Trump and Clinton Continue to Battle at Al Smith Charity Dinner, Early Voting Helping Clinton in Battleground States and More

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton may have taken a night off from campaigning Thursday evening to appear at the roast-style Al Smith charity dinner in New York, but they still brought 18 months of campaign baggage with them — especially a particularly combative previous 24 hours in which they dueled on the debate stage where Clinton baited him into losing his temper and Trump called her a "nasty woman."

On Thursday night, the two attempted to disguise their anger and obvious dislike for one another, which is perhaps not surprising since she has called him a "threat" to the country and he has threatened to throw her in jail, should he win the White House. Both Clinton and Trump managed to get a joke or two off, but they received much more in the way of boos from the crowd.

Top Stories

Donald Trump Heckled by New York Elite at Charity Dinner: "Donald J. Trump began this quadrennial exercise in campaign humility and self-deprecation on Thursday by comparing himself to the son of God — just another “carpenter working for his father” in his youth. By the end, facing cascading and uncomfortable jeers from a crowd full of white ties and gowns, he had called Hillary Clinton Catholic-hating, “so corrupt” and potentially jail-bound in a prospective Trump administration." (The New York Times)

Early voting numbers promising for Clinton in battleground states: "There are hints of good news for Hillary Clinton in key battleground states as millions of Americans vote early, according to a CNN analysis of the latest early voting statistics. More than 3.3 million Americans have already voted. And among that group, Democrats have improved their position in North Carolina, Nevada, Arizona and even Utah compared to this point in 2012." (CNN)

Why Donald Trump's 'Bad Hombres' Comment Offended So Many Viewers: "Donald Trump certainly has a way with words, but usually he sticks to English. On Thursday, though, after the final presidential debate, his use of Spanish was soon trending across Twitter: #Badhombres." (Patch)

Donald Trump Says He Will Accept Election Outcome (‘If I Win’): "Donald J. Trump insisted on Thursday that he would not cede the right to contest the outcome of the presidential election, even as Democrats and Republicans expressed concern that his position threatened to upend America’s tradition of peaceful power transfers. But in a small gesture of civility, he suggested that he would not dispute the result if the outcome of the race was clear." (The New York Times)

On the Radar

• Hillary Clinton will speak at a rally in Cleveland, Ohio.
• Donald Trump will appear at a campaign event in Fletcher, North Carolina, and two more in Pennsylvania.
• Tim Kaine will campaign in Pennsylvania.
• Vice President Joe Biden will campaign for Clinton in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
• Bill Clinton will continue to campaign in Florida.

Today's Numbers

• 17 days until Election Day 2016.
• 22 percent of pro-Clinton Twitter traffic during the first presidential debate came from bots and automated accounts. Trump's? 33 percent.
• Trump raises $9 million off debate night Facebook Live events.
• Cubs head back to Chicago with a 3-2 lead.

Quote of the Day

Donald Trump at an annual roast-style fundraiser for Catholic charities:

“Michelle Obama gives a speech and everyone loves it, they think it’s great,” he said. “My wife Melania gives the exact same speech and people get on her case, and I don’t get it!” he said to raucous applause. “And it wasn’t her fault! Stand up, Melania, come on. She took a lot of abuse,” Trump said, adding, “Oh, I’m in trouble when I go home tonight. She didn’t know about that one.”

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