said he believes that though the debate was not what some voters hoped for, things are largely set in stone.
"These are not the best two people in America for president," Koopman said. "I feel like at this point you either love Trump or you hate Trump, or you think Joe Biden's fine, or you think he has dementia. If it's just the two of them, I don't think you're going to change much, no matter how many debates you have."
Overall, the three expressed their disappointment on Thursday's events.
"I think there's a point where you just need to say, we're actually here to debate, not insult each other," Verkeik said. "I think there's just needs to be a balance."
John Swartz, a Cooley professor of law, agreed with sentiments shared across West Michigan.
"I think that the public has a right at this point to be concerned," Swartz said. "It was a bad day for both, worse for Biden, but it was a bad day for both, and it reinforced the idea, I don't want either of these guys."
Swartz has been involved in politics since the 1970s. He says while personal attacks have existed in presidential debates forever, Thursday's events highlighted how prevalent it is today.
"People don't have a discourse, they have combat," Swartz said. "In this particular case, it was better than it was four years ago, but it wasn't what it should be."
"I don't think there was a winner," Swartz added. "The American people certainly weren't winners last night."
Swartz highlighted how each candidate suffered losses, with worries of Biden's age growing, and distrust of Trump's messaging growing as well.
"Independents who know in fact that much of what he said were lies become substantially affected by that. They sit there and say, Wait a minute. I've heard this before. I've seen this chaos before. I don't want this chaos again," Swartz said.
Saying that in the next 10 days, Biden's campaign will have to discuss their next steps: To suggest Biden's stepping down from candidacy, or to stick with him until Election Day.
"It's going to be difficult," Swartz said. "I don't believe that the people that left Biden... They're not going to go to Trump. So the general public is divided into two camps ... the people who believe in policy and say, Wait a minute, there's more to policy than blustering."
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the 13 ON YOUR SIDE app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@13onyourside.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter. Subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Watch 13 ON YOUR SIDE for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV Stick, and on your phone.