Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are preparing for their first debate Monday night, and, unsurprisingly, Clinton and Trump’s advisers have opposite goals: Clinton wants a large audience of voters to see Trump as he usually is, and Trump’s advisers want him to be a completely different person. To that end, Clinton will try to rattle Trump into being Trump while withstanding whatever barrage of insults he might hurl at her:
She is mentally readying herself for multiple Trumps: the disciplined opponent who sticks to big themes, the no-holds-barred adversary who goes on the offensive, and the snide antagonist who calls her a “loser” to her face. Her advisers are hurling a host of Trumpian assaults and counterattacks at her to test her responses and adjust them as needed.
But of course, being a woman and all, Clinton has to avoid being seen as too pushy or abrasive. And if it isn’t testament to the power of sexism that she has to worry about that even while on stage with Donald Trump, I don’t know what is. As for Trump:
He may not like debate preparations, but he is very competitive and wants to vanquish Mrs. Clinton on Monday night. His team has been emphasizing the best ways to win: Do not pick stupid fights with her or with the moderator; explain yourself rather than get defensive; and deliver the answers you want rather than worrying about directly answering the question.
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So their advice on how to win is “don’t be Donald Trump”?
Some Trump advisers are concerned that he underestimates the difficulty of standing still, talking pointedly and listening sharply for 90 minutes. In the primary debates he often receded into the background, and only jumped into the debate forcefully when he was attacked. Some advisers worry that if Mrs. Clinton surprises him, he will be caught flat-footed.
Eh, presidents don’t need to be able to stand, talk, and listen, right? For his part, Trump claims he’s going to “stay cool.”
"I'm going to be very respectful of her," he said. "I think she deserves that and I'm going to be nice. And if she's respectful of me, that'll be nice."
It sure will be interesting to watch Trump try to be “very respectful” for 90 minutes of unscripted speaking.