Donald Trump pushed back against Hillary Clinton's claim that he "was one of the people who rooted for the housing crisis." | Getty Trump cheering housing collapse: 'That's called business'

When Donald Trump said he was hoping for a collapse in the housing market before the Great Recession, it was just smart business sense, he said in the first sharp exchange of the debate.

“In fact, Donald was one of the people who rooted for the housing crisis,” Hillary Clinton said when discussing the recovery from the Great Recession. “He said back in 2006, ‘Gee, I hope it does collapse because then I can go in and buy some and make some money. Well it did collapse.”


“That’s called business, by the way,” Trump said, interrupting. But Clinton talked over him.

“Nine million people lost their jobs, five million people lost their homes,” she said.

Clinton appeared to be referencing when Trump, in 2006, said regarding a crash: “I sort of hope that happens because then people like me would go in and buy.”

