2nd USA presidential debate: Nastiest top political office debate I have seen in my life
The second USA presidential debate was the nastiest top political office debate I have ever seen in my life in India or the USA or elsewhere. [India does not have media debates between top political office candidates but there are very aggressive verbal exchanges in the Indian Parliament between top political leaders which is telecast live on govt. owned TV channels. It has never got so nasty in whatever I have seen in such very aggressive verbal exchanges between top political leaders in the Indian parliament.]
Warning: Only those who can stomach some really nasty stuff should view the video or read the transcripts parts given below.
The second presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton [Oct. 9th 2016], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-gkBUbU_F4, 1 hr 40 mins.
An article on it, Trump, Clinton wage scorched-earth debate, http://edition.cnn.com/2016/10/09/politics/presidential-debate-highlights/, Oct. 10th 2016. A small extract from it, "The once sacred tradition of a presidential debate -- where candidates typically trade barbs over their vision of the country's future instead of personal humiliations -- exploded into something quite chilling."
Washington Post annotated transcript of debate, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/09/everything-that-was-said-at-the-second-donald-trump-vs-hillary-clinton-debate-highlighted/.
I have given below a transcript of (some of) the parts of the debate dealing with immoral/inappropriate behaviour.
Question from town-hall audience-participant: Thank you and good evening. The last presidential debate could have been rated as MA, mature audiences, per TV parental guidelines. Knowing that educators assign viewing the presidential debates as students' homework, do you feel you're modeling appropriate and positive behavior for today's youth?
Hillary Clinton: Thank you. Are you a teacher? Yes, I think that that's a very good question because I've heard from lots of teachers and parents about some of their concerns about some of the things that are being said and done in this campaign.
And I think it is very important for us to make clear to our children that our country really is great because we're good. And we are going to respect one another, lift each other up. We are going to be looking for ways to celebrate our diversity, and we are going to try to reach out to every boy and girl, as well as every adult, to bring them in to working on behalf of our country.
I have a very positive and optimistic view about what we can do together. ...
I want to be the president for all Americans, regardless of your political beliefs, where you come from, what you look like, your religion. I want us to heal our country and bring it together because that's, I think, the best way for us to get the future that our children and our grandchildren deserve.
Moderator Andersen Cooper: Secretary Clinton, thank you. Mr. Trump, you have two minutes.
Donald Trump: Well, I actually agree with that. I agree with everything she said. I began this campaign because I was so tired of seeing such foolish things happen to our country. This is a great country. This is a great land. I've gotten to know the people of the country over the last year-and-a-half that I've been doing this as a politician. I cannot believe I'm saying that about myself, but I guess I have been a politician.
And my whole concept was to make America great again. ...
But I want to do things that haven't been done, including fixing and making our inner cities better for the African-American citizens that are so great, and for the Latinos, Hispanics, and I look forward to doing it. It's called make America great again.
Cooper: Thank you, Mr. Trump. The question from Patrice was about are you both modeling positive and appropriate behavior for today's youth? We received a lot of questions online, Mr. Trump, about the tape that was released on Friday, as you can imagine. You called what you said locker room banter. You described kissing women without consent, grabbing their genitals. That is sexual assault. You bragged that you have sexually assaulted women. Do you understand that?
Trump: No, I didn't say that at all. I don't think you understood what was said. This was locker room talk. I'm not proud of it. I apologize to my family. I apologize to the American people. Certainly I'm not proud of it. But this is locker room talk.
...
Yes, I'm very embarrassed by it. I hate it. But it's locker room talk, and it's one of those things. ...
...
Cooper: Just for the record, though, are you saying that what you said on that bus 11 years ago that you did not actually kiss women without consent or grope women without consent?
Trump: I have great respect for women. Nobody has more respect for women than I do.
Cooper: So, for the record, you're saying you never did that?
Trump: ... you hear these things I said. And I was embarrassed by it. But I have tremendous respect for women.
Cooper: Have you ever done those things?
Trump: And women have respect for me. And I will tell you: No, I have not. ...
...
Cooper: Secretary Clinton, do you want to respond?
Clinton: Well, like everyone else, I've spent a lot of time thinking over the last 48 hours about what we heard and saw. You know, with prior Republican nominees for president, I disagreed with them on politics, policies, principles, but I never questioned their fitness to serve.
Donald Trump is different. I said starting back in June that he was not fit to be president and commander-in-chief. And many Republicans and independents have said the same thing. What we all saw and heard on Friday was Donald talking about women, what he thinks about women, what he does to women. And he has said that the video doesn't represent who he is.
