Democrat Hillary Clinton was the clear winner of last night’s US presidential debate, defeating Republican rival Donald Trump, according to British journalists writing for titles across the political spectrum
The debate, watched by an estimated TV audience of close to 100m people, was the first of three between the two presidential hopefuls before America goes to the polls on 8 November.
The Daily Telegraph said Clinton “floors Trump… by getting him to talk about himself” while The Guardian said she “stays calm while Trump loses cool”.
Some were harsher in their assessment, with Spectator deputy editor Freddy Gray writing: “Smug Hillary Clinton wins the first presidential debate. Donald Trump looks like a plonker.”
BBC Daily Politics presenter Andrew Neil said on Twitter: “It’s not been an edifying debate. Candidates like two ships passing in the night.”
He added: “The consensus will be that Clinton won. But not in a game-changing way.”
BBC world affairs editor John Simpson said: “Trump bombastic. Sounded dodgy. Vulnerable on personal tax. Hillary kept her cool but she may not win.”
GQ political editor Rupert Myers, who also contributes to the Guardian and Telegraph, said: “Any commentator claiming that Trump won that debate – either on the basis of online polls or gut instinct – is pandering to their readership.
“He didn’t win any of it. He bluffed his way through it without making any major errors. That’s not the same thing.”
LBC presenter and Times literary supplement editor Stig Abell said: “Have been watching the #USDebate. Trump lost, obviously. But hard to see it matters. We all know now what we knew before. And he rolls on.”
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