Top Items:
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
Chris Wallace Calls Debate ‘a Terrible Missed Opportunity’ — The veteran anchor conceded he was initially “reluctant” to step in during the Trump-Biden matchup. “I've never been through anything like this,” he said. — “I'm just sad with the way last night turned out.”
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John F. Harris / Politico:
An Epic Moment of National Shame: The Debate Was an Embarrassment for the Ages — At frequent intervals on Tuesday night, the natural human reaction—lower the sound, wince and look away—took over, and the first presidential debate of the 2020 general election became nearly unwatchable.
Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker:
“This Is So Unpresidential”: Notes from the Worst Debate in American History — Trump talked and talked on Tuesday night, but, politically speaking, it added up to nothing. — What does the worst debate in American history look like? It looks like the debate that took place …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Week, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit, Daily Kos, Fox News, New Republic, BNO News and National Review
Laura Barrón-López / Politico:
Undecided voters call Trump ‘unhinged’ and ‘un-American’ — but are unswayed by debate
Undecided voters call Trump ‘unhinged’ and ‘un-American’ — but are unswayed by debate
Charles P. Pierce / Esquire:
The President's Debate Performance Was Pure Fascism
The President's Debate Performance Was Pure Fascism
Discussion:
Daily Mail, Reason, Jacobin, Washington Post and One America News Network
Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:
Trump's mistake by the lake: Taking his own voters for granted
Trump's mistake by the lake: Taking his own voters for granted
Discussion:
The Federalist, Reason, Real Clear Politics, The Atlantic, HillReporter.com, Mediaite and Sputnik News
Lauren Egan / NBC News:
Debate commission promises changes after chaotic Trump-Biden faceoff
Debate commission promises changes after chaotic Trump-Biden faceoff
Discussion:
MSN, Forbes, Talking Points Memo, Common Dreams, The Hill, Daily Kos, Donald J. Trump for President and The Root
Axios:
Commission on Presidential Debates wants “additional structure” for remaining debates
Commission on Presidential Debates wants “additional structure” for remaining debates
Discussion:
CNN, Breitbart, Reuters and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
David Bossie / Fox News:
Trump clearly defeats Biden in first presidential debate
Trump clearly defeats Biden in first presidential debate
Discussion:
Washington Post, IJR, New Republic and OpsLens
James Fallows / The Atlantic:
A Disgusting Night for Democracy
A Disgusting Night for Democracy
Discussion:
Raw Story, National Memo and Townhall
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Commission on Presidential Debates ‘carefully considering’ format changes after first Trump, Biden debate
Commission on Presidential Debates ‘carefully considering’ format changes after first Trump, Biden debate
Discussion:
The Triad, Washington Post, Mother Jones, Townhall, The American Independent, abc7NY, Raw Story, The Hill and Washington Free Beacon
Quint Forgey / Politico:
Debates commission says it will add order to Trump and Biden's remaining showdowns
Debates commission says it will add order to Trump and Biden's remaining showdowns
Discussion:
The Federalist, Redstate, Cosmopolitan, Fox News, Slate, Washington Post, The National Pulse, NPR, CBS Boston, CNN and WCDC-TV
Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
Exclusive poll: Biden won the debate convincingly — Photo by Jim Watson, Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images — A decisive win, powered mostly by character. — A new poll by Data for Progress provided exclusively to Vox shows that viewers thought Democratic nominee Joe Biden decisively won Tuesday's …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, NPR, IJR, The American Independent, Washington Post, Bloomberg and Political Wire
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NBC News:
Trump's last best tactic: Burn it all down — WASHINGTON — Trailing in the polls with five weeks to go, President Trump didn't use last night's debate to disqualify his opponent or outline his vision for the next four years. — Instead, he decided to burn down the debate …
Discussion:
The Hill, Politico, Breitbart, Washington Post, Reuters, New York Times, One America News Network, Los Angeles Times, POLITICUSUSA, The Week, CNN, Raw Story, New York Post and ABC7
David Weigel / Washington Post:
The Trailer: What happened in Cleveland — In this special post-debate edition: How months of expectation-setting fell apart in a Cleveland auditorium. — To fully enjoy the newsletter today, please interrupt your friends and family by reading sections out loud. This is The Trailer.