But I think it's clear to anyone who heard it that it represents exactly who he is. Because we've seen this throughout the campaign. We have seen him insult women. We've seen him rate women on their appearance, ranking them from one to ten. We've seen him embarrass women on TV and on Twitter. We saw him after the first debate spend nearly a week denigrating a former Miss Universe in the harshest, most personal terms.
So, yes, this is who Donald Trump is. But it's not only women, and it's not only this video that raises questions about his fitness to be our president, because he has also targeted immigrants, African- Americans, Latinos, people with disabilities, POWs, Muslims, and so many others.
So this is who Donald Trump is. And the question for us, the question our country must answer is that this is not who we are. That's why -- to go back to your question -- I want to send a message -- we all should -- to every boy and girl and, indeed, to the entire world that America already is great, but we are great because we are good, and we will respect one another, and we will work with one another, and we will celebrate our diversity.
These are very important values to me, because this is the America that I know and love. And I can pledge to you tonight that this is the America that I will serve if I'm so fortunate enough to become your president.
Moderator Martha Raddatz: And we want to get to some questions from online...
Trump: Am I allowed to respond to that? I assume I am.
Raddatz: Yes, you can respond to that.
Trump: It's just words, folks. It's just words. ...the inner cities of our country, which are a disaster education-wise, jobwise, safety-wise, in every way possible. I'm going to help the African-Americans. I'm going to help the Latinos, Hispanics. I am going to help the inner cities.
...
Raddatz: Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump -- I want to get to audience questions and online questions.
Trump: So, she's allowed to do that, but I'm not allowed to respond?
Raddatz: You're going to have -- you're going to get to respond right now.
Trump: Sounds fair.
Raddatz: This tape is generating intense interest. In just 48 hours, it's become the single most talked about story of the entire 2016 election on Facebook, with millions and millions of people discussing it on the social network. As we said a moment ago, we do want to bring in questions from voters around country via social media, and our first stays on this topic. Jeff from Ohio asks on Facebook, "Trump says the campaign has changed him. When did that happen?" So, Mr. Trump, let me add to that. When you walked off that bus at age 59, were you a different man or did that behavior continue until just recently? And you have two minutes for this.
Trump: It was locker room talk, as I told you. That was locker room talk. I'm not proud of it. I am a person who has great respect for people, for my family, for the people of this country. And certainly, I'm not proud of it. But that was something that happened.
If you look at Bill Clinton, far worse. Mine are words, and his was action. His was what he's done to women. There's never been anybody in the history politics in this nation that's been so abusive to women. So you can say any way you want to say it, but Bill Clinton was abusive to women.
Hillary Clinton attacked those same women and attacked them viciously. Four of them here tonight. One of the women, who is a wonderful woman, at 12 years old, was raped at 12. Her client she represented got him off, and she's seen laughing on two separate occasions, laughing at the girl who was raped. Kathy Shelton, that young woman is here with us tonight.
So don't tell me about words. I am absolutely -- I apologize for those words. But it is things that people say. But what President Clinton did, he was impeached, he lost his license to practice law. He had to pay an $850,000 fine to one of the women. Paula Jones, who's also here tonight.
And I will tell you that when Hillary brings up a point like that and she talks about words that I said 11 years ago, I think it's disgraceful, and I think she should be ashamed of herself, if you want to know the truth.
Raddatz: ... Secretary Clinton, you have two minutes.
Clinton: Well, first, let me start by saying that so much of what he's just said is not right, but he gets to run his campaign any way he chooses. He gets to decide what he wants to talk about. Instead of answering people's questions, talking about our agenda, laying out the plans that we have that we think can make a better life and a better country, that's his choice.
When I hear something like that, I am reminded of what my friend, Michelle Obama, advised us all: When they go low, you go high.
And, look, if this were just about one video, maybe what he's saying tonight would be understandable, but everyone can draw their own conclusions at this point about whether or not the man in the video or the man on the stage respects women. But he never apologizes for anything to anyone.
He never apologized to Mr. and Mrs. Khan, the Gold Star family whose son, Captain Khan, died in the line of duty in Iraq. And Donald insulted and attacked them for weeks over their religion.
He never apologized to the distinguished federal judge who was born in Indiana, but Donald said he couldn't be trusted to be a judge because his parents were, quote, "Mexican."
He never apologized to the reporter that he mimicked and mocked on national television and our children were watching. And he never apologized for the racist lie that President Obama was not born in the United States of America. He owes the president an apology, he owes our country an apology, and he needs to take responsibility for his actions and his words.
