New Yorkers 'drive in' for VP debate watch party

A mini-caravan of New Yorkers 'drove in' Wednesday (October 7) for a Vice Presidential debate watch party at the Queens Drive-In on the grounds of the New York Hall of Science.

As the attendees told Reuters, the evening afforded them the opportunity to get out of the house while staying in their cars even as New York battles a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

With the lockdown," coming out to the drive-in is "a bit of a release," Brooklyn musician, Ricardo Quineres, told Reuters.

And while the New York crowd was mostly honking for Democrat Vice Presidential candidate, Kamala Harris, attendees were appreciative of the substance of the debate, especially in comparison to the first presidential debate from last week.

On the stage, Vice President Mike Pence and Harris clashed over the Trump administration's handling of the coronavirus pandemic during the debate as the White House struggled to contain an outbreak that has infected President Donald Trump and dozens of others.

The policy-heavy, relatively sedate debate stood in stark contrast to last week's chaotic presidential showdown between Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, which was marred by Trump's constant interruptions and personal insults from both men.

"It's certainly more informative than the first presidential debate," Tom Staggs, a New York carpenter told Reuters.

"I think we're able to see each candidate, who they really are, certainly better than the last one, of course." But Wednesday's confrontation seemed unlikely to alter the dynamics of a race that opinion polls show Biden is winning with less than four weeks to the Nov.

3 election, as both candidates stuck to talking points and avoided major gaffes.

"I think most people have their minds already made up," laid off worker, Jose Guzman, said.

"So I kind of feel like this is more for television and not so much for the issues."