Discussion:
Vox, Reuters, CNN, Occupy Democrats, USA Today, The Mahablog, The Hill, Talking Points Memo and New York Post
Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
Trump's fear dominated his first debate with Biden — WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump may be the only person in America who is afraid of Democrat Joe Biden. — Before their debate Tuesday night, he and his allies demanded that Biden submit to a drug test and let officials check the former vice president for an earpiece.
Discussion:
Slate, Associated Press, New York Times, emptywheel, Sputnik News, Breitbart, Just The News and Twitchy
Associated Press:
Analysis: Trump leans on tone that turns off voters he needs
Analysis: Trump leans on tone that turns off voters he needs
Discussion:
CBS News, POLITICUSUSA, Florida Politics, Washington Post, Raw Story, Vanity Fair, New Republic, The Nation and The National Interest
Ebony Bowden / New York Post:
Ratings for chaotic Trump-Biden presidential debate nosedive from 2016
Ratings for chaotic Trump-Biden presidential debate nosedive from 2016
Dominic Patten / Deadline:
Presidential Debate Opener Drops Sharply From 2016's Record High In Early Numbers; ABC Tops Nets In First Trump-Biden Showdown
Presidential Debate Opener Drops Sharply From 2016's Record High In Early Numbers; ABC Tops Nets In First Trump-Biden Showdown
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Daily Kos and New York Post
E.J. Dionne / Washington Post:
Trump's scorched-earth nihilism will cost him the presidency
Trump's scorched-earth nihilism will cost him the presidency
Discussion:
Politico, Al Jazeera, Vanity Fair, Florida Phoenix, The Daily Dot and The Guardian
Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:
“The Family Is Worried Brad Will Start Talking”: Trumpworld Panics Over Debate Fiasco as Campaign Turmoil Mounts — Over three days, the New York Times dropped a tax bombshell, Florida cops cuffed Brad Parscale, and the president just couldn't help himself onstage.
Discussion:
Washington Post
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Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:
The Trump Campaign Is Quietly Disappearing Brad Parscale From Their Website
The Trump Campaign Is Quietly Disappearing Brad Parscale From Their Website
Discussion:
Raw Story, Slate and Daily Mail
Axios:
Trump says he doesn't know who Proud Boys are after telling them to “stand by” — President Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he doesn't know who the “Proud Boys” are, after saying at the presidential debate last night that the far-right group should “stand back and stand by” …
Discussion:
Reuters, Washington Post, HillReporter.com, Deseret News, The Root, CNN, Political Wire, OpsLens and Mediaite
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Politico:
Republicans to Trump: Condemn white supremacy now
Republicans to Trump: Condemn white supremacy now
Discussion:
ABC News, Bangor Daily News and Mother Jones
Alayna Treene / Axios:
How Trump advisers feel about his Proud Boy comments at the debate
How Trump advisers feel about his Proud Boy comments at the debate
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Reuters, Political Wire, The Atlantic and America's Voice
New York Times:
Proud Boys celebrate Trump's mention of them at the debate.
Proud Boys celebrate Trump's mention of them at the debate.