Trump: Well, you owe the president an apology, because as you know very well, your campaign, Sidney Blumenthal -- he's another real winner that you have -- and he's the one that got this started, along with your campaign manager, and they were on television just two weeks ago, she was, saying exactly that. So you really owe him an apology. You're the one that sent the pictures around your campaign, sent the pictures around with President Obama in a certain garb. That was long before I was ever involved, so you actually owe an apology.
Number two, Michelle Obama. I've gotten to see the commercials that they did on you. And I've gotten to see some of the most vicious commercials I've ever seen of Michelle Obama talking about you, Hillary.
So, you talk about friend? Go back and take a look at those commercials, a race where you lost fair and square, unlike the Bernie Sanders race, where you won, but not fair and square, in my opinion. And all you have to do is take a look at WikiLeaks and just see what they say about Bernie Sanders and see what Deborah Wasserman Schultz had in mind, because Bernie Sanders, between super-delegates and Deborah Wasserman Schultz, he never had a chance. And I was so surprised to see him sign on with the devil.
....
Clinton: ... because everything he just said is absolutely false, but I'm not surprised. ... I told people that it would be impossible to be fact-checking Donald all the time. I'd never get to talk about anything I want to do and how we're going to really make lives better for people.
So, once again, go to HillaryClinton.com. We have literally Trump -- you can fact check him in real time.
--- end transcript of a few parts of debate ---
Ravi: Very chillingly, Trump threatened, if elected to be President, to appoint a special prosecutor who would look into the Clinton e-mails matter. When Clinton said that she is glad that Trump is not in charge of law in the country (USA), Trump shot back, "Because you'd be in jail"!!! I found the jail statement to be very, very shocking. I mean, one expects to hear such things on the public debate stage from top political leaders of dictatorial type of governments and not from top political leaders in mature democracies!!!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trump wanted to put Bill Clinton’s accusers in his family box. Debate officials said no., https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/10/10/trumps-debate-plan-to-seat-bill-clintons-accusers-in-family-box-was-thwarted/, Oct. 10th 2016
Please note that I have a PUBLICLY NEUTRAL informal-student-observer role in these posts that I put up about the USA presidential elections. Of course, as I am an Indian citizen living in India, there is no question of me voting in these elections.
[I thank the organization that organized this 2nd USA presidential debate (I think it is the Commission on Presidential Debates, http://www.debates.org/) and have presumed that they will not have any objections to me sharing the above transcript snippets from the video of the 2nd presidential debate on this post which is freely viewable by all, and does not have any financial profit motive whatsoever.]
Warning: Only those who can stomach some really nasty stuff should view the video or read the transcripts parts given below.
The second presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton [Oct. 9th 2016], https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-gkBUbU_F4, 1 hr 40 mins.
An article on it, Trump, Clinton wage scorched-earth debate, http://edition.cnn.com/2016/10/09/politics/presidential-debate-highlights/, Oct. 10th 2016. A small extract from it, "The once sacred tradition of a presidential debate -- where candidates typically trade barbs over their vision of the country's future instead of personal humiliations -- exploded into something quite chilling."
Washington Post annotated transcript of debate, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/09/everything-that-was-said-at-the-second-donald-trump-vs-hillary-clinton-debate-highlighted/.
I have given below a transcript of (some of) the parts of the debate dealing with immoral/inappropriate behaviour.
Question from town-hall audience-participant: Thank you and good evening. The last presidential debate could have been rated as MA, mature audiences, per TV parental guidelines. Knowing that educators assign viewing the presidential debates as students' homework, do you feel you're modeling appropriate and positive behavior for today's youth?
Hillary Clinton: Thank you. Are you a teacher? Yes, I think that that's a very good question because I've heard from lots of teachers and parents about some of their concerns about some of the things that are being said and done in this campaign.
And I think it is very important for us to make clear to our children that our country really is great because we're good. And we are going to respect one another, lift each other up. We are going to be looking for ways to celebrate our diversity, and we are going to try to reach out to every boy and girl, as well as every adult, to bring them in to working on behalf of our country.
I have a very positive and optimistic view about what we can do together. ...
I want to be the president for all Americans, regardless of your political beliefs, where you come from, what you look like, your religion. I want us to heal our country and bring it together because that's, I think, the best way for us to get the future that our children and our grandchildren deserve.
Moderator Andersen Cooper: Secretary Clinton, thank you. Mr. Trump, you have two minutes.
Donald Trump: Well, I actually agree with that. I agree with everything she said. I began this campaign because I was so tired of seeing such foolish things happen to our country. This is a great country. This is a great land. I've gotten to know the people of the country over the last year-and-a-half that I've been doing this as a politician. I cannot believe I'm saying that about myself, but I guess I have been a politician.
