Who won the first presidential debate? The hashtag #TrumpWon has been trending on Twitter since the close of the first presidential debate last night, yet the tweets themselves are rather mixed. Many conservatives and Trump himself are posting screenshots of polls declaring the GOP candidate the winner, while others attach memes of confusion and laughter or blanketed false statements as a way to mock it. One quick scroll through the top tweets shows the Twittersphere has yet to reach a consensus on whether it’s a joke or not.
However, regardless of whether the trend developed into a cycle of facetious #NeverTrump users poking fun at #MAGA (Make America Great Again) tweeters – with the latter not understanding they’re the butt of a joke – the polls exist. This isn’t to say polls are an undeniably accurate depiction of what the American people believe (far from it, in fact), but they shouldn’t be tossed away immediately, as they are at least from a variety of sources (liberal, conservative and moderate media conglomerates) – which is unusual for pro-Trump responses.
Then again, another surprise may occur when voluntary pollsters realize the facts check the updated percentages throughout the following days, which the Politico Caucus touches on: “‘Donald Trump exposed himself to be a clown,’ added a New Hampshire Democrat, who also predicted ‘the polls will show dramatic movement in next 24 hours.’”
Similarly ambivalent, Trump’s demeanor and body language could be interpreted as a win or a loss. His ironic, perhaps karma-caused sniffles (given his continuous criticism of Secretary Clinton’s health, who appeared to have no ailments during the debate) that he contended did not happen – blaming a bad mic for the sounds instead – which consequently assured to his supporters that the good ol’ aphorisms ‘mind over matter’ and ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ still hold true.
His dedicated fans may appreciate his loud voice and reluctance to back down when Clinton or moderator Lester Holt was talking over him, but on top of consistent interruptions, others may consider it “braggadocious” after all. For example, this debate transcript by The Washington Post proves Trump interjected the word “Wrong” six times and there were nine instances of “crosstalk” throughout the debate. (Though, to be fair, there is no one individual to blame for that. It takes two – or in this case, three – to tango.)
Biased arguments based on political preferences aside, there is a general consensus among journalists and political pundits that debates don’t really matter in terms of gaining votes. As CNN details, “The vast majority of Americans have already decided who they're voting for along party lines,” so unless something dramatic occurs, their opinion will not sway.
This is why, despite Trump’s factual errors, he may have still won the debate – and the future election. From the classic lies about President Obama’s nationality and dubbing his father’s financial contribution a “small loan,” to more recent insistences like he never labeled climate change a hoax and the positive impact stop-and-frisk policies have on lowering crime rates, Fortune points out “his supporters seem to be able to find a way to excuse their candidate’s incorrect statements, forgive his inadequacies, and put a positive spin on his failures.”
This means other than a chance for candidates to defend themselves against their opponent in real time, debates are essentially just beneficial for the undecided. And it seems doubtful either candidate successfully garnered much in that department, leaving us with the same question we started with.