Discussion:
National Review, Wall Street Journal, Gizmodo, Washington Post, CNN, The Daily Dot, New Republic, TheBlaze, IJR, Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Beast, Politico, Mediaite, The Sun, Common Dreams, Vanity Fair, The American Independent, Vox, Axios, Mother Jones, KXAN-TV, The American Spectator, The Hill, The 19th, Washington Times, Outside the Beltway and The Root
Wall Street Journal:
Intelligence Officials Urged Trump Spy Chief Not to Disclose Unverified Russian Claims About Clinton — Officials at CIA, NSA, Office of Director of National Intelligence warned disclosure to Congress would give credibility to Kremlin-backed material — WASHINGTON—Senior U.S. officials urged Director …
Discussion:
OpsLens
Seaborn Larson / Helena Independent Record:
Former Gov. Marc Racicot to vote for Biden — Former Montana governor and Republican National Committee Chair Marc Racicot on Tuesday said he would not vote for President Donald Trump, citing Trump's character as fault enough to vote for Democrat challenger Joe Biden on Nov. 3.
Discussion:
IJR, Raw Story, The Hill, Political Wire, Fox Business and Bangor Daily News
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Tara Golshan / HuffPost:
Joe Biden Releases His 2019 Tax Returns
Joe Biden Releases His 2019 Tax Returns
Discussion:
Mother Jones, The Dispatch and Forbes
Elena Schneider / Politico:
Biden smashes fundraising records during chaotic debate — Joe Biden's campaign hauled in nearly $10 million during the first presidential debate Tuesday night — smashing its own single-hour fundraising record, as small-dollar donors continue to fuel the former vice president's mounting money advantage.
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Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Poll finds Trump, Biden in statistical dead heat in South Carolina
Poll finds Trump, Biden in statistical dead heat in South Carolina
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Post, Political Wire and Axios
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Tuesday's Debate Made Clear the Gravest Threat to the Election: The President Himself — President Trump's unwillingness to say he would abide by the result, and his disinformation campaign about election fraud went beyond anything President Vladimir V. Putin could have imagined.
Discussion:
Press Watch and Political Wire
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Jim Rutenberg / New York Times:
How Trump's ‘Voter Fraud’ Lie Is Disenfranchising Americans
How Trump's ‘Voter Fraud’ Lie Is Disenfranchising Americans
Discussion:
Washington Post and Law & Crime
Sheila Kaplan / New York Times:
White House Blocked C.D.C. Order to Keep Cruise Ships Docked — The C.D.C. director wanted a “no sail” order extended until February, a policy that would have upset the tourism industry in the crucial swing state of Florida. — The White House has blocked a new order from the Centers …
Sarah Mimms / BuzzFeed News:
A Member Of Congress Is Facing Death Threats After QAnon Went After Him — The House Republican campaign committee falsely accused Democratic Rep. Tom Malinowski of protecting sexual predators. “They knew exactly what they were doing,” he said. — Reporting From — Washington, DC — Copy
Discussion:
Political Wire and The Gateway Pundit
Conrad Wilson / opb:
Police arrest far-right protester who pointed gun at Portland rally … Portland Police have arrested a far-right protester and member of the Proud Boys who pointed a gun at antifascist protesters on Aug. 22 in downtown Portland. — Alan James Swinney, 50, is being held in the Multnomah County Jail …
Discussion:
Raw Story, Associated Press, The Hill, Mediaite, The Daily Beast, HillReporter.com and New York Post
Alex Yablon / Foreign Policy:
America Is About to Enter its Years of Lead — Trump's calls for political violence are a familiar far-right strategy. — “Proud Boys, stand back and stand by,” President Donald Trump told his supporters in the far-right street-fighting group from his podium at the first 2020 presidential debate.
Laura Packard / New York Daily News:
Trump's prescription drug snake oil — Last night during the first presidential debate, President Trump said of his actions on health care: “There's nothing symbolic. I'm cutting drug prices. I'm going with favored nations, which no president has the courage to do because you're going against Big Pharma.
Mike Giglio / The Atlantic:
A Far-Right Militant Group Has Recruited Thousands of Police, Soldiers, and Veterans — Image above: Stewart Rhodes, the founder of the Oath Keepers — Stewart Rhodes was living his vision of the future. On television, American cities were burning, while on the internet …