From 'How you doing' to 'Will you shut up’: US Presidential debate — as it happened

Here are the highlights from the vicious first debate between Trump and Biden 

Biden calls Trump a 'clown' as candidates spar in first presidential debate

Moderator of US elections debate snaps at Trump for speaking out of time

Trump accuses Biden of taking advantage of an 'electronic earpiece'

'Shut up, man' — Biden accuses Trump of lying

Trump defends Supreme Court pick Barrett

Trump boasts about huge crowd at campaigns

Trump claims Biden wants to shut down America

President Donald Trump claimed several times that Joe Biden wanted to shut down the country to address the coronavirus. "He wants to shut down this country and I want to keep it open," Trump said.

'It's hard to get a word in with this clown': Biden

Trump attacked Biden’s son, Hunter, for his business dealings in Ukraine, which became a target of Republican ire during the impeachment inquiry.

Biden tried to redirect the conversation back to the coronavirus pandemic, saying this was about every American family, not his family.

As Trump repeatedly tried to interject and attack his opponent, Biden said, “It’s hard to get any word in with this clown - excuse me, this person.”

Millions of millions of dollars

Fox's Chris Wallace asked Trump if he'll tell the American people how much he's paid in taxes.

Trump said, “I have paid millions of dollars in taxes.”

Biden released his tax returns a few hours before the debate and called on Trump to do the same. The records show that Biden and his wife, Jill, paid nearly $US300,000 in federal income tax last year and had an adjusted gross income of about $US985,000.

Biden tells the audience that he wants to eliminate Trump's taxes for the wealthy. The president hits back, telling his rival: "If you got in, if you ever became president with your ideas... half of the companies that have poured in here will leave.

"We'll have a depression, the likes of which you've never seen."

Trump and Biden have been frequently interrupting each other. At one point, Biden snapped at Trump saying, “Will you shut up, man?”

'Don't ever use the word smart with me'

Biden is continuing to attack Trump for his handling of coronavirus, noting his comment earlier this year suggesting that people should "inject some bleach in your arm and that would take care of it."

Trump responds by claiming he was being "sarcastic."

Trump then attacks Biden personally, saying: "You went to Delaware State but you forgot the name of your college... Don't ever use the word smart with me, don't ever use that word."

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As the two candidates tussled over healthcare on Tuesday night, Mr Biden said: "Here's the deal: everything he's saying so far is simply a lie.

"I'm not here to call out his lies. Everybody knows a liar."

Trump hits back: "Joe, you're the liar."

With regards to healthcare, Trump said there is no way there are as many as 100 million people with pre-existing conditions, reports Reuters.

Asian shares slipped and the dollar was under pressure on Wednesday in the lead up to the first U.S. presidential debate, as financial markets looked to take a measure of both candidates.

There was no handshake as the two men took the stage and while this was due to Covid-19 restrictions, the absence of the traditional greeting symbolised the bitterness engulfing the country in the final countdown to November 3.

Exactly three and a half hours before former Vice President Joe Biden walked onstage for the first presidential debate, his running mate, Senator Kamala Harris, faced off with three contemporary artists to talk about art.

Hours before his first debate with U.S. President Donald Trump, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Tuesday released his 2019 tax returns and his campaign called on Trump, who has come under fire for not releasing his returns, to do the same.

Instead of the usual auditorium setting, the debate is being hosted by the Cleveland Clinic and Case Western Reserve University in the 27,000-square-foot (2,500-square-meter) atrium of the Sheila and Eric Samson Pavilion on the clinic’s Health Education Campus. Notre Dame, the original debate host, withdrew because of the pandemic.