The first presidential debate, broadcast from Hofstra University in New York, showed us an incredible juxtaposition: cool, calm Hillary Clinton showed us that she is more than capable of being president, while Donald Trump seemed angry, like a petulant child. This debate showed us all we need to know about Trump, and why he can never be president. I've broken down the debate into what I find the three most alarming things Trump showed us in the first debate (terrible policies aside).
Trump will not be held responsible for his actions.
Hillary has inundated the media with commercials featuring clips of Trump saying some of the most degrading things toward women, African-Americans, and more. There is footage of him calling himself a Chauvanist and insulting women. There is evidence of him refusing to pay contractors who worked for his company (and he's proud of that!). Any time Hillary brought these issues up, issues clearly central to his past and his campaign for president, Trump would interrupt with a simple "wrong!" As much as he tries to keep up his charade of innocence, there is evidence implicating him in these more than shady actions. Hillary, on the other hand, finally owned up and took responsibility for her email scandal, admitting it was a mistake and it was her fault. Accountability is essential in presidents, and Trump showed us he will be held accountable to no one but himself.
He has no emotional intelligence.
Emotional intelligence is key if not essential to being POTUS. This means the ability to control one's emotions and put them aside when in the face of conflict. Richard Nixon was a prime example of a lack of emotional intelligence. When Nixon was in the face of conflict, or in the wake of one of his mistakes, rather than owning up and grasping the situation he would double down on his errors in order to maintain his personality, clearly letting his emotions get the best of him. Donald Trump showed us this same negative trait when in the face of Hillary's factual attacks, he would double down and just say she's wrong. The issue is, we know what the facts are. Making up lies for not showing his tax returns won't cut it. This is a clear lack of emotional intelligence and someone whose emotions would certainly get the best of them in a serious conflict. Hillary, on the other hand, stood smiling and even laughing the whole time, despite whatever claims Trump would try to make against her.
He does not respect the spirit of the laws of this nation.
Trump has yet to release his tax returns and everyone knows why. He does not pay the taxes a man of his income should be paying and continues to lie about why he's not releasing them. He touts this as an ability to 'take advantage' of national laws. He was very clear that he does not break any laws, but rather takes advantage of the existing laws in place. This is not a quality we should admire in a presidential candidate. This is evidence of a man constantly trying to subvert the laws for his own gain. Should he be elected president, where would that stop? Will he try to subvert Congress and get his policies enacted? Would he try to subvert international organizations to project America's ideals where we have no place being? This is not a risk that can be taken, especially with the nuclear launch codes in hand. On that topic, he was reported to have asked multiple times during national security briefings "why can't we just use our nuclear weapons?" Everyone seems to understand the consequence of nuclear war and mutual assured destruction except Mr. Trump. That is not a safe choice for commander-in-chief.
This was by no means a comprehensive assault on Trump's candidacy, for me to write that I would need my own newspaper. This is what stood out to me when watching the first debate. I was no Hillary supporter until Bernie dropped out, but she is who we need to protect this country. If this isn't alarming enough his policies should be, because Trump is no savior and he will not make America any greater than it already is. We have a lot of problems to deal with as a nation, but Trump will bring nothing except more divisiveness and potential danger.
