The Clinton-Trump debate last night was very much the highlight of 2016’s political season. Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump had gone up against candidates from their respective parties prior to last night but never before had the two gone directly head-to-head. Both candidates covered the issues but managed to throw in some personal attacks as well. With all the noise surrounding the campaign, it’s easy to wonder what is real and what isn’t. If you missed it, here are last night’s debate highlights.

The Economy

At the presidential debate, Hillary sang the same old tune on the economy, promising that she’d put her husband in charge of restoring it if elected. Bill Clinton had success pulling the economy out of an economic recession back in the 1990’s, so Hillary basically guaranteed that things would improve. Her plan? Nothing that should surprise you if you’ve followed her before.

Hillary Says…

During the presidential debate, the former secretary of state vowed to raise taxes on the wealthiest 1 percent of the U.S. and rebuild the middle class. Additionally, her plan would include new regulations to rein in Wall Street and corporate interests that Clinton attributes to “getting us into this mess.” Hillary also stated her belief that the economy had been hurt by “Trickle-Down Economics,” which argue that letting the wealthy thrive is essential to creating jobs (the wealth literally “trickles” from the top down).

Trump Says…

Trump agreed that the American economy is in a slump, only for different reasons. At the presidential debate, he stood by his original belief that Mexico and China are the banes of American prosperity. Trump cited outsourcing to countries such as these as the cause of rampant unemployment.

ISIS

When it came to the terror group, Hillary and Trump started the mud-flinging right away. What should have been a civil debate quickly became a round of “At Least I’m Not the Other Person.”

Trump Says…

As Politico found, Trump pointed out that Hillary’s plan to fight ISIS isn’t working, since she’s fought them for her entire political career. He also expressed frustration that Clinton’s entire plan is outlined on her website. ISIS is known to use the internet and social media to recruit followers, so the chances of them seeing the plan are fairly probable. CNN noted that Trump’s strategy includes an alliance with Jordan and Egypt and cutting off funding to the terror group.

Hillary Says…

Clinton fired back at Trump, defiantly yelling “at least I have a plan!” Some of the highlights of Hillary’s plan include destroying ISIS strongholds in Iraq and Syria and working with American allies to stop the flow of money and supplies to terror networks. Clinton is also in favor of strengthening American defenses, but she did not suggest a full-out war on ISIS.

Housing Crisis

The shade didn’t stop there. NPR covered some of the debate malarkey between the candidates on the housing crisis of 2008. We can all agree the bubble popped in ’08, but Trump and Clinton agree on the reasons? Definitely not.

Hillary Says…

Clinton alleged that Trump actually benefitted from the housing collapse. She claimed he bought some dirt-cheap real estate that he could later sell off at a higher price. The Clinton campaign has continually painted a picture of Trump as one of the ruthless one-percenters who ruined the economy back in the early 2000’s. Her solution is to create new affordable housing incentives and establish a fund to match up to $10,000 in house savings for working-class families.

Trump Says…

Donald had no apologies for the DNC’s nominee, and he replied that it’s just “business, by the way.” Trump did not outline a plan to fix the housing problem last night. Trump’s website, however, attributed skyrocketing housing costs to the growing number of illegal immigrants from our southern neighbors. In his mind, forcing Mexico to pay for a wall between the U.S. and Mexico’s borders will defer the massive costs citizens have had to pay to support illegal immigrants.

Donald Trump lied to the American people at least 58 times during the first presidential debate. (We counted.) https://t.co/h43O6Rws4S

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 27, 2016

Fact Check

There were a lot of accusations from both sides during last night’s presidential debate, but were any of them true? Let’s take things one-by-one.

Hillary: Trump Benefitted From Housing Crisis

Most media outlets support this. Trump told the Globe And Mail in 2007 that he was prepared to invest in depressed properties, and that he “always made more money in bad markets.” Whether this can be construed as good business is up to the beholder.

Hillary Clinton's Campaign Continues To Make False Claims About Foundation Disclosure: https://t.co/zhkEfUouHH

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2016

Trump: Hillary’s Plan For Energy Doesn’t Work

As NPR reports, Trump fired at Hillary’s plan to deploy billions of solar panels as the president. Donald claimed that the U.S. has tried this before, and it was a “disaster.” A Department of Energy report seems to shoot this down, noting that 56,000 jobs were created or saved. Additionally, enough eco-friendly energy was produced to power 1,000,000 American homes. We’re calling the fact-checkers on this one.

Hillary: Trump’s Economic Plan Is “Trickle-Down Economics” All Over Again

This is a subjective statement but seems false. The Wall Street Journal actually applauded the tax cuts Trump proposed at last night’s debate and say cuts would encourage growth. Trump argued at the debate that scaling back taxes on corporate entities and the wealthy would allow them to create jobs and lead to economic growth.

Hillary's been failing for 30 years in not getting the job done – it will never change.

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2016

Let us know what you think of last night’s presidential debate highlights. Which candidate (if either) do you support?