NewsBite

Trump v Clinton debate: US presidential face-off

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton have faced off in one of history’s most anticipated political showdowns. Who won? | WATCH

The candidates shake hands after the debate. Picture: AFP
The candidates shake hands after the debate. Picture: AFP
16 min read
2:23PMSeptember 27, 2016.
Updated 4:02PMSeptember 27, 2016

Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump have faced off for the first time in a 90-minute presidential debate at Hofstra University on New York State’s Long Island. The candidates discussed jobs, ISIS, race, national security and the Iraq war. Clinton attacked Trump over his taxes, Trump hit back over Clinton’s emails and her ill health.

1.45pm:A win for Hillary?

CNN have reportedly called Clinton’s debate victory “overwhelming”.

Polls point to a win for Clinton.
Polls point to a win for Clinton.

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal suggests the telltale sign is the Mexican peso. The peso soared 1.7% to 19.56 per dollar after the debate began, after having hit all-time low yesterday. Trump is famously harsh towards Mexico. Clinton is perceived as a more stable candidate, so stocks are inclined to gain if she was perceived as winner out of this debate.

And what did undecided voters make of the debate? Donald Trump’s performance risked turning them off, reports The Wall Street Journal. Read the full story here.

1.35pm:The verdict

Trump came across as an assertive, strong and populist candidate, writes The Australian’s editor-at-large Paul Kelly, but the longer the debate lasted the better and more reliable Clinton looked and the more the focus fell on Trump’s flaws.Read his full analysis here.

12.45pm:Debate wraps up

That’s it for the first of three planned presidential debates.

John Lyons’ verdict: A draw. Trump started strongly, Clinton finished well. On domestic issues such as jobs being exported to Mexico, Trump won middle America. On issues of temperament for President, national security and women, Clinton won. The longer Trump talked about nuclear weapons, the better for Clinton. The debate is unlikely to shake anyone from one side to the other. And the large number of undecideds must be saying to themselves: how did our country have to choose between these two?

How did Trump do?

Donald Trump found himself on the defensive, writes The Wall Street Journal’s Reid J. Epstein. Moderator Lester Holt and Clinton both pressed him more on his past business practices, his refusal to release his tax returns and his record of statements demeaning women. Trump spent far less time pressing his case against Clinton than she did against him. But in a campaign year that has seen longstanding political conventions up-ended at every turn, it remains to be seen how much it matters. Trump appeared determined to leave viewers with two impressions tonight: That he would do something to stop the outsourcing of American jobs and that Clinton is a creature of the political past and that he is not. If viewers care only about those issues, he gave them something to remember.

Trump with his family following the debate. Picture: AFP
Trump with his family following the debate. Picture: AFP

But in doing so Trump showed little grasp of policy detail, taking Clinton’s bait on a series of topics. She drew him off-topic on his own past without letting him press the case against her. There was little talk of her use of a private email server while secretary of state and no discussion of the 2012 attack at Benghazi, issues that are staples of his campaign speeches.

And not a word was said from Trump about his core campaign issue of immigration. Even when the discussion came to national security and home grown terrorism, Trump didn’t mention his proposals to do “extreme vetting” of Muslim immigrants.

How did Clinton do?

Clinton with husband and former President Bill after the debate. Picture: AFP
Clinton with husband and former President Bill after the debate. Picture: AFP

Clinton was a largely steady presence on the debate stage tonight, writes The Wall Street Journal’s Byron Tau, reverting as often as possible to her comfortable crutch of trying to jam as many of her policy ideas into her answers as possible.

But she also came prepared to needle her opponent in front of the biggest audience she may get all year, attacking Trump on his previous comments about women, his history of raising doubts about President Barack Obama’s birthplace, his business bankruptcies, his inconsistencies on his earlier support for the Iraq War and many, many more moments that came from careful preparation and thorough opposition research.

It was a studied, measured performance from Mrs. Clinton, who needed a performance to help stop the erosion she has seen in the polls in recent weeks.

12.44pm:Most talked about moments

The Wall Street Journal reports that the top three most-Tweeted debate moments were:

• Trump saying he had a “good temperament”

• Trump’s comments on stop and frisk

• Trump’s and Clinton’s exchange over their plans for defeating ISIS.

Here’s some of the night’s best quotes:

12.40pm:Check the facts

Trump’s habit of peddling hype and fabrication emerged unabated in the first presidential debate while Clinton played it cautiously in her statements, though not without error. You can look at some of the claims in the debate and how they compare with the facts here.

