On Wednesday night the third and final presidential debate took place; following a tough three weeks in politics and poll results for Donald Trump, as he has lost a lot of support from both women and Republican leaders after the release of a 2005 tape of him describing sexually assaulting women. Both candidates remained somewhat toned down throughout the debate but still lacked in a genuine discussion of policy.
One particular topic which sparked both controversy and the subject of the Supreme Court was the question of abortion, and it's legality in the United States. Moderator Chris Wallace asked Donald Trump what his stance was on the Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in 1973. Trump responded strongly to this question, emphasizing that he was pro-life, and that, should he become President, he will place pro-life justices on the Supreme Court. While it is unclear whether or not he would ban abortion altogether, he did say that "It will go back to the states, and the states will then make a determination." Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, had a polar opposite view of abortion and defended her standing position that “ And in this case, it’s not only about Roe v. Wade. It is about what's happening right now in America." She fervently explained that many states are already restricting the right women have to an abortion and de-funding Planned Parenthood, which provides health care screenings, birth control, and many other helpful resources. Mrs. Clinton also acknowledged that she voted against a ban on late-term and partial-birth abortions, "Because Roe v. Wade very clearly sets out that there can be regulations on abortion as long as the life and the health of the mother are taken into account. And when I voted as a senator, I did not think that was the case." She then went on to explain the instances in which an abortion might be necessary for the health of the mother and emphasized that regulations are okay as long as the health and life of the mother are considered. Mr. Trump responded with what Mrs. Clinton noted as "scare rhetoric," saying "If you go with what Hillary is saying, in the ninth month, you can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother just before the birth of the baby." Mrs. Clinton fired back with her stance, "The government has no business in the decisions that women make with their families in accordance with their faith, with medical advice. And I will stand up for that right."
Chris Wallace asked Mr. Trump, "Do you make the same commitment that you will absolutely-sir, that you will absolutely accept the result of this election?" following his comments and accusations that the election is rigged against him, due to his exponential drop in voter support over the past month; and both his running mate, Mike Pence, and his daughter, Ivanka Trumps's claims that they will "absolutely accept the result of this election". Trump's response that he "will look at it at the time" was concerning to a number of notable political officials, including President Obama himself. Mrs. Clinton fired back saying that Mr. Trump's claim that he will "keep us in suspense" was horrifying. Since the debate on Wednesday, numerous officials, and President Obama have been reassuring citizens and the media that the election is not rigged against anyone; they also noted the dangers of making such claims as it essentially invalidates the entire foundation on which the United States government is founded on, Democracy. Mr. Trump later noted in a rally on Thursday in Delaware, Ohio that he "will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election--if I win." This has sparked even more concern over the election as not only is it a tradition for the losing candidate to accept the results of the election and support the winner after the results, but it shows a lack of diplomacy in Mr. Trump; and many officials who are against him have been using this as a method of attack.
In addition to their stances on abortion, both candidates were asked for their beliefs on the Supreme Court, border patrol in the United States, the Second Amendment, Immigration, Mr. Trump's views on women and sexual assault, and, of course, Vladimir Putin. For a full transcript of the Debate, please notice this New York Times article.
On Thursday, just a day after the third debate, the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner took place in Manhattan. This dinner has been a tradition for the two primary presidential candidates to attend and mock both themselves and each other. With the pattern of this election, naturally, it was interesting to see what both candidates had to say. Donald Trump spoke first, noting the size of his hands, and even his wife, Melania Trump's, plagiarized speech at the Republican National Convention, which he then used to discuss the "biased" media. However, his attacks on Clinton, including his claims that she was "pretending not to hate Catholics" lost the respect of the elite New York population in the room. In fact, he was booed at the dinner shortly after his speech. Hillary Clinton spoke soon after, opening her speech by joking that she "took a break from my rigorous nap schedule to be here. Usually, I charge a lot for speeches like this." Mrs. Clinton, too, took jabs at Mr. Trump, but they were more well-received by the audience. Some of these jokes include noting how Donald Trump sees the Statue of Liberty: "[he] looks at the Statue of Liberty and sees a four, maybe a five if she loses the torch and tablet and changes her hair." Overall, the dinner stuck to tradition and allowed the public to reflect on the ridiculous rhetoric displayed in this year's Presidential race.
