Presidential debate didn’t make many proud to be an American, poll finds
After a chaotic first debate between President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden, most likely voters said they weren’t proud to be American and that the debate barely changed their minds, according to a new poll.
The event was filled with interruptions and falsehoods, with Trump and Biden trading insults and flouting other debate rules..
A CNBC/Change Research poll of 925 likely voters found 77% said the debate didn’t “make them feel proud to be an American.” Of the people who watched the debate, 53% said Biden did a better job than Trump, but only 2% said the debate changed their minds about who they would vote for. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.47 percentage points and 796 likely voters for questions about the debate.
The poll found 45% said Trump “performed worse than expectations” compared to 11% who said the same about Biden.
Polls from CNN and CBS directly after the debate found Americans viewed Biden as the winner, although few were satisfied with the tone of the evening.
Contentious moments from Tuesday’s debate include Trump’s refusal to condemn white supremacy, telling the far-right Proud Boys group to “stand back and stand by.” Those comments reportedly drew praise from members of the Proud Boys, which the Southern Poverty Law center considers an extremist group. On Wednesday, Trump told reporters that he doesn’t “know who the Proud Boys are,” Politico reported. “... I can only say they have to stand down.”
Critiques of the debate went beyond usual political circles. Jeremy Slater, writer of the highly criticized movie “Fantastic Four,” said the debate was worse than his critically panned film.
“That was the worst thing I’ve ever seen, and I wrote FANTASTIC FOUR,” he posted on Twitter.
Two more debates are scheduled between Biden and Trump, on Oct. 15 in Miami and Oct. 22 in Nashville.
Trump’s reelection campaign has pushed for earlier and more debates, while Biden’s campaign reaffirmed its commitment to the original debate schedule of three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate, McClatchy News reported.
