Mike Pence and Kamala Harris clashed over the Trump administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic during the #VPDebate, as the White House struggled to contain an outbreak that has infected President Trump and dozens of others reut.rs/3nu7FXm 1/9 
The matchup between Pence and Harris unfolded largely free of the chaos that marred last week’s presidential debate. Here are a few standout moments from the debate reut.rs/3llQfKH 2/9
Packing the court: Frustrated that Trump and the Republican-controlled Senate may soon cement a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court, some on the left have called on Biden to expand the court to 11 or 13 seats. Harris declined to say whether she supported that idea 3/9
The relatively sedate atmosphere allowed stark policy differences to come to the fore. On global warming, Pence declined to say that it is caused by human activity - the overwhelming scientific consensus - and said Biden’s proposed fixes would be too expensive 4/9
A fly in the ointment: A stray housefly briefly commanded the U.S. national stage, generating buzz when it perched on Pence’s cropped white hair as he debated Harris - providing comic fodder for late-night hosts and Twitter users alike reut.rs/34ET1UJ 5/9
Following last week’s insult-laden debate between Biden and Trump, both candidates took a relatively low-key approach, greeting each other respectfully. Things eventually heated up, but only to a simmer, not a boil 6/9
Biden, 77, would be the oldest president in U.S. history if he were to win the election. Trump, 74, spent the weekend at a military hospital outside Washington after contracting COVID-19. Both candidates ducked questions about the health of their elderly running mates 7/9
Both candidates also danced around what would happen in the event of a disputed election - a scenario prompted by Trump’s repeated statements that he might not accept the outcome if he does not win. @andysullivan has more reut.rs/3llQfKH 8/9
The #VPDebate reinforced expectations for a tight U.S. election next month that could result in no clear outcome and hurt stock markets reut.rs/30IEvtV 9/9
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