Lewandowski On Trump’s Performance: First Debate Isn’t ‘End All, Be All’
Corey Lewandowski had a lukewarm review for his former boss Trump's performance in the first presidential debate on Monday night, noting that this initial face-off between the two candidates wasn’t “the end all, be all” for the 2016 race.
Weighing in during a panel on CNN, where he works as a commentator while still receiving severance from his time as Trump's campaign manager, Lewandowski said that the real estate mogul lost his stride during the second half of the debate. Other conservative commentators have made the same case.
“Break the debate down to two categories,” Lewandowski said. “The first 45 minutes was one category where Donald Trump was particularly strong. He was able to talk about TPP, trade, issues where he could be on the offense there. Clearly Hillary Clinton was on the defense on those issues. The second half of the debate, these are the issues you talked about: you talked about the birther movement, you talked about taxes, you talked about a housing discrimination case from 40 years ago. Right? These are issues that clearly put Trump on the defense.”
Lewandowski, who reportedly still has the candidate's ear, lamented that moderator and NBC News anchor Lester Holt did not bring up the Benghazi attacks or Clinton’s remark that half of Trump’s supporters belonged in a “basket of deplorables.” Other panelists, including former Barack Obama strategist David Axelrod, pointed out that Clinton managed to raise issues unflattering to Trump even when Holt did not bring them up.
After a spirited back and forth, Lewandowski denied that he was “blaming the moderator.” Instead, he said, the night represented just one moment in a very long 2016 campaign. “The first debate in a presidential cycle isn't the end all be all,” Lewandowski said. “Let's see what happens.”
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http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/lewandowski-trump-first-debate-not-end-all-be-all
