CLARKSBURG, W.Va. — Depending on your political lean and party affiliation, you probably knew the winner of Sunday’s second Presidential debate before the first shots were fired.
“I certainly have no problem saying that Clinton is superior to Trump,” former WV Democartic Party Vice Chair Chris Regan said Monday morning on the MetroNews-affiliated “The Mike Queen Show” on the AJR News Network.
Trump’s West Virginia campaign chair Mike Stuart said the focus on Trump’s ‘hot mic’ comments about Nancy O’Dell released Friday by the Washington Post shouldn’t disqualify him from the Presidency.
“I don’t support those comments,” Stuart said on “The Mike Queen Show” Monday. “I don’t think any of us support the comments Donald Trump said. But I was under no illusion–I think none of us were under any illusion–that we’re trying to elect a pastor or a Pope here. We’re trying to elect someone who is going to lead our country forward, make it possible for us to continue to mine coal, who is going to make it possible for our veterans to get better health care and not die waiting in line.”
Polling in the immediate aftermath of the tape’s release has shown little effect on self-described Republican voters.
“While Donald Trump’s words were wrong and indefensible, not a single coal miner will lose his job and not a single veteran will get needed health care due to his terrible words,” Stuart said. “But under Hillary Clinton, you can’t say that’s true.”
But some polling has shown the gap between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump widen since Friday.
“Short of some sort of unimaginable–an event I can’t even begin to describe–it’s over,” Regan said. “He’s down now seven in that Rasmussen Poll that always shows the Republican ahead–losing Pennsylvania, losing Florida, losing Ohio now.”
Rasmussen Reports latest poll showed Clinton increase her lead in their poll by four total points. It breaks down as Clinton gaining two points, Trump losing two points, and Gary Johnson gaining a point. In the only three polls directly related to the Presidential race released since October 7, Clinton has led by five points, six points, and seven points over Trump.
Additionally, poll aggregator and data analysis site FiveThirtyEight.com has reported Donald Trump’s chances have taken a nose dive following the first debate last week.
Polling aside, Mike Stuart criticized the moderators during Sunday’s debate.
“That’s an apologist for the state,” he said. “That’s an apologist for government being the way it is today. It’s unfortunate that it’s this way. We saw it through Martha Raddatz last night. It was a shameful display of being a moderator. She was actually engaged in the debate. She was debating Donald Trump.”
Though Regan, who endorsed Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders during the Democratic Presidential Primary, said he was comfortable with Hillary Clinton, he did criticize the tone of the debate.
“What if [undecided voters] all got up and walked out?” he said. “And said, I don’t want anything to do with this. This is uncomfortable and unproductive.”
The third and final debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will take place Wednesday, October 19 and will feature moderator Chris Wallace of FOX News.