The Note: A Universe of Controversy
— -- NOTABLES
--FORMER MISS UNIVERSE 'VERY WORRIED' ABOUT A TRUMP PRESIDENCY: Alicia Machado was 19 years old when she won the Miss Universe contest in 1996, the same year Donald Trump took over the pageant. She said Trump publicly humiliated her when she started putting on weight. He allegedly called her names like "Miss Piggy," "Miss Housekeeping" and "Miss Eating Machine," and he invited the press to watch her work out, according to Machado. "As a mother, I am very worried he could be president," Machado told ABC News in an interview that aired on "Good Morning America" today. "Maybe he will be saying bad things about me or try and discredit to me. But it's OK, I'm strong." More from ABC’s MORGAN WINSOR: http://abcn.ws/2cBaa4C
--WHAT TRUMP SAID YESTERDAY: Trump pushed back against the criticism regarding his treatment of Machado, saying "She was the winner, and, you know, she gained a massive amount of weight, and it was a real problem," the real estate mogul said of Machado during an interview on Fox News' "Fox & Friends" Tuesday morning. "We had a real problem. Not only that, her attitude, and we had a real problem with her." http://abcn.ws/2cBaa4C
--MORE FROM THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN: “Hillary Clinton will continue to use these false distractions like Ms. Machado and Mark Cuban to easily deceive the biased media, but will have no impact on Mr. Trump or the voters who are concerned with real issues,” Jessica Ditto, Deputy Communications Director for the Trump Campaign, said in a statement.
--ANALYSIS -- ABC’s RICK KLEIN: Among the ways Donald Trump is breaking with conventional politics? He’s not even really pretending that he won the debate. He is insisting that he won, of course – but he’s also complaining about the moderator, the questions, and even the microphone he used at Hofstra. (As his opponent pointed out, winners don’t complain about the equipment.) And in the debate’s aftermath, he is also adding fuel to a two-decade-old feud with a former Miss Universe whom he attacked for gaining weight. This is the Trump that the Trump campaign had been trying to disappear – and the Trump that Hillary Clinton’s campaign insists is the only true Trump to exist. That’s what’s behind Clinton’s masterful strategy from Monday night: She set traps for Trump to fall into – or, rather, she pressed a whole bunch of buttons knowing that something would set him off. Clinton got the result she wanted. Trump’s reaction, meanwhile, took would could have been a partial victory or a split decision and turned it into a solid loss. The Clinton camp got a debate win, and then a parting gift.
WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO -- ‘GIULIANI LAUDS TRUMP FOR NOT ATTACKING CLINTON OVER HUSBAND'S INFIDELITY’ -- From Bloomberg Politics’ "Master in Politics" podcast with TAMMY HADDAD. "He restrained himself from saying, and I know he would like to say, except the fact that Chelsea Clinton was in the audience, and that is that she enabled and supported a president who was a disgrace to the White House," Giuliani told Bloomberg Politics' "Masters in Politics" podcast in the spin room following the debate. "He was one of the two presidents impeached. He was impeached because he took advantage of an intern, an intern that she attacked for six months, and she claims to be a feminist." Haddad also interviews Trump, Joel Benenson, David Plouffe, Sarah Huckabee, General Mike Flynn, and Rep. Marsha Blackburn. LISTEN: http://bloom.bg/2d6xI7L
BY THE NUMBERS -- BREAKING DOWN THE FIRST DEBATE. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton faced off for the first time in Monday’s debate, clashing over policies and attacking each other on the issues. The numbers behind the debate highlight each candidate's unique communication style and the dynamics of the debate's back-and-forth. Here are some fun facts from Monday night's debate, courtesy of ABC’s RYAN STRUYK: http://abcn.ws/2cB65SV
YESTERDAY ON THE TRAIL with ABC’s ADAM KELSEY and VERONICA STRACQUALURSI