12.36pm:‘She doesn’t have the stamina’

Trump is asked about his previous comments that Clinton “doesn’t have a presidential look”. He avoids the question and says he doesn’t believe she has the “stamina” to be president. Clinton responds, listing some of her major career projects and cheers are heard in the crowd.

Trump says she has experience but “it’s bad experience”. More cheers. “This is a man who has called women pigs, slobs and dogs,” Clinton adds.

Trump’s attacks on Clinton’s stamina appear odd given her past industry and career, writes Adam Creighton. Roosevelt had polio and was a objectively a successful president. Hard to see how Clinton’s supposed bacterial infection could be a black mark against her presidency. Also the president is not the entirety of the US state. Presidents have aides.

The debate is coming to an end now.

12.31pm:Clinton makes up ground

Clinton catching up the ground she lost in first 30 minutes, writes John Lyons. After a poor start, she’s succeeding in casting doubts over Trump’s temperament. She uses a strong example of Trump recently talking about “blowing out of the water” some Iranian sailors. Clinton re-uses her famous line from the campaign trail that anyone who can be angered by a Tweet does not have the temperament to be President. Trump, though, is clearly trying to sound more measured.

However, he’s started talking about nuclear weapons. “I can’t take anything off the table,” he says, of nuclear weapons. The more Trump talks about nuclear weapons, the better for Clinton.

Even Americans who support Trump must have at least a scintilla of uneasiness about Trump having the nuclear codes.

12.20pm:Did Trump oppose Iraq war?

Clinton goes right after Trump on his repeated assertion that he was against the 2003 Iraq War, writes The Wall Street Journal’s Damian Paletta. “Donald supported the invasion of Iraq,” she says. “WRONG!” Mr. Trump shouts back. This has been a constant source of tension, as Clinton in 2002 voted in the Senate to authorise the use of force against Iraq. Trump in the past year has said he opposed the invasions, but researchers have not found any evidence of this. He also didn’t appear to make any full-throated statements in support of the war (he made some supportive comments in passing on the Howard Stern radio program in 2002), but his position before the invasion was rather ambiguous.

12.13pm:Candidates talk national security

On national security issues, including cyber security, Clinton looking stronger than Trump, her experience as Secretary of State showing, writes John Lyons. On cyber security, Clinton targeted the Russians, saying that Vladimir Putin was playing “a tough, long game”.

“I was so shocked when Donald invited Putin to hack into Americans,” she says. She says key national security people say Trump is unfit to be President. Trump says “many more” admirals are about to endorse him as President. “I’ll take the (endorsement of) admirals and the generals any day over the political hacks,” he says. He says there’s no evidence that it was Russia who broke into the Democrats headquarters - “it could have been the Chinese”, “Under President Obama we’ve lost control over the things that we used to have control over.”

12.05pm:Ill health mocked

It took an hour for Clinton’s health - the most damaging issue for the Democrat in the past month - to emerge, writes Adam Creighton. “You decided to stay home and that’s OK” says Trump, mocking Clinton’s bout of ill heath in contrast to his vigorous spate of town hall meetings across the US. Clinton handles it well, saying she stayed home to prepare for being president, deflecting the issue.

Trump and Clinton do battle. Picture: AFP
Trump and Clinton do battle. Picture: AFP

12.04pm:Clinton doing better

Clinton is doing better as she accuses Trump of pushing a “racist lie that our first black President (Obama) was not an American citizen,” writes John Lyons. Trump is being asked by moderator about his repeated questions doubting that President Obama was born in the US.

Trump says he was vindicated by the fact that Obama eventually produced one. “He should have produced it a long time before,” says Trump.

Trump was very weak in his first birther response, writes Greg Sheridan. This is one of his worst episodes. Clinton looks strong defending Obama on the birther issue and accusing Trump of racism. Trump a bit better on the rebound attacking Clinton for her past treatment of Obama and also making a reasonable defence of his record.

On crime and gun control, Trump says he agrees with Clinton that anyone on a no-fly-list for criminal or terrorist reasons should not be allowed to get a gun. But Trump says he’s proud to have the endorsement of the gun lobby group, the National Rifle Association. “The African-American community has been let down by the politicians,” says Trump. Trump keeps trying to prod Clinton on race - but she is steadfastly refusing to get into a mud wrestle with him.

