TOWARDS the end of the third and final presidential debate, in Las Vegas on October 19th, Donald Trump must have wondered what more he could do to tarnish American democracy. Or else, what was he thinking when, asked to confirm that he would accept the verdict Americans reach on November 8th, he replied, “I’ll tell you at the time, I’ll keep you in suspense”? Mr Trump had in fact been rehearsing this line over the previous week. Trailing his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, by seven percentage points, he has suggested the election will be rigged. A startlingly large portion of his supporters appear to agree; in a recent poll, 73% of Republicans say the election could be “stolen”. But it was still amazing to hear Mr Trump stoke that baseless fear—and whatever small but not insignificant risk of post-election violence is attached to it—at the final set-piece occasion of this wretched campaign.
He had perhaps not even planned to air his latest conspiracy theory, which his running-mate, Governor Mike Pence of Indiana, has been quick to disavow. Because for most of the debate Mr Trump was restrained. He did not repeat his promise, aired in the second debate, to...Continue reading
Source: United States http://ift.tt/2emUJyR
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