Donald Trump faced one overriding test in Monday night’s long-awaited debate with Hillary Clinton.
And by all indications he flunked it—emphatically.
Heading into the debate, leading strategists in both parties had identified the same priority for Trump: reducing the historically unprecedented number of voters who say he is not qualified to be president. But Trump’s frequently rambling, disjointed, and vague answers, and his impatient and sometimes brusque demeanor, likely did more to reinforce those perceptions—especially when contrasted against a performance from Hillary Clinton that was fluid and competent, if not particularly inspiring. CONT.
Ronald Brownstein, The Atlantic