And my whole concept was to make America great again. ...
But I want to do things that haven't been done, including fixing and making our inner cities better for the African-American citizens that are so great, and for the Latinos, Hispanics, and I look forward to doing it. It's called make America great again.
Cooper: Thank you, Mr. Trump. The question from Patrice was about are you both modeling positive and appropriate behavior for today's youth? We received a lot of questions online, Mr. Trump, about the tape that was released on Friday, as you can imagine. You called what you said locker room banter. You described kissing women without consent, grabbing their genitals. That is sexual assault. You bragged that you have sexually assaulted women. Do you understand that?
Trump: No, I didn't say that at all. I don't think you understood what was said. This was locker room talk. I'm not proud of it. I apologize to my family. I apologize to the American people. Certainly I'm not proud of it. But this is locker room talk.
...
Yes, I'm very embarrassed by it. I hate it. But it's locker room talk, and it's one of those things. ...
...
Cooper: Just for the record, though, are you saying that what you said on that bus 11 years ago that you did not actually kiss women without consent or grope women without consent?
Trump: I have great respect for women. Nobody has more respect for women than I do.
Cooper: So, for the record, you're saying you never did that?
Trump: ... you hear these things I said. And I was embarrassed by it. But I have tremendous respect for women.
Cooper: Have you ever done those things?
Trump: And women have respect for me. And I will tell you: No, I have not. ...
...
Cooper: Secretary Clinton, do you want to respond?
Clinton: Well, like everyone else, I've spent a lot of time thinking over the last 48 hours about what we heard and saw. You know, with prior Republican nominees for president, I disagreed with them on politics, policies, principles, but I never questioned their fitness to serve.
Donald Trump is different. I said starting back in June that he was not fit to be president and commander-in-chief. And many Republicans and independents have said the same thing. What we all saw and heard on Friday was Donald talking about women, what he thinks about women, what he does to women. And he has said that the video doesn't represent who he is.
But I think it's clear to anyone who heard it that it represents exactly who he is. Because we've seen this throughout the campaign. We have seen him insult women. We've seen him rate women on their appearance, ranking them from one to ten. We've seen him embarrass women on TV and on Twitter. We saw him after the first debate spend nearly a week denigrating a former Miss Universe in the harshest, most personal terms.
So, yes, this is who Donald Trump is. But it's not only women, and it's not only this video that raises questions about his fitness to be our president, because he has also targeted immigrants, African- Americans, Latinos, people with disabilities, POWs, Muslims, and so many others.
So this is who Donald Trump is. And the question for us, the question our country must answer is that this is not who we are. That's why -- to go back to your question -- I want to send a message -- we all should -- to every boy and girl and, indeed, to the entire world that America already is great, but we are great because we are good, and we will respect one another, and we will work with one another, and we will celebrate our diversity.
These are very important values to me, because this is the America that I know and love. And I can pledge to you tonight that this is the America that I will serve if I'm so fortunate enough to become your president.
Moderator Martha Raddatz: And we want to get to some questions from online...
Trump: Am I allowed to respond to that? I assume I am.
Raddatz: Yes, you can respond to that.
Trump: It's just words, folks. It's just words. ...the inner cities of our country, which are a disaster education-wise, jobwise, safety-wise, in every way possible. I'm going to help the African-Americans. I'm going to help the Latinos, Hispanics. I am going to help the inner cities.
...
Raddatz: Mr. Trump, Mr. Trump -- I want to get to audience questions and online questions.
Trump: So, she's allowed to do that, but I'm not allowed to respond?
Raddatz: You're going to have -- you're going to get to respond right now.
Trump: Sounds fair.
Raddatz: This tape is generating intense interest. In just 48 hours, it's become the single most talked about story of the entire 2016 election on Facebook, with millions and millions of people discussing it on the social network. As we said a moment ago, we do want to bring in questions from voters around country via social media, and our first stays on this topic. Jeff from Ohio asks on Facebook, "Trump says the campaign has changed him. When did that happen?" So, Mr. Trump, let me add to that. When you walked off that bus at age 59, were you a different man or did that behavior continue until just recently? And you have two minutes for this.
Trump: It was locker room talk, as I told you. That was locker room talk. I'm not proud of it. I am a person who has great respect for people, for my family, for the people of this country. And certainly, I'm not proud of it. But that was something that happened.
If you look at Bill Clinton, far worse. Mine are words, and his was action. His was what he's done to women. There's never been anybody in the history politics in this nation that's been so abusive to women. So you can say any way you want to say it, but Bill Clinton was abusive to women.
