"These one week preparations don't work. Just ask Hillary... in the debate."

[Gidney N Cloyd]

Trump's tarmac tirade this morning was an amazing stream of bullshit but what in particular was he getting at with this crack? I thought Hillary wiped the floor with him in the debates.

[maxsolomon]

1. "Preparation is overrated..

Bullying works better, the proof is that I was elected. I am a small man with an incurious mind and a small soul. My motivation is revenge against anyone who doesn't praise me. I will die comfortable and rich in my bed, and half of America will line up to piss on my grave."

[Thomas Hurt]

2. exactly, what was this crack about...I thought he said he didn't need any prep, just attitude.

Is changing his story cuz he is having second thoughts or he knows he going down in flames.

[Proud Liberal Dem]

3. IKR

She was considered the winner of all three debates. I don't think that Trump was considered to have "won" any of them

[RockRaven]

4. She kicked his ass in the debates precisely b/c he didn't know anything about anything and she did

And the 3 million more people who voted for her than for him are evidence of his failure.

[oberliner]

5. No amount of preparation will help Trump at this point

He is who he is.

[bigbrother05]

6. This is exactly the point, why waste time and energy on a hopeless lump?

Spending more than 5 minutes trying to cram anything useful into that cotton candy head is a fool's errand.

[oberliner]

8. Yes, we are in total agreement

[karynnj]

7. He considers that because he won the elections, he won the debates

Here, it may be what constitues "winning" a debate. Presidential debates were never scored like academic debates. Consider Gore vs Bush, first debate. Gore was on target with every single answer. He knew the substance backward and forwards. There were a few questions where Bush sounded like the kid in high school who did not read the assignment, but figured if he talked vaguely enough he would run out the clock and no one would notice. Yet, we remember what happened the next day. The debate was filmed with the understanding that the video would focus on the person speaking, which is what we saw live. But, the next day, we saw a split screen with Gore looking exasperated at Bush's answers and sighing. A few days later, polls confirmed Bush numbers up, Gore's down.

Clinton was the one with the facts and she skewered Trump on somethings. However, Trump was playing mostly to his base - getting in all his slogans .. attacking Clinton etc I imagine that Clinton's team had an impossible task, how do you deal with debating someone like Trump, who had built up memes and lies and could slip into his reality persona at will. In 2004, I was impressed that Kerry could ignore anything weird Bush did, but that was possible because nothing Bush did was particularly directed towards Kerry. Clinton faced Trump claiming all sorts of untrue things about her. This meant she had to respond, but to respond without losing either her dignity or appearing "unlikeable". (where "unlikable' would be acessed by pundits.)

I think Clinton did convince anyone open to her as President that she was serious, qualified and would be a competent President. On that count she won. However, Trump obviously charged up his base and he helped spread the various lies that others - including we know know the Russians - in support of him. From his perspective, he won because Hillary Clinton did not eliminate him and he won election.

However, you don't "win" a negotiation. If things go well, both sides find a framework both can live with and there is an agreement that both sides see as better than where we are. The very thought that he will "win", shows he has no idea how diplomacy works. In addition, winning is not determined by a group of people who maybe watched too much reality tv!