Check out Thursday’s newsletter!
|
|
From The Reporter’s Notebook
As Donald Trump has heaped praise on himself for declining to discuss Bill Clinton’s sex scandals during the first presidential debate, his surrogates have made the rounds on the cable networks doing exactly that. This transparent scheme to allow Trump’s advisers and supporters to do the dirty work of bringing up past Clinton scandals has also served as a distraction from Trump’s derogatory comments about former Miss Universe Alicia Machado, which Hillary Clinton brought up at the end of the debate. According to TPM’s Allegra Kirkland, the campaign’s efforts were laid bare by a memo of talking points obtained by CNN directing supporters to bring up figures like Monica Lewinsky and Gennifer Flowers this week.
Agree or Disagree?
Josh Marshall: “Prep can’t make you what you’re not. It can prepare you with practice and details at the ready to make you best version of who you are. You want a half a dozen key points you want to hit. You don’t want to be caught fielding a question you didn’t expect. But you’re not going to be someone you’re simply not. You can take the rough edges off the product. But generally pretending you’re someone you’re totally not is not effective. What’s more, you can’t become conversant in the almost limitless variety of public policy questions in a week’s work. It may not take a lifetime but it takes months just to come off as passable. Trump’s not going to manage that in the next couple weeks.”
Say What?!
“I think that took a lot of courage in so many regards.”
– Eric Trump heaped praise on his father for not bringing up Bill Clinton’s sex scandals during the first debate, calling it “something I’ll always remember.”
BUZZING: Today in the Hive
From a TPM Prime member: “The type of give and take in the second debate’s ‘town forum’ approach fits Clinton perfectly. She’s done these for years, as First Lady, Senate Candidate and Presidential candidate. In fact, she’s more comfortable in this type of a setting than the lectern approach in the first debate. I always thought the first debate was the most dangerous for Clinton. But a town forum, I mean, really, asking Trump to listen to some millennial, or even worse, if a Hispanic woman asks a question, and he has to respectfully answer?”
Related: Trump’s advisers have publicly praised his performance, but have reportedly lamented missed opportunities in private.
Have something to add? Become a Prime member and join the discussion here.
|
|
