In fact, as early as during Hillary's tenure as Secretary of State, her governing philosophy had begun leaning toward the Republicans.
As Obama's fellow Democrat, Hillary often sided with Republican viewpoints during his administration.
This move wasn't just to build connections within the Republican Party but also to accumulate important networks and a positive reputation among the military's top brass.
This was Hillary's foreign policy stance. On the surface, she claimed she would continue Democratic President Obama's foreign policies, but a closer look revealed that Hillary was much more hawkish abroad.
This was also why countries like Russia, and North Korea didn't want to see Hillary take office.
...
October 19, 9:00 PM.
The final debate of the 2016 U.S. presidential election unfolded in Las Vegas.
This was Trump and Hillary's last "face-off" in this year's election.
With less than 20 days until the November 8 voting day.
Multiple polls showed Hillary temporarily in the lead, making this debate seen as Trump's final gamble.
For this debate, Trump's campaign team pulled out all the stops: inviting no shortage of "special guests" to the venue, including the current President's half-brother and Trump supporter Malik Obama, a former Arkansas radio reporter who had accused Bill Clinton of sexual assault, and the mother of a victim from the 2012 Benghazi U.S. embassy attack.
This debate drew over 80 million American viewers.
After Trump and Hillary took the stage, the two rivals—who had already torn off their masks—glared coldly at each other, skipping even the perfunctory handshake.
They both hated each other to the core.
It could be said that in this election, the two teams had dug up every last bit of dirt on the other, exposing all their dirty laundry to the public.
Martin's whole family was also seated in front of the TV, waiting for the debate to start.
"Who do you think will win?" Scarlett asked, a bit excited.
"Trump," Martin said smugly, puffing himself up. "Because he has my support."
Sofia held a different opinion. "Isn't Hillary the one with the advantage? She's still leading right now."
"Leading? Not for long," Martin said with a confident smile.
It was nine o'clock sharp, and the debate began.
The moderator started with questions.
From Fox News anchor Wallace, the first question was about the U.S. Supreme Court.
Wallace asked Hillary and Trump to explain where they hoped the Supreme Court would lead the country, how they would interpret the Constitution, and their inclinations toward nominating the ninth justice to fill the current vacancy.
Trump extended his hand in a "ladies first" gesture.
Hillary didn't bother being polite with him, gracefully stepping forward two paces and beginning her straightforward response.
Hillary believed, "I think the Supreme Court discussions touch on the core issues of this election. The Supreme Court should stand with the people, not big corporations and the rich and powerful. I must emphasize that the Supreme Court needs to protect the rights of women, the LGBT community, and other groups. Therefore, if I can be elected president, I will appoint justices who represent the people's interests..."
While Hillary spoke, Trump wasn't idle, constantly making faces—pursing his lips, rolling his eyes, shaking his head.
Quite a few audience members couldn't help but smile.
Hillary clearly sensed the mockery from behind her but held back from turning around, refusing to let herself be drawn into her opponent's idiotic rhythm.
When Hillary finished, Trump gave a perfunctory clap or two.
Then, with a bold and imposing demeanor, he strode to the front of the stage and began stating his views.
"What is the Supreme Court? The Supreme Court is 'America First'—it must represent America's interests."
He immediately shifted the focus to the Second Amendment (the right to bear arms).
Trump said: "The Supreme Court justices I nominate will be 'exceptionally brilliant scholars,' each of whom upholds the Second Amendment. The right of American citizens to bear arms is granted by law and should not be revoked."
Then Trump criticized Hillary's proposals on the issue, pointing out that many U.S. cities are threatened by crime—if the people have no guns, how can they protect themselves?
He then raised his thumb, pointing at himself. "And me? I'm the strongest supporter of the Second Amendment, and in the future, I'll appoint justices capable of upholding it."
Hillary countered: "I don't disagree with the Second Amendment itself, but with how it's implemented. Right now, about 30,000 people die each year in the U.S. from illegal firearms—we must impose strict gun control."
She looked at Trump, serious and firm: "If I take office, I'll implement comprehensive reforms and strict background checks for gun purchases, but the key is balancing the protection of citizens' lives with respect for the Second Amendment."
Trump inwardly cursed, Sly woman.
The third debate differed from the previous two in that statements made here had to reflect their true governing philosophies. Once uttered in the debate, if one of them became president, they would have to implement them—or be seen as a fraud by the public.
Hillary had previously mentioned gun control in multiple venues.
At the time, Trump knew this woman didn't truly support a gun ban; she was just using ambiguous rhetoric to make people think she did.
So Trump wanted to lure Hillary into stating her position clearly in the debate. If she advocated a ban, she'd offend major organizations like the NRA and the American Trucking Association; if she said no ban, she'd offend the voters who thought she would.
Either way, Hillary would lose a portion of the electorate.
But Hillary didn't fall into Trump's trap, using a wishy-washy excuse to deflect his attack.
"Comprehensive reforms and strict background checks for gun purchases,"
"achieving balance"—wasn't that all just nonsense?!
Nearly every president had wanted to do that, but none had succeeded.
Not a single one.
Then, the moderator asked the sensitive "abortion" question.
This issue seemed sensitive, but it was actually a chance for both to rest their brains, as there were "correct answers."
Hillary and Trump each chose to support their respective Democratic and Republican traditional views:
Trump expressed opposition to abortion, believing the decision should be left to the states rather than the Supreme Court.
Hillary, on the other hand, believed that the choice to abort or not was each family's personal decision, especially when the pregnancy threatened the mother's health—the government shouldn't interfere too much in such private matters.