Less than 24 hours ago, presidential candidates Donald Trump (Republican) and Hillary Clinton (Democrat) squared off at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York. The speculation began when Clinton walked on stage in a Republican red pantsuit and Trump sported a Democratic blue tie.
The debate ran for 90 minutes, streamed across several websites, including Twitter, and news networks. Moderated by Lester Holt of NBC, several important topics were covered: economic prosperity, nuclear weapons, war on terror, immigration, systematic racism.
In a rare act of civilized mannerism, Trump and Clinton stated their stance on the prosperity of America. Though their methods and plans differed, both candidates agree on wanting to create more jobs and employment opportunities for Americans in order to boost the economy.
“I want us to invest in you. I want us to invest in your future,” said Clinton, appealing to the middle class. “That means jobs in infrastructure, in advanced manufacturing, innovation and technology, clean, renewable energy, and small business, because most of the new jobs will come from small business.”
Trump determined the loss of American jobs was caused by Mexico and China and other unnamed countries. He plans to stop companies from leaving the U.S.—although Trump’s companies manufacture his products in other countries—and reduce taxes for businesses, small and big alike.
Sometime in the debate, Clinton began to poke the bear. She brought up the topic of climate change, reminding the public that Trump once said it’s a hoax created by China. Trump immediately denied this statement though it had been posted on his Twitter.
While Clinton worked to maintain her composure, Trump threw caution to the wind and the uncensored character well known to the masses began to show. Interruptions of “I did not say that” and “Wrong!” followed suit.
“There’s no question about that. I also have a much better temperament than she has, you know,” he said, “I have a winning temperament. I know how to win.” To this Clinton and the crowd laughed.
Another topic that captured the attention of the public was that of racial divide and how to heal this divide. Clinton lamented the presence of racial challenges which impair individuals from receiving equal opportunities and affects how the criminal justice system treats them.
“We have to work with the police. We have to make sure they respect the communities and the communities respect them. And we have to tackle the plague of gun violence, which is a big contributor to a lot of the problems that we’re seeing today,” Clinton said as she tied gun control policy and violence back to the issue of racial divide.
Trump agreed the violence needs to be stopped. He supports the use of the stop and frisk method which has been deemed unconstitutional by many.
“It brought the crime rate way down. But you take the gun away from criminals that shouldn’t be having it,” said Trump, supporting the method while agreeing that guns should be removed from those who are wielding them for harm.
Though the winner of the debate is unclear, many analysts reward Clinton with the win for her composure and preparation.
For more on the debate check out our Storify
