Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump faced off at Hofstra University for the first presidential debate of the 2016 general election. This debate was one of the most eagerly awaited presidential debates. The debate was hosted by moderated Lester Holt, an anchor for NBC Nightly News.
The debate was a 90 minute event that actually went over the scheduled time. The event was divided into six segments and each candidate had two minutes to answer each question.
The first topic discussed during the debate was job creation, the candidates were asked how they would make American manufactures bring back production to the United States.
Before getting to the answer of the question, Clinton made a personal reference and mentioned her granddaughter. “What kind of country we want to be” “Today is my granddaughters second birthday, so I think about this a lot”, said Clinton. She mentioned affordable childcare, debt-free college programs, and paid family leave. Trump reacted to the first question of the debate by criticizing countries like China, “using our country as a piggy bank”. “We have to stop our jobs from being stolen from us”, he said.
After the first question, the debate began to get heated. Trump and Clinton both had aggressive moment’s throughout the debate. When asked what he meant that Clinton didn’t have the “presidential look”, Trump replied, “She doesn’t have the stamina.”
Following the first question, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were also asked about the economy, domestic policy, and foreign policy. One major issues that is affecting our country is racism.
Both candidates were asked by Lester Holt, “How do we bridge a racial divide”? Clinton responded to the question saying, “We need to restore trust between our communities and the police, should be trained to use force only when necessary”.
Unlike Clinton, Trump believes that “we need law and order in our country” “When you have 3000 people killed, you have to have stop and frisk.”
At around 10:31 p.m.–The final question asked during the debate was, “will the candidates accept the outcome when of them wins”? “The election is really up to you”, said Clinton. “If she wins I will absolutely support her, said Trump.
In conclusion, the debate ending with each candidate revealing that they would be satisfied with whatever the outcome of this presidential election is. It is really a crucial time for our voices to be heard and it is up to the people to make the right decision.
This debate definitely had a significant impact on our country and will be one that people remember. The final debate between the two presidential candidates will air Wednesday, October 19th.