Trump Slams First Presidential Debate: ‘What A Rigged Deal’ (VIDEO)

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2016, in Bedford, N.H. (AP Photo/John Locher)
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Donald Trump complained about every part of the first presidential debate, from his opponent to the moderator to the subsequent poll results, during a Thursday campaign appearance.

“I had to put up with the anchor and fight the anchor all the time on everything I said,” Trump said of the debate’s moderator, Lester Holt, at a rally in Bedford, New Hampshire. “What a rigged deal.”

He also cited online polls as evidence of his success, saying that “every single online poll said we won.”

On Tuesday afternoon, a Fox News executive sent a memo to staff that was leaked to Business Insider reminding them that online polls like the ones Trump touted should not be cited as though they were scientifically sound.

Since online polls don’t survey a population selected from randomized phone numbers and internet users, Fox’s vice president of public-opinion research, Dana Blanton, noted in that memo that “the sample obviously can’t be representative of the electorate.”

Two reputable polls released Wednesday showed that respondents thought Hillary Clinton won Monday night’s debate by a wide margin.

An NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll found that 52 percent of respondents thought Clinton won, to 21 percent who thought that Trump came out ahead.

Another from Reuters/Ipsos found that 56 percent of respondents thought Clinton won, to 26 percent who declared victory for Trump.

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