The phrase "argued the first" is not correct and lacks clarity in written English.
It may be intended to reference a specific argument made by the first person in a discussion or debate, but it needs additional context to be clear.
Example: "In the debate, she argued the first point regarding climate change."
Alternatives: "asserted the initial argument" or "presented the first claim."
He was, it might be argued, the first global hero.
He argued : "The first bodies I saw appeared to be elderly men with grey, white hair.
This was, he argued, the first time Taft-Hartley had been used when management was locking out workers from the ports.
"There are two issues upon which Gary McKinnon's legal advisors have argued: the first is that the director of public prosecutions should have tried him in this country.
I had argued the first Bush v. Gore case in the Supreme Court, which the justices unanimously sent back to Florida's judiciary for an explanation of how its approach to the recount could be reconciled with the state's own law.
During a confidential selection process that included a "moot-off" (essentially Supreme Court auditions), lawyers for all of the plaintiffs agreed on Mary Bonauto — who argued the first successful gay-marriage case, in Massachusetts, in 2003, and who has been one of the leading advocates for the cause since its inception — as their main advocate before the high court.
For too long, Bennett argued, the first-past-the-post electoral system had given voters a choice of the lesser of two evils with Labour and the Conservatives.
So do lawyers from the prominent New York firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, who argued the second appeal before the Supreme Court and assisted Mr. Wright at the third trial.
After all, he argued, the second law of thermodynamics implies that the universe has been growing more and more disorganised since its inception.
I could argue the first two points.
Mr Obama has demurred, arguing the first needs time to work.