11.50am:Candidates talk race

The debate switches to race, the most sensitive issue in the US, writes John Lyons. “How do you heal the divide?” asks moderator Lester Holt. Clinton says there needs to be better gun control and co-operation with police. Trump plays a different card - “Secretary Clinton doesn’t want to use two words - law and order.”

Trump says almost 4000 people have been killed in Chicago alone since Obama has been president. “African-American communities are being decimated by crime,” says Trump.

11.49am:Aggressive v smug

The debate is crystallising the appalling choice confronting Americans with the two candidates personifying two of the worst aspects of modern politics, writes Chris Kenny. Trump is aggressive and aggrieved, demonstrating the culture of complaint and the climate of fear that can be exploited because in a time of economic transition and security threats people are not seeing the political leadership they want. Trump is a protester and markets himself as a change agent. Clinton, on the other hand, represents the smugness and superiority of the very political class that is letting people down. She defends a questionable record and plays down widespread concerns with an aloofness some will see as patronising. She argues for the status quo at a time when people are underwhelmed. Pity the voters.

11.37am:Trump on top

Trump clearly won the first half-hour, writes Greg Sheridan. Very clear arguments. He may have done something weird attacking the Fed. And arguments about his tax may hurt him though he is effective on Clinton’s emails. Clinton strong on his tax returns. Trump’s claims about the supposed poverty of US public infrastructure looked odd given he hasn’t paid federal income tax for many years despite having wealth in excess of $US1bn, writes Adam Creighton. “That makes me smart” Trump said. Will be interesting to see if this attitude resonates.

11.36am:Emails card played

Clinton attacks Trump over his tax returns. “For 40 years everyone running for President has released their tax returns,” she says. She is trying to suggest that Trump could have a web of conflicts of interest that would make him unsuitable for President, writes John Lyons. She says he owes $US 650 million to “Wall Street and foreign banks.”

Trump says he will release his tax returns when Clinton releases her 33,000 deleted emails. There are cheers in the audience. Holt asks for silence - it’s against the rules. “I made a mistake using a private email,” Clinton says. “That’s for sure,” Trump says. “That was not a mistake,” he says, implying it was a decision made on purpose.

Trump’s offer to release his tax returns if Clinton released her emails was a clever tactic, writes Adam Creighton. Clinton didn’t take the bait, rightly dwelling on Trump’s tax returns, but she should have directly addressed what was in those emails rather than repeat the line her use of a private email server was a “mistake”.

11.35am:Clinton attacked on ISIS

Twenty-six minutes into the debate, and Trump lobs his first attack against Clinton about Islamic State, writes The Wall Street Journal’s Damian Paletta.

“No wonder you’ve been fighting ISIS your entire adult life,” saying she doesn’t have a plan to attack Islamic State. Islamic State has existed for Clinton’s “entire adult life.” Islamic State is an evolution of al-Qaeda in Iraq. It has existed for years, but not near as long as Trump suggested. Clinton countered that she does have a plan to combat Islamic State (and she has given speeches about how to combat Islamic State). Then Trump says she is telegraphing her plan to Islamic State, and she attacks him by saying he hasn’t specified what his secret plan to combat the Islamic State would look like. This will likely resurface later in the debate again.

Trump says Clinton doesn’t have a plan to attack Islamic State. Picture: AFP
Trump says Clinton doesn’t have a plan to attack Islamic State. Picture: AFP

11.27am:Trump doing well

Donald Trump has started this debate very effectively, writes Greg Sheridan. Clear arguments. Simple language. Long way to go yet.

After 20 minutes, Trump is winning, writes John Lyons. His repeated line that “you’ve been at this for 30 years” is a strong one, playing to Clinton’s weak-point that she is an insider who would govern for the elites of New York and Boston. Clinton on the defensive - Trump playing to Middle America and their fear of jobs. Trump pummels Clinton on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that her husband signed as President.

Trump Hits Clinton on NAFTA

If this was a title fight, Trump has got Clinton on the ropes early and is pounding, pounding, pounding. The “30-year line” is a tough one for Clinton - Trump saying you’ve had 30 years to fix things, why are you just thinking about them now. Clinton protests: I have been thinking about them. “I was a Senator”. But only round two of a 15-round fight.

