Most Memorable Lines of the 2nd Presidential Debate
The town-hall-style debate was held in St. Louis.
October 9, 2016, 10:53 PM ET
• 6 min read
-- In the midst of one of the most unpredictable presidential elections in history, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton faced off for the second time, in a town-hall-style debate at Washington University in St. Louis.
With Trump vowing to "never drop out of the race" or "let [his] supporters down" and inviting three women to the debate hall who have accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault, the debate was explosive from the start, with each candidate attacking the other’s policies and private life.
Here are some of the most memorable quotes from Donald Trump’s and Hillary Clinton’s second debate:
‘I agree with everything she said.’
‘You bragged that you have sexually assaulted women.’
‘I don’t think you understood what was said.’
‘You know, with prior Republican nominees for president, I disagreed with them. Politics, policies, principles. But I never questioned their fitness to serve. Donald Trump is different.’
‘It’s just words, folks.’
‘If you look at Bill Clinton, far worse, mine are words, and his are action.’
‘Well, first, let me start by saying that so much of what he’s just said is not right. But he gets to run his campaign any way he chooses. He gets to decide what he wants to talk about, instead of answering questions, laying out the plans we have we think can make a better life and a better country. That’s his choice.’
‘And I’ll tell you what – I didn’t think I’d say this, but I’m going to say it, and I hate to say it, but if I win, I am going to instruct my attorney general to get a special prosecutor to look into your situation.’
‘It’s just awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country.’
‘Because you’d be in jail.’
‘Donald, I know you’re into big diversion tonight, anything to avoid talking about your campaign and the way it’s exploding and Republicans are leaving you.’
‘I intend to defeat ISIS and do so in a coalition with majority-Muslim nations. A lot of those nations are hearing what Donald says and wondering, ‘Why should we cooperate with Americans?’ This is a gift to ISIS and the terrorists.’
‘First of all, Capt. [Humayun] Khan is an American hero, and if I were president at that time, he would be alive today.’
‘She lied. Now she is blaming the lie on the late great Abraham Lincoln. Honest Abe never lied. That’s the difference between Abraham Lincoln and you.’
‘She complains that Donald Trump took advantage of the tax code. Why didn’t you change it when you were a senator? The reason is that all your friends take the same advantage I took.’
‘No. I have a write-off, and a lot is depreciation. I love depreciation. She has given it to us. If she had a problem, for 30 years she talks about health care. Why didn’t you do something about it?’
‘He and I haven’t spoken, and I disagree.’
‘No, it wasn’t ‘Check out a sex tape.’ It was just — take a look at the person that she built up to be this wonderful Girl Scout who was no Girl Scout.’
‘Tweeting happens to be a modern day form of communication. You can like it or not. Between Facebook and Twitter, I have 25 million people.’
‘Mrs. Clinton, does Mr. Trump have the discipline to be a good leader?’
‘No.’
‘I’m shocked to hear that.’
‘My question to both of you is, regardless of the current rhetoric, would either of you name one positive thing that you respect in one another?’