Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will face off for the first time in Monday night’s debate, and the internet is already ablaze. The first of three debates this season is expected to attract an audience rivaling the Super Bowl with an estimated 100 million American viewers.
While there are large, vocal demographics against both Trump and Clinton, a recent CNN poll in Pennsylvania and Colorado—two states critical to both candidates—found that the rivals were separated by only one point. This tension was made even greater over the weekend with a fact-checking controversy, some below-the-belt Twitter antics, and discussion of double standards.
On Sunday, Head of Commission on Presidential Debates Janet Brown told CNN that she didn’t want debate moderators to “serve as the Encyclopedia Brittanica.” Considering Trump’s tendency to tweet false statistics and Pulitzer Prize-winning site Politifact’s conclusion that only four percent of his claims have been rated completely true, Brown’s statement has many worried the GOP nominee will manipulate the audience unchecked.
Trump’s campaign was also embroiled in controversy this weekend when American businessman and Trump-critic Mark Cuban announced on Twitter that he’d been invited to the debate. In response, Trump suggested that he’d invite Bill Clinton’s former mistress Gennifer Flowers to sit front row.
Just got a front row seat to watch @HillaryClinton overwhelm @realDonaldTrump at the "Humbling at Hofstra" on Monday. It Is On !
If dopey Mark Cuban of failed Benefactor fame wants to sit in the front row, perhaps I will put Gennifer Flowers right alongside of him!
Most expect Clinton to take a clear lead tonight since she’s a seasoned debater who is extremely well-versed in policy. Conversely, Trump is expected to be predictably unpredictable, likely oscillating between “attack mode” and “sleep mode.”
After violent confrontations, increased hate crimes, tense conventions, and endless burns, many of us are begging for the election season's end. But since there's still a ways to go, we at Complex have created a debate drinking game to help you self-medicate through the pain.
Warning: Playing by these rules may cause you to blackout. Try to wake up in time to get to the voting booth.
Drink every time Trump says:
“Crooked Hillary”
“I never said that”
“Clinton Foundation is corrupt”
“Lots of people are saying…”
“Why won’t Hillary say ‘radical Islamic terrorism?’”
“War on political correctness”
“Hillary’s email scandal”
“I changed my mind”
- “The system is rigged against me”
“We’re gonna build a wall and Mexico will pay for it”
“I do not have tiny baby hands”
“All lives matter”
*Cites false statistic*
Drink every time Clinton says:
“America is already great.”
“Think of our daughters”
“Equal pay for equal work”
“Small business owners”
“The decision to go to war in Iraq was a mistake”
“Yes, black lives matter”
“Trump is a Putin fanboy” (or something with that essence)
“We need an economy that works for everyone”
“Trump can be baited with a tweet”
"I have a history of ______ work" (basically any time she *points to résumé*)
*catches Trump in a lie*
You can watch the debate on all broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Univision, PBS, etc.) and all cable news networks (CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, C-SPAN, etc.) tonight at 9 p.m. ET. You can also stream it on Facebook Live and on YouTube from NBC News, Washington Post,Bloomberg Politics, and others.
