Second Presidential Debate: Who Won — Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton — 5 Blistering Moments and More

Donald Trump threatened to jail Hillary Clinton, threw Mike Pence under the bus on Syria and admitted to not paying federal income taxes during Sunday night's presidential town hall debate in St. Louis. Yet, the Republican presidential nominee walked away with relatively high marks, in part because the expectations of him were so low following an awful 48 hours marred by a 2005 video in which he boasted of being able to grope women as he pleases because he's a "star."

For her part, Clinton kept a steady hand — and landed a couple of punches — which is likely enough to keep her on top of the polls by a decent margin. That doesn't mean, however, that Trump will not do everything in his power to make her life a living hell for the next 28 days until Election Day.

Top Stories

Who Won The Presidential Town Hall Debate? Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Face Off In St. Louis: "Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic rival Hillary Clinton faced off in a town hall debate Sunday night at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri — a debate that went from 'highly anticipated' to 'must-watch television,' as both nominees were confronted with their share of controversial news in the last 48 hours." (Patch)

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Debate: 5 Blistering Moments (And 1 Heartwarming One): "Anyone thinking it may take a few minutes for fireworks to appear — as we saw in the first debate two weeks ago — were proven wrong quickly. Clinton and Trump declined to shake hands as they walked out onto the stage, bucking traditional decorum. That wasn’t the case, though, for Bill Clinton and the Trump family, who greeted each other when they were introduced hours earlier. Here were five other moments that we found especially blistering — and one that warmed our hearts." (Patch)

Mike Pence Cancels N.J. Trump Fundraiser Scheduled for Monday in Ocean County: "Donald Trump's running mate, Mike Pence, has canceled his planned visit to New Jersey scheduled for Monday, several GOP sources tell NJ Advance Media. Pence, the governor of Indiana, was scheduled to appear at a fundraiser in Toms River hosted by the Ocean County Republican Organization. The sources who said Pence won't be showing requested anonymity because they are not directly connected to the Trump campaign." (NJ.com)

Trump Wanted to Put Bill Clinton’s Accusers in His Family Box. Debate Officials Said No.: "Donald Trump’s campaign sought to intimidate Hillary Clinton and embarrass her husband by seating women who have accused former president Bill Clinton of sexual abuse in the Trump family’s box at the presidential debate here Sunday night, according to four people involved in the discussions." (The Washington Post)

From the Twitterverse

Mike Pence with one foot in:

On the Radar

• Hillary Clinton will attend a voter registration event in Detroit and a campaign rally in Columbus, Ohio.
• Tim Kaine will attend a Get Out The Vote concert.
• Mike Pence canceled an event appearance in New Jersey

Today's Numbers

• 28 days until Election Day 2016.
• Hillary Clinton’s campaign has spent $131.6 million so far on television advertising, compared with $25.7 million by the Trump camp.
• So far, 410, 703 early ballots have been cast in the 2016 election.
• Columbus Day has been ditched by two states, in favor of Indigenous People's Day.

Quote of the Day

Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski on RNC chair Reince Priebus:

"You know what I saw yesterday, and I continue to see today? Weak elected leaders, who want to put their own political interests first. Reince Priebus is a great example."

Allen McDuffee is a politics and policy reporter, investigative journalist, blogger and podcast host. He has written for The Atlantic, Wired and The Washington Post. Follow him on Twitter: @AllenMcDuffee

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr Commons