In his own garbled rhetoric, his flustered, rambling responses, and his nervous, defensive posture, Republican Donald J. Trump provided plenty of unsettling evidence at Monday’s night’s first presidential debate for a voter to decide to reject his bid to be President of the United States.
To those who watched Trump’s 90-minute face off with Democratic rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, it should be frighteningly clear that a man who is so quickly rattled when confronted one-on-one on a national stage should never be in the White House Situation Room during a time of crisis. Each time he leaned into the microphone to interrupt Clinton, or shouted over her, or turned to the debate moderator for help, it underscored that the thin-skinned Republican candidate is ill-prepared, unfit and dangerously undisciplined. He is what he is – a real estate mogul and a reality TV star, who, when it came to the real reality of the presidential spotlight, unraveled.
“A man who can be provoked by a tweet should not have his fingers anywhere near the nuclear codes,” Clinton said Monday night. The line, which Clinton has used before, “is getting a little bit old,” Trump complained. Not to us.
This was not a debate to sway the entrenched camps on either side. Those bases of support for Clinton and Trump are set. We are concerned with those who remain undecided, and those who are leaning one way or another. The choice should become clearer now. We appeal to a sense of civic duty in those who are saying they will sit this election out, or worse yet, vote for a no-win third party candidate. With all due respect, there is too much at stake in this election for our families and our children. Make a choice.
We believe that the essential strength of any president – Republican or Democrat – is the ability to reassure all of us, in times of crisis, an economic collapse, or threats to our safety at home and abroad, and lead with calm, firm resolve, and confident judgment, based on experience, and temperament.
“I think my strongest asset, maybe by far, is my temperament. I have a winning temperament. I know how to win,” Trump said at one point. What does that mean? From what we saw, he fails the test.
Who could have a sense of security, in the Donald Trump we saw Monday night? This was the authentic, unscripted Trump, not the teleprompter version created by his campaign manager and spin doctor, Kellyanne Conway. Her attempt, so far, to turn Trump into some form of statesman, has been, in Trump lingo “a disaster.”
Analysts scored a few points for Trump when he agreed that Clinton has experience, but called it “bad, bad experience.” Defeating ISIS, defense commitments to Japan and South Korea, and problems with Iraq could have been solved in the past 10 years “while she had great power,” he said. We know core supporters want to believe this sweeping assertion. Clinton is not without flaws, but this goes too far. And we believe that at least some experience in government, foreign policy and diplomatic negotiations – none of which Trump has – matters.
Perhaps what was most telling Monday night was the way Trump – the self-anointed businessman extraordinaire – steamed when Clinton needled him about a refusal to disclose his income tax returns – does that mean he’s not as rich as he says he is, or that he hasn’t paid federal income taxes? Does that make him “smart” as he claimed? Are all Americans who pay their fair share of taxes every year being taken for a ride?
On Oct. 9 is the second of three debates, which will include a “town hall” style segment with questions from voters. Meanwhile, Trump said Tuesday that he may hit Clinton “harder.” Go for it Donald – she’s ready. You’re not.