From the beginning we have seen a steady drip of apparent insider reports all impacting on Hilary's health. Her collapse on 9/11 served to make that issue central to the rest of her campaign. At the same time her bizarre reappearance an hour or so later opened serious questions about the use of a body double. We keep adding more questions and getting no answers.
We have actually seen a cascade of troubling news for her including on the legal front that surely dwarf any issues Donald may face. All this happening when she should be out shaping her narrative. Now she is off the formal campaign trail to prepare for the first debate.
The answer to all the health rumors is a convincing performance at this debate. That is what i have waited for as that is a real stress test. LOL.
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Hillary Clinton prepares for unpredictable Donald Trump at debate
Story highlights
- Clinton is taking time off the trail to prepare for Monday's debate with Trump
- Trump is an unpredictable opponent and difficult to prepare for
New York (CNN)Hillary
Clinton is visiting only two battleground states this week -- hardly a
sign of confidence at her standing 49 days before the election, but an
acknowledgement that one task reigns above all: Preparing for her first
face-to-face confrontation with Donald Trump.
While
she is set to make a quick trip to Florida on Wednesday, after dipping
into Pennsylvania on Monday, Clinton will devote the lion's share of her
time huddling with her debate team, gaming out how she will confront
Trump next Monday night at Hofstra University.
The
lead Clinton enjoyed for months in swing state and national polls has
all but evaporated, raising the stakes for the first debate. The
terrorism investigation in New York and New Jersey has also added to the
urgency of her first meeting with Trump, which will touch on a litany
of economic and security issues.
Clinton,
who has participated in more debates than any presidential candidate in
recent history, faces a new challenge with Trump. She is preparing for
Trump to confront her on a litany of uncomfortable subjects, ranging
from her email scandal to Bill Clinton's infidelity to her health.
Trump
showed he was willing to go there Tuesday when he tweeted, "Hillary
Clinton is taking the day off again, she needs the rest. Sleep well
Hillary - see you at the debate!"
Clinton, in a radio interview Tuesday, said she was ready to deal with Trump's attacks.
"I
am going to do my very best to communicate as clearly and fearlessly as
I can in the face of the insults and the attacks and the bullying and
the bigotry that we have seen coming from my opponent," Clinton said
Tuesday on the Steve Harvey Radio show. "I can take it, Steve. I can
take that kind of stuff. I have been at this, I understand it is a
contact sport."
To knock Trump off
his game, people advising Clinton have been looking for a one-line
retort that will be a memorable moment from the contest.
But
Democrats worry the first debate will give Trump a chance to show a
more moderate, controlled side, while millions of people watch, possibly
for the first time. This, according to people who have recently talked
with the former secretary of state, is not lost on Clinton.
Clinton
told supporters at an August fundraiser that a friend told her: "There
will be about 100 million people watching and 60 million will be paying
attention to the campaign for the first time. So don't assume they have
followed anything."
"There will be a lot of new impressions to be made that night," Clinton said.
A team of veteran advisers
are leading her debate effort, including Ron Klain, who advised Obama,
and Karen Dunn, a long-time lawyer and aide. She is not setting up a
formal "debate camp," aides said, but intends to be secluded at her home
in Chappaqua, New York, in the days leading up to the debate to prepare
for her showdown on Monday.
Clinton
has also spent considerable time reading briefing books about Trump's
policy, personality and politics, including receiving input from Tony
Schwartz, who was the co-author for "Art of the Deal," the best-seller
about Trump.
Expectations game
Clinton aides worry that they can't lower expectations enough ahead of the event.
"For
all his lack of substance, Trump's showmanship, as ex-reality TV star,
makes him a formidable debate foe. He thrashed his rivals in GOP
debates," Brian Fallon, Clinton's national press secretary, tweeted in
August.
With her Senate contests
in 2000 and 2006, along with more than two dozen debates with Barack
Obama in 2008 and nine meetings with Bernie Sanders in this primary
campaign, she has stood on a debate stage more than 40 times.
Trump
will not be the first unconventional opponent Clinton has faced in a
debate. Clinton all-but ended her 2000 Senate race against Rick Lazio
during one of their debates when she stood strong as the Republican
representative approached her lectern with a piece of paper and demanded
she pledge to support stricter campaign finance rules. Lazio's bizarre
move was seen as bullying and rude and Clinton handily beat him by 12
points in November.
Her debate last
fall against four Democratic primary opponents was seen as an outright
win for the secretary of state because of the way she handled prickly
questions, including about whether she is progressive enough for the
current bent of the Democratic Party.
"I'm
a progressive. But I'm a progressive who likes to get things done,"
Clinton said, rolling out a line she would later use repeatedly while
campaigning.
Clinton's performances
have not been without missteps, however. The former senator from New
York cited the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks when asked about
her ties to Wall Street, a response that aides later said came because
their candidate was somewhat flustered by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders
attacking her on the issue.
Which Trump will show up?
In
the last few weeks, as Clinton has publicly turned to a more
affirmative message, the former secretary of state has started to focus
on how to present her own policies and defend herself against attacks.
Clinton and her campaign
aides have tried to keep a lid on leaks about Clinton's debate process,
preferring not to telegraph to the Trump campaign how the former
secretary of state will go after the businesses magnate.
When
asked about the debates, Clinton has tried to laud Trump's debating
skill while admitting that it is for her to have a strong showing at
Hofstra.
"I do not know which
Donald Trump will show up," Clinton said at an August fundraiser in New
York. "Maybe he will try to be presidential and try to convey a gravity
that he hasn't done before or will he come in and try to insult and try
to score some points."
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