Two Questions That Trump Must Be Asked Tonight

Tonight is the first of three Presidential debates. The moderators for these upcoming  debates have been under a lot of scrutiny lately and some of their ideas, such as Chris Wallace not feeling responsible for pointing out when a candidate blatantly lies, certainly deserve such scrutiny. And it doesn’t help much that the director of the Commission on Presidential Debates feels, “I think, personally, when you get in to the fact-check, I’m not sure what is the big fact and what is the little fact”, pretty much allowing a candidate to say anything without being challenged. That seems to fly in the face of the Commission’s own stated goal of “provide the best possible information to viewers and listeners”. But the first two questions that any moderator should be required to ask, at least in some form, of Trump is 1) Why do you continually lie? and 2) Why won’t you release your taxes (and please don’t tell us because they are under audit because you have the power to release them if you wish)?

The first question gets right to the character of Trump and avoids the problem that the press continually has of getting bogged down in the details of each individual Trump lie. With stories from the NY Times outlining at least 31 “whoppers” in one week and Politoco’s analysis that within one week Trump managed one lie for every three minutes and fifteen seconds of the five hours he spoke, the frequency and depth of his lying clearly indicates a serious character flaw and it is imperative that Lester Holt pursue that tonight. The second question is an important defense of transparency in American democracy because, if Trump does not pay a heavy price for not releasing his taxes, we will probably never see another candidate’s taxes again, unless Ron Wyden can ram through the bill requiring just that. If Trump replies that he is under audit, ask the question again with emphasis on the fact that he can release them anytime if he wishes. If he replies that his lawyer recommends not to do it, then use the old trick that is always used when you try to stand up for your constitutional rights – simply ask why he would need to rely on his lawyer’s advice if he has nothing to hide. If the moderator refuses to ask these questions, then it is incumbent on Hillary Clinton to bring them up in her responses, especially the tax issue.

Hillary will have her own challenges with the email server and probably even with the Clinton foundation and the fact that, according to the polls, she is even less trusted than Trump. So you can be sure that there will be a “character” question for her. With regard to the emails, she should just readily admit that, despite the FBI not recommending any action against her, she freely admits that her use of a private email server was “extremely careless” as described by the FBI Director. Any type of legalese or lawyerly language will just do more damage. And if the follow-up question is whether people should be concerned about voting for her considering her carelessness, she should just respond that she is not perfect but will stand on her decades-long record in public service.

For Lester Holt, or any of the moderators, not to confront these issues will turn a process that the  Commission on Presidential Debates insists is designed to inform the American public into just another reality, or un-reality, TV show. And we all know that kind of show is where Trump is in his element.