2016 Election: Second Presidential Debate

Tonight’s second presidential debate between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump will take place tonght. It’s being held at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri beginning at 9 PM ET. The moderators are CNN’s Anderson Cooper and ABC’s Martha Raddatz. it is in a town hall format with questions submitted by citizen participants and posed by the moderator based on topics of broad public interest as reflected in social media and other sources.

Trump is a novice with the town halls being more experienced with large rallies where he has control. This format has more potential for interaction with the audience which Trump has shunned. Clinton is far more comfortable with this setting.

The Trump campaign has had a disastrous week with revelations of Trumps vulgar comments about women and Republican hierarchy abandoning him. This came after his family foundation was shut down by New York State for irregularities and non-compliance with the law. There is a growing demand for Trump to withdraw from the ticket which Trump has flatly refused to do. There is speculation that he will try to deflect by bringing up President Bill Clinton’s past sexual imbroglios and Mrs. Clinton’s treatment of the women involved. In the past, attacking the Clinton marriage has only garnered sympathy for Mrs. Clinton.

Hillary Clinton may face questions about the leaked exerts from her private speeches to to Wall Street companies after her tenure as Secretary of State. Wikileaks posted thousands of e-mails from her campaign manager John Podests that appear to contain the exerts. The speeches are said to bolster the claim that Hillary is out of touch with the middle class.

This debate will make or break a very damaged Donald Trump and may well solidify Hillary Clinton’s leads.