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What worked for Trump in the primaries failed him against Clinton What worked for Trump in the primaries failed him against Clinton
(35 minutes later)
Donald Trump was trying very hard to be on his best behavior.Donald Trump was trying very hard to be on his best behavior.
In the opening minutes of the first presidential debate Monday night, the Republican nominee began an answer by saying, “In all fairness to Secretary Clinton” — then turned to his Democratic opponent with exaggerated cordiality. “Yes? Is that okay? Good. I want you to be very happy. It’s very important to me.” In the opening minutes of the first presidential debate Monday night, the Republican nominee began an answer by saying, “In all fairness to Secretary Clinton” — then turned to his opponent with exaggerated cordiality. “Yes? Is that okay? Good. I want you to be very happy. It’s very important to me.”
But even Trump’s best behavior was not quite good enough. Within minutes, he was hectoring and interrupting Clinton when she spoke, glowering, pursing his lips, shaking his head and interjecting one-word retorts.But even Trump’s best behavior was not quite good enough. Within minutes, he was hectoring and interrupting Clinton when she spoke, glowering, pursing his lips, shaking his head and interjecting one-word retorts.
“Wrong!” he told Clinton.“Wrong!” he told Clinton.
“Wrong!” he told the moderator, NBC’s Lester Holt.“Wrong!” he told the moderator, NBC’s Lester Holt.
Soon, Trump was hurling playground taunts. “Wrong!” “Wrong!” “Wrong!” he said, over and over again.
“I’m going to cut taxes big league, and you’re going to raise taxes big league,” he announced. But it was Trump who was wrong on the facts, but also in his approach to the debate.
Clinton encouraged viewers to check her website for real-time fact checks of Trump. Trump had done well in the primary debates with his insults, interruptions and one-liners. Monday’s 90-minute, one-on-one debate, however, was a format that did not work well for him.
“And take a look at mine also!” Trump interjected. Clinton had crammed for the encounter, practicing heavily. Trump ostentatiously avoided preparation playing the proverbial high school slacker drinking beer behind the bleachers while the teacher’s pet was in the library.
Holt tried to regain control of that segment of the debate, which was about the economy, but Trump wasn’t having it. “She tells you how to fight ISIS on her website! I I don’t think General Douglas MacArthur would like that too much.” But Monday night was the revenge of the nerd.
“Well,” Clinton replied, “at least I have a plan to fight ISIS.” Trump was louder and nastier. But Clinton was cool and measured, continuing to make her case while Trump tried to talk over her. Again and again, she put him on the defensive (“I’m extremely underleveraged,” he assured everybody), and his one-line retorts did not serve him well.
Trump tried a different taunt. “No wonder you’ve been fighting ISIS your entire adult life,” he charged. Clinton speculated that he wasn’t releasing his tax returns because he hadn’t paid income tax for several years.
It was a curious allegation, given that the Islamic State, also called ISIS, is only a few years old and Clinton has been an adult for half a century. “It would be squandered,” Trump said, not denying the allegation.
But Trump was operating with his own set of facts. “Donald thinks that climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese,” Clinton pointed out. Clinton noted that Trump hadn’t paid federal income taxes for several years previously.
“I did not! I did not!” Trump protested. “That makes me smart,” he said.
He did say so, on Nov. 6, 2012, at 2:15 p.m., on Twitter: “The concept of global warming was created by and for the chinese in order to make u.s. manufacturing non-competitive.” Clinton accused Trump of rooting for the housing market to collapse in 2006.
“That’s called business,” Trump said.
At one point, Trump took a dig at Clinton because she “decided to stay home,” presumably to practice for the debate. Clinton was ready: “I think Donald just criticized me for preparing for this debate. And, yes, I did. And you know what else I prepared for? I prepared to be president.”
Trump was prepared to do what he has done for 18 months: spout falsehoods. But while that works on Twitter and at campaign rallies, it didn’t go well in the 90-minute debate. Clinton, with an occasional assist from Holt, was able to take some 100 million viewers on a tour of what she called Trump’s “own reality.”
“Donald thinks that climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese,” Clinton pointed out.
“I did not!” Trump protested.
He did say so, on Nov. 6, 2012, at 2:15 p.m., on Twitter.
Clinton noted that Trump “supported the invasion of Iraq.”Clinton noted that Trump “supported the invasion of Iraq.”
“Wrong!” Trump declared.“Wrong!” Trump declared.
He did, on Sept. 11, 2002, when asked by radio host Howard Stern whether he supported an invasion of Iraq: “Yeah, I guess so.” He did, on Sept. 11, 2002, on Howard Stern’s radio show.
