Trump, Clinton head for decisive showdown
MONDAY’S FACE-OFF COULD BE MOST CONSEQUENTIAL EVENT YET
Democrat Hillary Clinton, suddenly vulnerable in the presidential race, is under pressure to deliver a strong performance against Republican Donald Trump in their first debate on Monday, a moment that could be the most consequential yet of the 2016 election.
Political veterans involved in preparing for past presidential debates said Clinton should drive home how she would run the country during uncertain times and draw a contrast as the steady, experienced alternative to the untested Trump.
For his part, Trump needed to show enough gravitas to convince sceptics he is ready to be commander in chief, they said.
The 90-minute face-off at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, the first of three debates, takes place at a time when Clinton’s oncecomfortable lead in opinion polls over the ex-reality TV star has evaporated.
History shows that a single bad debate performance can alter the trajectory of a US presidential race. Reuters/Ipsos polling shows about 20 per cent of the electorate remains undecided, far higher at this stage in the campaign than the 12 per cent undecided four years ago.
“I am going to do my very best to communicate as clearly and fearlessly as I can in the face of the insults and the attacks and the bullying and the bigotry that we have seen coming from my opponent,” Clinton said on Tuesday on the Steve Harvey Radio show.
Anita Dunn, who helped President Barack Obama prepare for debates against Republican nominee John McCain in 2008, said Obama succeeded at their first debate by steering the conversation repeatedly back to the struggling US economy even though the event was supposed to be about foreign policy.
She said she expected Clinton to try to exploit Trump’s weaknesses and emphasise her strengths. “The contrast between them is what you want to hone,” she said.
The debate will be the best opportunity for two candidates, both widely seen by voters as untrustworthy, to put to rest questions about their fitness for the White House with the November 8 election fast approaching.
Even the candidates’ body language will be closely scrutinised like in past elections.
First off the block
Clinton had a shaky performance at a September 7 NBC Commander in Chief forum where she became prickly in response to questions about her handling of classified emails while serving as US secretary of state.
“Presentation is very important and Hillary has to work on that. Her presentation at the Commander in Chief forum was not very good. She didn’t come off as likeable. She came off as sour and defensive,” O’Donnell said.
Clinton is spending most of this week in debate preparations with a small circle of top aides at her home in New York.
Clinton aides said she is preparing for two scenarios: One in which Trump is measured and serious, and another in which he is freewheeling and makes inflammatory personal attacks.
Trump relied on his famed spontaneity to fire off one-line zingers to dismantle 16 Republican rivals during the primaries, dispatching “low-energy” Jeb Bush or “lying Ted” Cruz and “little Marco” Rubio. He has repeatedly called Clinton “Crooked Hillary” at rallies.
“You’re just not sure who is going to show up,” said Jennifer Palmieri, a senior adviser to Clinton.