If this was a title fight, Trump has got Clinton on the ropes early. Picture: AFP
If this was a title fight, Trump has got Clinton on the ropes early. Picture: AFP

Meanwhile, so much for Australia’s hopes of the Trans Pacific Partnership being passed during the congressional lame duck session, writes Chris Kenny. Trump makes it a key - and aggressive - attack on Clinton and she wants nothing to do with it. TPP is electoral poison in this contest and Obama is going to have to let it sink you would think.

11.10am:First topic: jobs

The debate will be in six categories - first is “advancing prosperity”, and the first question goes to Clinton on plans for job creation. Clinton goes straight for a personal angle - “today is my granddaughter’s second birthday.” Clinton says she wants paid family leave, affordable childcare and debt-free college. She adds, “Donald, it’s good to be with you,” which is followed by some laughter in the audience.

Trump in turn says “our jobs are fleeing the country”, restating his theme that good jobs are going to Mexico, and discussing China. “They are using our country as a piggy bank to rebuild China,” he says. This has worked well with Trump during the campaign - jobs leaving Michigan, Ohio, etc. Trump - so far - very conciliatory, mentioning that “Hillary and I agree on that” when it comes to jobs leaving the US. Trump evokes the economic boom under Ronald Reagan.

Clinton accuses Trump of pushing “Trumped up, trickle-down economics.” She plays the card that Trump believes the more you help wealthy people, the better everyone will be, while Clinton tries to suggest she’s from less-privileged background. She says Trump given a start by his father. Trump replies: my father did help me out, and then I built a company into one of the country’s largest corporations. Moderator Lester Holt asks how do you bring jobs back from overseas? Trump: Don’t let them leave in the first place.

The focus on jobs seems odd in a country whose unemployment rate has halved since the financial crisis to 5%, writes Economics Correspondent Adam Creighton, but reflects the global anxiety among working and middle class people worldwide. Trump’s line that “they are taking our jobs” is straight out of a famous South Park episode that mocks such attitudes. Mfg jobs have left advanced countries everywhere as a result of improved technology and cheaper wages in poorer countries.

11.04am:And we’re off

Clinton and Trump take to the stage simultaneously, shake hands and wish each other good luck.

The candidates shake hands.
The candidates shake hands.

11.00am:Not a good start for Hillary

Hillary Clinton’s name has been misspelled on souvenir tickets handed out to students at Hofstra University. The tickets given to 350 students who won coveted seats in a lottery to attend the debate misspelled Clinton’s first name “Hilary”.

“These tickets are not official tickets to the debate,” Hofstra University spokeswoman Karla Schuster said. “They were printed at the last minute to create a souvenir for the students who won the ticket lottery,” she added. “We will reprint them.” Hofstra previously hosted presidential debates in 2008 and 2012.

10.55am:Melania, Bill arrive

Donald Trump’s wife Melania and Hillary Clinton’s husband Bill have received a special introduction. Now moderator Lester Holt takes to the stage and appears to be having some technical issues with the sound.

Melania and Bill arrive. Picture: AFP
Melania and Bill arrive. Picture: AFP

10.44am:Let the debate begin

As the first debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is set to begin, the winner will be the one who manages to throw the other off their carefully-rehearsed strategy, writes John Lyons.

Fascinatingly, the two candidates have completely different strategies and aims.

Often in a presidential debate the two candidates are attempting to project the same image - considered, cautious and thoughtful. But what makes this debate so compelling is that they have entirely different strategies.

Hillary Clinton will try to portray herself as a woman who has worked, and lived, in the corridors of power for decades. Donald Trump will try to portray himself as the radical, fresh alternative, someone who will break from decades of insider mentality in Washington to finally represent the alienated masses.

Clinton will try to portray Trump as dangerous - expect her to reheat in one form her line that someone who can be thrown off balance by a Tweet should not have his hands anywhere near the US’s nuclear codes.

Trump will try to portray Clinton as a woman mired in the murky world of Washington insider politics - expect him to reference her use of her personal email account while Secretary of State.

If Clinton is able to convince the estimated 100 million Americans watching tonight that Trump is dangerous - indeed, even unhinged - she will strengthen her campaign. If Trump is able to convince Americans that he is not a madman and that Clinton is “owned” by all sorts of dark forces and money that run Washington then he is one step closer to the White House.

10.40am:Silence in the audience

Unlike many of the primary debates, the audience is being instructed to remain quiet — no yelling, clapping, whooping or otherwise interrupting, writes The Wall Street Journal’s Byron Tau. As the official rules state: “The moderator will open each segment with a question, after which each candidate will have two minutes to respond. Candidates will then have an opportunity to respond to each other. The moderator will use the balance of the time in the segment for a deeper discussion of the topic.”