Hillary Clinton attacked those same women and attacked them viciously. Four of them here tonight. One of the women, who is a wonderful woman, at 12 years old, was raped at 12. Her client she represented got him off, and she's seen laughing on two separate occasions, laughing at the girl who was raped. Kathy Shelton, that young woman is here with us tonight.
So don't tell me about words. I am absolutely -- I apologize for those words. But it is things that people say. But what President Clinton did, he was impeached, he lost his license to practice law. He had to pay an $850,000 fine to one of the women. Paula Jones, who's also here tonight.
And I will tell you that when Hillary brings up a point like that and she talks about words that I said 11 years ago, I think it's disgraceful, and I think she should be ashamed of herself, if you want to know the truth.
Raddatz: ... Secretary Clinton, you have two minutes.
Clinton: Well, first, let me start by saying that so much of what he's just said is not right, but he gets to run his campaign any way he chooses. He gets to decide what he wants to talk about. Instead of answering people's questions, talking about our agenda, laying out the plans that we have that we think can make a better life and a better country, that's his choice.
When I hear something like that, I am reminded of what my friend, Michelle Obama, advised us all: When they go low, you go high.
And, look, if this were just about one video, maybe what he's saying tonight would be understandable, but everyone can draw their own conclusions at this point about whether or not the man in the video or the man on the stage respects women. But he never apologizes for anything to anyone.
He never apologized to Mr. and Mrs. Khan, the Gold Star family whose son, Captain Khan, died in the line of duty in Iraq. And Donald insulted and attacked them for weeks over their religion.
He never apologized to the distinguished federal judge who was born in Indiana, but Donald said he couldn't be trusted to be a judge because his parents were, quote, "Mexican."
He never apologized to the reporter that he mimicked and mocked on national television and our children were watching. And he never apologized for the racist lie that President Obama was not born in the United States of America. He owes the president an apology, he owes our country an apology, and he needs to take responsibility for his actions and his words.
Trump: Well, you owe the president an apology, because as you know very well, your campaign, Sidney Blumenthal -- he's another real winner that you have -- and he's the one that got this started, along with your campaign manager, and they were on television just two weeks ago, she was, saying exactly that. So you really owe him an apology. You're the one that sent the pictures around your campaign, sent the pictures around with President Obama in a certain garb. That was long before I was ever involved, so you actually owe an apology.
Number two, Michelle Obama. I've gotten to see the commercials that they did on you. And I've gotten to see some of the most vicious commercials I've ever seen of Michelle Obama talking about you, Hillary.
So, you talk about friend? Go back and take a look at those commercials, a race where you lost fair and square, unlike the Bernie Sanders race, where you won, but not fair and square, in my opinion. And all you have to do is take a look at WikiLeaks and just see what they say about Bernie Sanders and see what Deborah Wasserman Schultz had in mind, because Bernie Sanders, between super-delegates and Deborah Wasserman Schultz, he never had a chance. And I was so surprised to see him sign on with the devil.
....
Clinton: ... because everything he just said is absolutely false, but I'm not surprised. ... I told people that it would be impossible to be fact-checking Donald all the time. I'd never get to talk about anything I want to do and how we're going to really make lives better for people.
So, once again, go to HillaryClinton.com. We have literally Trump -- you can fact check him in real time.
--- end transcript of a few parts of debate ---
Ravi: Very chillingly, Trump threatened, if elected to be President, to appoint a special prosecutor who would look into the Clinton e-mails matter. When Clinton said that she is glad that Trump is not in charge of law in the country (USA), Trump shot back, "Because you'd be in jail"!!! I found the jail statement to be very, very shocking. I mean, one expects to hear such things on the public debate stage from top political leaders of dictatorial type of governments and not from top political leaders in mature democracies!!!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trump wanted to put Bill Clinton’s accusers in his family box. Debate officials said no., https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2016/10/10/trumps-debate-plan-to-seat-bill-clintons-accusers-in-family-box-was-thwarted/, Oct. 10th 2016
Please note that I have a PUBLICLY NEUTRAL informal-student-observer role in these posts that I put up about the USA presidential elections. Of course, as I am an Indian citizen living in India, there is no question of me voting in these elections.
[I thank the organization that organized this 2nd USA presidential debate (I think it is the Commission on Presidential Debates, http://www.debates.org/) and have presumed that they will not have any objections to me sharing the above transcript snippets from the video of the 2nd presidential debate on this post which is freely viewable by all, and does not have any financial profit motive whatsoever.]
Comments
Post a Comment