I watched the third and final debate tonight. Far and away this was
Trump’s best debate performance. I thought he held his own.
The moderator was excellent, and both sides received some difficult
questions. It was the only well-moderated, fair debate.
I watched the debate on C-Span, but switched to MSNBC for commentary. They
held a funeral for trump.
Opportunities Wasted
Trump could have done better. He missed at least two good opportunities.
There was an excellent report out today by the Tax Foundation that hugely
favored Trump. See Tax Foundation Analyzes Tax Plans: 10-Year GDP (Trump +6.9%,
Hillary -2.6%), Wage Growth (Trump +5.4%, Hillary -2.1%).
When asked about taxes, Trump could have and should have referred to some
of those stats.
When Hillary fired shots about Trump’s use of Chinese steel and other
allegations, Trump failed to fire back about Hillary bragging about getting a
rape victim off.
The fairest representative version of the story comes from Truth or Fiction: Hillary Clinton Freed a Rapist, Laughed
About It.
The story is essentially true, albeit slightly hyped up.
Personally, I could never defend a rapist I knew was guilty, nor prosecute
an accused person I thought was innocent. And I could never be a corporate
lawyer, having to defend a corporation against lawsuits I believed accurate.
But that’s just me.
Regardless, Trump had a chance to taint Hillary’s proclamation that she is
a strong women’s right advocate. Trump failed to do so.
Funeral for Trump
With a similar performance in the first debate, Trump may have won easily.
Yet, despite the missed opportunities, Trump performed at least OK.
But you would never know this from the MSNBC obituary.
The only focus of the aftermath discussion was Trump’s answer to the
question as to whether or not he would accept the results of the election.
Trump said “I will look at it at the time”.
In a way, Trump made a rationale response. This could come down to one
state, as happened with chads in Florida.
Trump could have and should have explained it that way. Instead he created
controversy that MSNBC pounced on for the next hour following the debate.
Republicans Pounce
Not only did MSNBC pounce, High Profile Republicans Pounced as well.
Lindsey Graham, Republican senator from South Carolina, issued a statement
after the debate saying that he has confidence in democracy and that if Trump
loses, it will be because he is a failed candidate.
Jeff Flake, Republican senator from Arizona, said trump’s statement is
“beyond the pale.”
Knowing the Unknowable
I do not know if the debate helped or hurt Trump. In fact, no one “knows”
much of anything except mathematical facts such as 1+1=2. But the odds are
this debate did not possibly help Trump enough to matter.
One person called me a “coward” for making such statements. In my view, a
coward is someone who fails to speak what they believe, fearing what others
might think or say.
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
