With less than a month until election day, this year’s presidential election has undoubtedly tested the limits of the American public. It has been a season filled with side eyes, shade, and blatant disrespect thrown from one candidate to another. As the third and final presidential debate is scheduled to air this coming Wednesday, October 19, it is important now more than ever to watch and participate in order to develop your own opinion of this election year’s presidential candidates. If you missed the past 2 televised events, there’s no need to fear—here is a comprehensive list of everything that you need to know in order to watch the upcoming debate.
The First Debate:
The first presidential debate on September 26, 2016, proved to be worth the wait as Trump and Clinton shared the stage for the first time in the election season. While neither candidate had any reservations about dragging each other through the dirt, both were ultimately forced to face some of the claims and statements they had previously issued in during the election. Here are 4 important moments from the 90-minute segment.
1. The “Presidential Look”
When asked by moderator Lester Holt about his previous comments on Clinton’s lack of a “presidential look,” Trump modified his statement and said that his opponent did not have the "stamina” to be the president of the United States. In response, Clinton listed highlights from her political experience, stating that Trump “can talk to me about stamina” when he has accomplished as much as she has. She then took the opportunity to attack Trump, saying, “He tried to change from looks to stamina, but this is a man who has called women pigs, slobs and dogs,” and included his insults to former Miss Universe Alicia Machado about her ethnicity and weight.
2. The Birther Movement
When asked about his role in the birther movement, the movement that argued Obama’s illegitimacy to be president of the United States because he was not an American citizen, Trump denied starting the rumor and tried to blame Clinton for it instead. In the end, Trump argued that he succeeded in what he set out to do, to get Obama to produce his birth certificate, while Clinton failed to do the same. He said, “I say nothing, because I was able to get it… I think I did a good job."
3. The Iraq War
While Clinton discussed Trump’s support of the Iraq War, he continued to interrupt her and repeating the word “wrong” into the microphone. Despite public records saying otherwise, Trump has maintained that he has always been against the invading Iraq, consistently tearing down Clinton for her support of the war in the past. He insisted that any opposition to that statement was purely “mainstream media nonsense."
4. Tax Returns
Trump, maintaining his refusal to release his tax returns in the past, did not budge on his stance during the debate. Clinton jumped on this opportunity to criticize Trump’s character, claiming that he must not be as rich or charitable as he says he is, or that he hadn’t paid his taxes at all. In response, Trump said that he would release his tax returns if Clinton agreed to release her 33,000 deleted emails, spurring Clinton’s apology for the emails, saying, “I made a mistake using a private email… I’m not going to make any excuses.
Who Won?
According to CNN’s official post-debate poll, Hillary Clinton won the debate with 62% of the viewers voting in her support, while only 27% saw Trump’s performance as acceptable.
The Second Debate:
By the time the second presidential debate rolled around, most of the American public seemed to be over the brutal and, quite frankly, un-presidential antics of the two candidates. Clinton and Trump did not fail to deliver on October 9, 2016, as the debate evolved into what is now seen as one of the least tasteful debates in American history. Here are 4 highlights from the infamous event.
1. The Emails
While talking about the email scandal yet again, Trump promised to his supporters that he would hire a special prosecutor to investigate Clinton’s use of a private server during her time in the State department should he be elected president. In the midst of the exchange, Clinton stated, “It’s just awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country.” He quickly replied, “Because you’d be in jail,” generating a rousing applause from the audience.
2. Mike Pence
While most president and vice president candidates would prefer to have a unified front, Trump was apparently not worried about the appearance of his relationship with his V.P. candidate, Mike Pence. When asked about Pence’s stance on allowing U.S. military strikes in Syria’s civil war, Trump only said, “He and I haven’t spoken, and I disagree." This statement came after Pence withdrew from the past weekend’s campaign events after leaked footage of Trump’s crude comments about women was released to the public.
3. Tax Breaks
In the first debate, Clinton speculated that Trump’s refusal to show his tax returns indicated that he was either not as rich or charitable as he said he was, or because he had not been paying his taxes. The latter accusation seemed to be a littler closer to home—after the first debate was aired, news was released stating that Trump had documented almost $1 billion loss in the past that could have possibly allowed him to avoid paying federal income taxes for the past 20 years. When questioned about it in the debate, Trump said, “I absolutely used it, and so did Warren Buffet, and so did George Soros,” citing wealthy donors of Clinton’s campaign.
4. The Leaked Footage
After footage was leaked of Trump making inappropriate comments about women in a 2005 video, many speculated how he would respond when asked about it during the debate. Their questions were answered before the debate even began, when Trump brought in three women who have accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual misconduct in the past and a fourth woman who Hillary Clinton fought against in a trial as the court-appointed lawyer for the man who raped her 40 years ago. When asked about the footage during the debate, Trump responded by defending his actions, saying he was “embarrassed” but that it was just “locker room talk." He then went on the offensive and stated that Bill Clinton has said, and done, far worse than he has. He accused Bill of treating women worse that “anybody in the history of politics in this nation, and said, “If you look at Bill Clinton, far worse. Mine are words, and his was action."
Who Won?
While the official CNN poll declared Clinton to be the winner of the debate yet again, with 57% of the viewers’ votes compared to Trump’s 34%, the American public seems to be fed up with both candidates’ antics and have instead thrown their support to audience member Ken Bone, who asked a question regarding energy policies.
The Takeaway
Watching the presidential debates is a vital part of developing your own, uninfluenced opinion of this year's presidential candidates. Whether you support Clinton or you support Trump, it is important to be involved and take part in the discussion that has dominated the nation for the past year. Do not ignore your right as an American citizen to vote—this is the election for a president that you will have for the next four years. If you care about the United States, make sure to watch the final presidential debate on October 19 and go to the polls to vote on November 8 for the candidate that you truly think is best fit to run the country.