Holt mentioned that New York’s stop-and-frisk policy was ruled unconstitutional because it prompted racial profiling. Holt mentioned that New York’s stop-and-frisk policy was ruled unconstitutional because it induced racial profiling.
“You’re wrong,” Trump told Holt. “No, you’re wrong,” Trump told Holt.
Holt was correct. Holt was right.
Clinton noted that murders continued to drop in New York after stop-and-frisk was abandoned. Clinton noted that murders have continued to decline in New York.
“No, you’re wrong,” Trump declared. “No, you’re wrong.”
Clinton was correct.Clinton was correct.
Trump repeated the canard about Clinton and her aides being the ones who started the “birther” movement questioning Barack Obama’s American birth in 2008. That is false. Trump repeated the oft-debunked canard that Clinton aides were the first to question Barack Obama’s American birth in 2008. And he dismissed the widely held view among cybersecurity experts that Russia was behind the recent hack of the Democratic National Committee. “It could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds, okay?”
And he breezily dismissed the widely held view among cybersecurity experts that Russia was behind the hack of the Democratic National Committee. “It could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds,” Trump speculated. He justified the misogynistic things he’s said about Rosie O’Donnell by saying that “nobody feels sorry for her.” This was the shot at Trump that Low-Energy Jeb, Little Marco and Lyin’ Ted never had: an extended, one-on-one encounter to test the bilious billionaire. Trump’s playground taunts sounded juvenile.
Trump was louder and nastier. But Clinton wasn’t bullied. She continued talking when he tried to talk over her. Again and again, she forced him to explain himself his business bankruptcies, his refusal to release his taxes. He declared that Clinton “tells you how to fight ISIS on her website! I don’t think General Douglas MacArthur would like that too much.”
Trump replied with a series of interruptions and retorts. “Well,” Clinton replied, “at least I have a plan to fight ISIS.”
“I have a feeling that, by the end of this evening, I’m going to be blamed for everything that’s ever happened,” Clinton observed. “No wonder you’ve been fighting ISIS your entire adult life,” Trump volleyed.
“Why not?” Trump interjected. It was a curious allegation, given that the Islamic State, also called ISIS, is only a few years old and Clinton has been an adult for half a century.
Trump, ignoring Holt’s admonitions, kept up his interruptions: “You didn’t read it! . . . Who gave it that name? . . . Lester, how much?”
When Clinton at one point joked that “I’m going to be blamed for everything that’s ever happened,” Trump interrupted again: “Why not?”
“You know,” Clinton said, “just join the debate by saying more crazy things.”“You know,” Clinton said, “just join the debate by saying more crazy things.”
Trump retorted that “there’s nothing crazy” about what he was saying. That he did. He justified his misogynistic words about Rosie O’Donnell by saying that “nobody feels sorry for her.”
Holt reminded Trump that Clinton had the floor. Ultimately, insults were not enough.
But Trump kept hectoring: “You didn’t read it! . . . Who gave it that name? . . . How much? How much for my family? Lester, how much?” When Clinton said Trump’s economic plan would add $5 trillion to the debt, Trump interrupted.
Trump had done well in the primary debates with his insults, interruptions and one-liners. But the 90-minute, one-on-one debate was a format that did not work well for him. Clinton had crammed for the encounter, practicing heavily. Trump ostentatiously avoided preparation — playing the proverbial high school slacker drinking beer behind the bleachers while the teacher’s pet was in the library.
Trump’s one-liners didn’t seem to get him out of trouble when Clinton speculated that he wasn’t releasing his tax returns because he hadn’t paid any income tax for several years.
“It would be squandered,” Trump said, not exactly denying the allegation.
Neither did his rejoinder save him when Clinton pointed out that he had stiffed many people he’d done business with, including an architect in the audience.
“Maybe he didn’t do a good job and I was unsatisfied with his work,” Trump said.
Ultimately, the insults were not enough.
When Clinton said Trump’s economic plan would add $5 trillion to the debt, Trump interrupted.
“You have no plan!’“You have no plan!’
“Oh, but I do,” said Clinton, unruffled. “In fact, I have written a book about it.”“Oh, but I do,” said Clinton, unruffled. “In fact, I have written a book about it.”
“That’s about all you’ve done,” Trump replied. “That’s about all you’ve done,” Trump shot back.
And that was about all Trump could do.And that was about all Trump could do.
Twitter: @MilbankTwitter: @Milbank
Read more from Dana Milbank’s archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.Read more from Dana Milbank’s archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Read more:Read more:
Ed Rogers: Trump takes the bait; Clinton sticks to the scriptEd Rogers: Trump takes the bait; Clinton sticks to the script
Jennifer Rubin: Donald Trump needed to appear presidential. He didn’t.Jennifer Rubin: Donald Trump needed to appear presidential. He didn’t.