Final jabs thrown as many chatter over third debate
In the final minutes of the debate, Trump was asked a highly anticipated question about his view of the legitimacy of the results of the election. He said, "I will look at it at the time."
By JOSH SOLOMONUpdated: OCTOBER 20, 2016 09:48Would Trump concede? "I'll keep you in suspense", says Trump
WASHINGTON — A few blocks from the Capitol building sit a handful of bars, home to the neighborhood over here. In the minutes leading up to the third and final presidential debate, the streets were mostly quiet.One bar owner said he hoping for a bigger crowd, but noted, the people around here are probably too fed up with these debates to go out and watch on a work night at 9 p.m.Come the start of the debate, a couple bars started to fill up, including the Tune Inn, which would house about 50 people to watch the debate on three big flatscreen TVs with sound booming through the business and out the doors.A buzz filled the crowd in the minutes lingering before the debate – and continued throughout the debate in this part of town where most work in politics in some form.In a debate that was supposed to be focused on the issues, from immigration to the economy to the future Supreme Court appointee, this crowd in D.C. favored side chatter over quiet listening and when Hillary Clinton would make jabs at Donald Trump the crowd roared like they were watching a boxing match.When the topic of abortion came up in reference to the future Supreme Court justice of appointee and Clinton said "we have come too far for women to be punished" to reverse Roe v. Wade, which grants the women the right to an abortion. In the crowd at the bar, most of the women started to applaud loudly.When the topic of immigration came up, the crowd roared louder. The topic was pitted as Trump versus Clinton – referencing Trump's wall along the border to Mexico compared to Hillary's opposition to it. "He didn't even raise it. He choked," Clinton said in reference to Trump's meeting with the president of Mexico, raising a loud 'ooh' out of the crowd. As the immigration topic moved forward, the buzz grew louder, and the subtitles displayed on the TV grew in importance to hear what the candidates were saying to each other and the listening public.As the topics moved forward, one group clinked glasses after Trump said a buzz word of theirs, surely playing a drinking game in entertainment of the night's programming at the bar.After Clinton shifted gears from the immigration topic, Trump grinned and said "that was a great pivot off of the open borders." One person from the crowd loudly applauded; others looked over at what seemed to be the first support of Trump from the night at the bar. That one person in fact was cheering in front of the one screen not showing the prime time even of night, but rather showing a playoff baseball game, cheering on the Chicago Cubs that just scored a run.As the topic shifted to the conversation of Wikileaks and Trump's relationship with Russia and their president Vladimir Putin, Clinton hit back at the Republican nominee with, "That's because he rather have a puppet as president." The moment produced an equivalent of a knockout blow to the crowd, prompting a schoolyard-like 'ohh!' From that point on, the crowd at this bar blocks from the Capitol building, took up its chatter and although the debate was still audible, it moved onto the sideshow and no longer the main act.
At a point soon thereafter, a few Trump supporters made their voice heard when Trump fought back saying, "She doesn't like Putin because Putin has outsmarted her at every step."In the final minutes of the debate, Trump was asked a highly anticipated question about his view of the legitimacy of the results of the presidential election. He said, "I will look at it at the time. I'll keep you in suspense." The crowd was no longer in suspense, they had moved onto louder banter between each other, for there was likely not an undecided voter in here, and rather many had their views set on the election less than three weeks away.