Moderator Lester Holt has announced three broad themes for tonight: “America’s Direction,” “Achieving Prosperity” and “Securing America.”

People gather in the audience ahead of the debate. Picture: AFP
People gather in the audience ahead of the debate. Picture: AFP

10.25am:Meet the moderator

NBC News veteran Lester Holt will have the pleasure of refereeing the contest. Holt, a 57-year-old Californian is nicknamed “Iron Pants”. Read more about him in our debate guide.

Lester Holt. Picture: AP
Lester Holt. Picture: AP

10.20am:Will Bill be at debate?

Hillary Clinton will have some presidential support as she heads to Hempstead for her debate: her husband, former President Bill Clinton. An aide to the former president says he’ll travel to the debate with his wife. The aide isn’t saying yet whether Bill Clinton will actually attend the debate. The debate’s run-up has been filled with speculation about who will or won’t attend. Donald Trump’s campaign walked back his suggestion that he might invite Gennifer Flowers, a woman who had an affair with Bill Clinton.

A seat is labelled for Donald Trump's wife, Melania. Picture: AFP
A seat is labelled for Donald Trump's wife, Melania. Picture: AFP

White House spokesman Josh Earnest says President Barack Obama will be “working tonight” when the debate airs. He said the television will be on in the background. Earnest said the only deviation from business as usual is that the TV will be tuned to the debate instead of to Monday Night Football.

10.13am:How will markets trade debate?

Investors will today get their first glimpse at how the market will react to the head-to-head debate. “What we should learn today is how markets genuinely trade each candidate,” IG chief strategist Chris Weston said. Follow the latest markets news at the BusinessNow blog.

9.20am:Five things to watch

WSJ’s Gerald F. Seib discusses five key things to look out for in the debate, in the video below.

The First Presidential Debate: What to Watch

9.15am:What to expect from debate

The 90-minute debate began at 11am AEST at Hofstra University on New York State’s Long Island. It is the first of three planned debates. It could rank as one of the most watched, highly anticipated political showdowns in US history.

The tight race for the White House and the unpredictable clash in styles between well-known but polarising opponents has generated wide interest in the potentially pivotal debate, which comes six weeks before the November 8 election after a campaign that has stretched over more than a year.

The stage is set. Picture: AFP
The stage is set. Picture: AFP

The gap between the two candidates in recent national opinion polls has narrowed in the past week, with the latest Reuters/Ipsos polling showing Clinton ahead by 4 percentage points, with 41 per cent of likely voters. Clinton recently pulled ahead of Trump in the crucial battleground state of Florida, according to the Reuters/Ipsos States of the Nation project released on Monday.

Trump supporters walk outside the debate hall at Hofstra University. Picture: AFP
Trump supporters walk outside the debate hall at Hofstra University. Picture: AFP

If the election were held today, Clinton would defeat Trump, with an 88 per cent of reaching the 270 electoral college votes needed, according to the project, which is based on a weekly online tracking poll of more than 15,000 Americans.

Hillary Clinton supporters gather before the debate. Picture: AP
Hillary Clinton supporters gather before the debate. Picture: AP

The debate will be the first time Clinton and Trump go toe-to-toe and the size of the television-viewing audience is expected to challenge the record of 80 million Americans who watched 1980s encounter between Democratic President Jimmy Carter and Republican Ronald Reagan. Some commentators forecast Super Bowl-sized viewership of about 100 million.

Unlike the single-party debates held during the nominating process, the audience will be asked to remain silent and not applaud or respond to the candidates’ answers. The debate will be divided into six 15-minute segments. Clinton won a coin toss and chose to take the first question. She will have two minutes to answer, after which Trump will be given equal time. Trump will then be given the first question at the beginning of the next segment.

Trump v Clinton debate: all you need to know

More Coverage

Fact check: what they said
Voters’ stark choice highlighted
Gerald F. Seib
Trump’s huge misjudgment
Paul Kelly
Trump v Clinton: debate guide
Celebrity choice: Trump or Clinton
VIEW GALLERY
Read related topics:Donald Trump

Add your comment to this story

To join the conversation, please Don't have an account? Register

Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout

More related stories

Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/in-depth/us-politics/trump-v-clinton-debate-live-coverage-of-us-presidential-faceoff/news-story/4664a4b0f35208c9c023d01ab0ea217b