At each other from start, Clinton, Trump debate
Mr. Trump faced the biggest task in this first presidential debate, to accomplish in one night what many say he has not been able to pull off in 15 months: demonstrating to voters beyond his core supporters that he would be a stable and credible occupant of the White House.
Ms. Clinton has held a narrow edge in most polls leading into the debate.
She needed to break through voters’ perceptions of her as untrustworthy and convince them that her years of political experience are matched by a gut-level understanding of the fears and concerns of everyday Americans.
Mr. Trump was viewed as struggling to answer questions about why he only recently acknowledged that Mr. Obama was born in the United States. For years, Mr. Trump has been seen as the chief promoter of questions falsely suggesting the president was born outside of America.
“He has really started his political activity on this racist lie,” Ms. Clinton charged.
On terror, Mr. Trump said NATO needs to “go into the Middle East with us” to combat the Islamic State group. And he took credit for NATO focusing resources on combating terrorism.
Ms. Clinton said one key to fighting terrorism in the United States is working closely with Muslims living here, whom Mr. Trump has “consistently insulted,” while also taking out IS’s leaders.
Ms. Clinton emphatically accused Mr. Trump of purposely keeping his personal tax returns and business dealings secret from voters, declaring during Monday night’s presidential debate, “There’s something he’s hiding.”
Mr. Trump aggressively tried to turn the openness questions around on Ms. Clinton, who is seen by many voters as secretive. On Friday, the State Department told a federal judge that it found 5,600 work-related emails from a disk of deleted messages recovered from the private email server Ms. Clinton used while secretary of state, raising the possibility of further disclosures on a subject that has dogged the Democrat’s presidential bid. On the same day, The Associated Press reported that three additional former State Department staffers got immunity agreements as part of the FBI investigation, including Clinton chief of staff Cheryl Mills.
Mr. Trump said he would release his tax information when she produces more than 30,000 emails that were deleted from the personal internet server she used as secretary of state.
The Republican has repeatedly said he can’t release his taxes because he is under a routine audit. Tax experts have said there is no reason the businessman cannot make his tax records public during an audit.
On taxes, Mr. Trump said his plan may benefit the wealthy but it is also “a great thing for the middle class” because companies who often move their money overseas because “taxes are so onerous” would invest more in building their businesses.
Ms. Clinton called for lowering taxes for the middle class.
Ms. Clinton was contrite in addressing her controversial email use, saying simply that it was a “mistake.” She notably did not fall back on many of the excuses she has often used for failing to use a government email during her four years as secretary of state.
Mr. Trump’s criticism of Ms. Clinton turned personal in the debate’s closing moments. He said, “She doesn’t have the look, she doesn’t have the stamina” to be president. He’s made similar comments in previous events, sparking outrage from Clinton backers who accused him of leveling a sexist attack on the first woman nominated for president by a major U.S. political party.
Ms. Clinton leapt at the opportunity to remind voters of Mr. Trump’s numerous controversial comments about women, who will be crucial to the outcome of the November election.
“This is a man who has called women pigs, slobs and dogs,” she said.
The candidates weren’t be the only ones under the microscope. Moderator Lester Holt of NBC News was under enormous pressure to maintain control and act as an objective referee.
His voter registration became an issue last week.
“Lester is a Democrat,” Mr. Trump said in a Fox News Channel interview. “It’s a phony system. They are all Democrats.”
Mr. Holt, however, is a registered Republican, according to New York state voting records.
In the debate, at least early on, Mr. Holt largely let the presidential candidates play.
Ms. Clinton was measured and restrained as Mr. Trump repeatedly spoke over her and tried to interrupt her, as well as Mr. Holt, particularly over his early support for the Iraq War. But Ms. Clinton also needled Mr. Trump over his business record and wealth. Also, Mr. Trump’s loud sniffing in the opening minutes got plenty of attention on social media, with some comparing it to Al Gore’s sighing from the 2000 presidential debate.. A businessman and political novice, Mr. Trump continuously cast her as a “typical politician.”
The Republican also appeared to contradict himself on how he might use nuclear weapons if he’s elected president. He first said he “would not do first strike” but then said he couldn’t “take anything off the table.”
Ms. Clinton said Mr. Trump was too easily provoked to serve as commander in chief and could be quickly drawn into a war involving nuclear weapons.
Also, Mr. Trump and Ms. Clinton both denied making statements that they are plainly on record as having said.
Ms. Clinton denied Mr. Trump’s accusation that she called the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal the “gold standard” of trade agreements, and also falsely said that she has called for “making college debt free so more young people can get their education.”
For Mr. Trump, he also falsely disagreed with Ms. Clinton accused him of calling climate change a hoax invented by the Chinese, and he also insisted that “the Fed is doing political things” when there is no evidence to back it up. Also, he said a 1970s racial discrimination case against his real estate business was “brought against many real estate developers,” but it was specific to buildings rented by his father and him.
Also on the subject of trade, Mr. Trump blamed Ms. Clinton for what he says have been “defective” trade agreements that have cost American jobs. Mr. Trump also criticized the North American Free Trade Agreement, which was approved under President Bill Clinton, Ms. Clinton’s husband.
The Republican backed the controversial “stop-andfrisk policing” tactic as a way to bring down crime, while the Democrat said the policy was unconstitutional and ineffective.
Mr. Trump and Ms. Clinton seemed to agree on two potentially combustible political issues: helping families pay forchild care and barring people on the terrorist watch list from buying guns.
Some frequently hot-button issues were barely mentioned during the intense debate. Illegal immigration and Mr. Trump’s promises of a border wall were not part of the conversation. Ms. Clinton was not grilled about her family’s foundation, Mr. Clinton’s past infidelities or her struggle with trustworthiness.
Mr. Trump did not face questions on charitable foundation, which has received approximately $2.3 million from companies that owed money to Mr. Trump or one of his businesses but were instructed to pay Mr. Trump’s tax-exempt foundation instead, people familiar with the transactions said Wednesday.
The televised face-off was the most hotly anticipated moment in an election campaign that has been both historic and unpredictable. Both sides were expecting a record-setting audience, reflecting the intense national interest in the race to become America’s 45th president.
The 90-minute televised debate came six weeks before Election Day and with early voting already getting underway in some states. Despite Ms. Clinton’s advantages, including a sophisticated get-out-the-vote operation and a favorable electoral map, the race is exceedingly close.
Clinton aides spent the days leading up to the debate appealing for the media and voters to hold Mr. Trump to a higher standard than they believe he has faced for much of the campaign.
Mr. Trump’s campaign has accused Ms. Clinton of trying to pre-determine the outcome and said their concerns reflected worries about the Democrat’s debating skills.
In a piece of cheeky psychological warfare leading up to Monday night’s debate, Ms. Clinton turned to what may seem like a surprising place: ESPN.com.
The gambit appeared to be an attempt to reach the kind of male voters with whom polls show Mr. Trump has a big advantage. The fraternity-toned ad also was seen as meant to draw media attention and tweak Mr. Trump with this important voting bloc.
Then, six hours before the debate, Senate minority leader Harry Reid of Nevada — after calling Mr. Trump’s policies and then remarks racist — called Mr. Trump the person a racist, too.
At the same time, Mr. Trump’s economic team offered more math behind his assertion that his tax cuts will mostly pay for themselves, saying trade policy would generate most of the additional wages and corporate profits that feed government revenue.