TRUMP AND SURROGATES HEAP BLAME ON LESTER HOLT. Donald Trump and his team slammed presidential debate moderator Lester Holt for not asking Hillary Clinton questions Monday night about her email controversy and potential conflicts of interest with the Clinton Foundation, among other things, notes ABC’s RYAN STRUYK. “He didn't ask her about the emails at all,” Trump told “Fox and Friends” yesterday morning. “He didn't ask her about her scandals. He didn't ask her about the Benghazi [Libya] deal that she destroyed. He didn't ask her about a lot of things that she should have been asked about. There's no question about it.” http://abcn.ws/2d0IiK0
CLINTON PANS DONALD TRUMP’S 1ST DEBATE PERFORMANCE: 'HE MADE IT VERY CLEAR THAT HE DIDN'T PREPARE.' Hillary Clinton came out swinging against Donald Trump Tuesday after the first presidential debate of the general-election season, criticizing his post-performance gripes, questioning his wealth and suggesting a "strong probability" the GOP nominee has not paid federal income taxes in years, write ABC’s MEGHAN KENEALLY and LIZ KREUTZ. “He actually bragged about gaming the system to get out of paying his fair share of taxes,” Clinton said while campaigning in North Carolina, referring to an exchange from Monday night’s debate. http://abcn.ws/2cTif5y
PRESIDENT OBAMA SAYS TRUMP DOESN'T HAVE 'PREPARATION,' 'TEMPERAMENT' AND 'VALUES.' President Obama painted Donald Trump as unprepared and temperamentally unfit to be commander-in-chief after the first presidential debate. "Anybody who was watching the debate, I think got a sense that you got really sharply-contrasting visions about where we should take the country. And I’m admittedly biased. I have worked with Hillary. I know her. She is well-prepared. She’s got the right temperament for the job," Obama said in an interview with "On Air With Ryan Seacrest." He contrasted that with what what he believes Trump has demonstrated, notes ABC’s ARLETTE SAENZ. http://abcn.ws/2dq0tvj
BIDEN SLAMS TRUMP'S COMMENT THAT HOUSING CRISIS WAS 'GOOD BUSINESS.' During a campaign stop in Philadelphia, Vice President Joe Biden slammed Donald Trump’s debate performance Monday night –- specifically taking umbrage with the GOP nominee's comments on the housing crisis. "This is a guy who said -- and wants to be president -- that it was good business for him to see the housing market fail. What in the hell is he talking about?" Biden said during a rally at Drexel University. ABC’s ARLETTE SAENZ has more: http://abcn.ws/2doZdsV
HOW CLINTON GOT UNDER TRUMP'S SKIN DURING THE DEBATE. One of the big questions Monday night was how Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump would try to goad their opponent into losing his or her cool during their first face-off. Trump was known for going off on his foes during the primary debates, so the expectations were that Monday night would be no different. And there were several instances where he seemed to come close. Aaron Kall, the director of debate at the University of Michigan, said he thought Clinton’s attack on his tax returns "was the most effective way in which she" got under his skin, reports ABC’s MEGHAN KENEALLY. http://abcn.ws/2dpRiv8
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
5 SILLY DEBATE QUESTIONS ANSWERED. Policy and performance were the main focuses of the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump Monday night, but there were some silly questions that viewers had about the showdown that they may have been too embarrassed to ask. ABC’s MEGHAN KENEALLY answers some of those questions: http://abcn.ws/2dpi0zN
WHO’S TWEETING?
@PhilipRucker: Trump's advisers dish and talk about candidate as if he's a self-destructive child who can't focus and listen http://nyti.ms/2dzoTPz
@ZekeJMiller: Remember HRC quoting FLOTUS' "when they go low, we go high" line? Surprised she hasn't backed away from Dean yet
@SaraMurray: Trump says members of the press are the most dishonest people he's ever dealt with. "Go to hell!" a man in the crowd screams at u
@agearan: Per a Clinton campaign aide @HillaryClinton is not attending Shimon Peres funeral. @billclinton will be there. Funeral is Friday.
@RonBrownstein: Great @danbalz "Trump was like a sprinter in a marathon,starting with gusto & flagging the longer the night went...