Hill, 27 Sep. 2016- The first debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton lived up to its billing on Monday night as sparks flew on subjects ranging from trade deals to the fight against ISIS.
Stylistically, it was a clash between the more incisive and prepared Clinton and Trump, who leaned heavily on instinct and combativeness.
Clinton sought to deepen doubts about Trump’s readiness to be president, while he tried to paint her as part of an ineffective political establishment.
Clinton fared better by a wide margin in a CNN/ORC poll in the immediate aftermath and the media consensus also seemed to lean strongly in her direction.
Clinton stayed on offense for much of the 90-minute encounter. Some early data suggests that this could have helped her.