Republican candidate insists friendly forum in Sandown, New Hampshire is not a rehearsal for Sunday’s debate with Hillary Clinton

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Donald Trump prepared for Sunday’s town hall-style debate with Hillary Clinton by insisting he wasn’t preparing for it.



At a town hall in Sandown, New Hampshire, questions were written down by an invited audience and then read by moderator Howie Carr, a pro-Trump talk show host in New England.

There was even a timer that kept Trump from talking for more than two minutes at a time.

But the Republican nominee insisting he wasn’t preparing for his next bout with Hillary Clinton. “This has nothing to do with Sunday,” Trump insisted.

He even complained about the media hype around his debate preparations. “Even tonight they said ‘Donald Trump is going to New Hampshire to practice for Sunday’ … it’s like they make you into a child.

“You really think Hillary Clinton is debate prepping for three or four days? She is resting … she wants to build up her energy for Sunday night and that’s fine.”

The town hall was the only public event staged by either presidential candidate on Thursday. Clinton held a private fundraiser at the St Regis Hotel in New York but otherwise did not appear on the campaign trail.

Trump’s performance in the first presidential debate was widely considered disastrous and Clinton has risen steadily in polling numbers to build a solid lead. On Thursday, Real Clear Politics showed the former secretary of state with an advantage of just over four percentage points.

Sunday’s debate at Washington University in St Louis represents a critical opportunity for Trump to try and turn the tide. He was neck and neck in the polls with Clinton prior to the first debate.

In Sandown, Trump looked back on that contest. First he blamed the microphone, but later told a questioner: “I did hold back.”

Still, he wouldn’t attack Clinton’s personal life on Sunday. “I’d much rather it be on policy. I didn’t like it getting into the gutter.”



The spectre of Hurricane Matthew hung over both campaigns on Thursday as the storm menaced Florida’s Atlantic coast. The Clinton campaign has asked cable companies in Florida not to run its advertisements on the Weather Channel this week after Republican complaints of opportunism.

The Trump campaign in a statement on Thursday offered “our thoughts and prayers” to everyone in the path of Hurricane Matthew and called on residents of affected areas to heed warnings and evacuation orders. Trump went on to express condolences to Haiti. “The United States should offer our assistance to help our island neighbors,” he said.

Before Sunday’s debate Trump is scheduled to appear in southern Wisconsin at an event held by the local Republican party in the district of Speaker Paul Ryan. It will mark the first time Ryan has appeared on the campaign trail with his party’s nominee. Trump will be joined by the state’s governor, Scott Walker, as well as Senator Ron Johnson, who is facing a tough fight to hold his seat in the Badger State.

Clinton is not scheduled to hold any public events before Sunday. However high-profile surrogates like Bill Clinton and Bernie Sanders are scheduled to appear on her behalf in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania respectively.