The Daily Show News Team Covers Presidential Debates

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I met with one of the nation's top political fact checkers, Glenn Kessler of The Washington Post, to find out how difficult it is to fact check a debate.

Live debates are actually relatively easy to cover. About ninety five percent of the things they say in these debates are things they've already said in which we have fact checked.

So for you, the debates are like a rerun like everybody loves Raymond, or like everybody thinks Mexicans are rapists. Yes, So compare Hillary and Donald Trump in terms of fact checking.

Hillary Clinton is it's like playing chess with a real pro. Fact checking Donald Trump is like playing checkers with someone to not very good at it.

It's pretty boring. You find Donald Trump boring?

Yes, his facts are so easily disproven. There's no joy in the hunt.

And when Glenn finds a lie, he rates its egregiousness with a withering one to four Pinocchio's.

That's right.

He eviscerates politicians using a wooden doll with a dick nose. So when you fact check something and you give it four pinocchios, then what happens.

To the candidate, Well, a lot of most candidates will will often stop saying that. In the case of Donald Trump, he almost never reacts to something we write.

Maybe he thinks Pinocchio is just a Slovenian model, and he thinks four. Oh, that's good. That's two more than I had last night.

I don't think so.

Fact Glenn was cocky. Two cocky. I decided to check the fact checker. The capitol of Michigan is Detroit.

That's not a fact.

The tomato is a fruit.

It's unsafe to eat eggs that have been sitting in your gym bag for two weeks.

I believe if you look on the website of the United States Department of Agriculture, that is not.

It's a little ball, but it's still a good egg, all right.

So Glenn checked out until I discovered how often he had given Hillary's claims for Pinocchio's compared to Trump's.

She's a fifteen percent, but Donald Trump is sixty five percent percentages.

Uh, how about this.

If Hillary walks into a bar and says ten things, one and a half of them would be lies. If it's Trump, six and a half of.

Them would be lies.

Or to put it another way, when Hillary screws you over, she does it with this tiny, lying dick nose. If Trump screws you, it's with this monstrosity. The difference could only mean one thing.

That sounds like this classic liberal bias.

No, facts have to have a basis in reality.

But who's reality? Liberal reality or conservative reality?

No, there is no liberal or conservative reality. There is just reality.

Why should we trust you?

I am completely dispassionate politically. I just look at the facts.

You have no passion whatsoever.

I did not say I had no passion. I said I am dispassionate.

Really, you're telling me if I leaned over and kissed you on the mouth right now, you wouldn't feel something.

Well, that's not about the issues.

Abortion, the economy. What do you think about those issues, Glenn?

I'm dispassionate about them.

But do people even give it about facts?

I mean, half the country thinks what Donald Trump says is totally cool.

I write the fact checks. It's up to voters to decide what they want to.

Do with them.

Glenn, You're a smart guy and make a lot of interesting points. But I'm an American. I believe what I feel. All right, No, that is going to eat some eggs.

Poh no, thank you, Oh no, thank you, Glenn.

With the election forty two days away, Americans have a choice. They can listen to fat boys with Italian woodpuppets, or they can listen to their gut, a choice which I fully endore. Trust your gut, America.

Last night I assembled my own panel of experts to watch the debate. A body language analyst, a pageant judge, an expert on auras, a man who works at a tie store, a yenta, a woman who doesn't speak English, someone who recently had knee surgery, and an easily bought teenage girl.

That really seems like kind of a ridiculous group of people to put together to analyze the debate.

That's because it was John so to give their expert analysis. I give to you the John Oliver focus group. I'm here with a diverse panel of experts to gauge in real time reactions to this debate. Let the debate commence.

Welcome President Barack Obama and Governor Nick Romney.

Okay, so let's stop it right there. Who do we think is winning so far?

Obama?

Obama pattern judge right.

Away, Obama came up with a high hello, the hand up high, with a big smile, or a expert.

Just you could feel from his various chakrash kind of a confidence.

Body language expert.

So far, I think it's equal.

I don't think you can make any decisions right now.

Because they both walked onto the middle of the stage, shook hands, and literally nothing else has happened so far. Yeah, okay, that's fascinating, that's interesting. But key debate analysis is much deeper than just how you walk into a room man who works at ty store?

Who do you think is winning so far?

Governor Romney has a tie, interestingly enough, with a stripe that's actually an English stripe as opposed to an American straight It's seems to me someone running for president should have been advised to where an American striped tires opposed.

I have to agree with you that pageant judge. You agree with that, I agree for the overall package you're representing America. Yes, many people may.

Not have that knowledge, but now that I did have that knowledge, it was it just made me feels like, why would you do that?

Even though you literally learned that fact thirty seconds ago?

Absolutely did bother me.

As the debate progressed, the analysis became even more sophisticated. Now neither men so far have put their hands in their pockets apart from nothing. What does that mean?

It means they're more.

Open, they have nothing to hide, They're letting it all out.

Lady doesn't speak English to me their own words the moment?

Who is winning this debate? Oh I don't understand very well.

Ah, tell me in your own words? Who is winning this debate?

Say?

Understandably? These debates affect everyone differently. Now, man who recently had surgery? Obviously both of them have theirs up as someone who's suffered an ACL injury. What does that make you feel?

Well?

That just makes me reminds me of what I can't do.

But, as all the experts assure us, the only way to really tell who wins a debate is to watch it without audio. Now, without the sound.

Who do we think is winning? Body language?

Expert Romney Romney.

Yes, he's more open, he's more fluid in his gestures, he's less angry.

Easily brought teenage girl anything. Now, let's see if this affects your response For this next segment, we're going to keep the picture up, but we're going to play the audio from an episode of CSI Miami as.

Far as as he has like two thousand cases, two thousand cases and now two thousand suspects.

Did that affect your enjoyment of this debate.

Made it more enjoyable?

Yes?

Yes, fact it actually did that is hypothetically fascinating. This was going great, but there was only one way to make sure. Ahi. So you've been watching the panel, watching this debate, body language expert, what is your reaction to how the other body language expert is doing?

I like the fact that she's physically via her face expressing that she's not agreeing with the other people.

Let's talk about the man who works at the tie store etiquet lady. How is what he's wearing affecting what he's saying about what Romney is wearing.

I would say it doesn't signify the best taste really for October to be wearing lime green.

The lady who doesn't speak English. She's not said much. Is that polite or impolite?

Will you see?

It's almost like she's a non person to me because she's so quiet.

Do you think that has anything to do with the fact that she really can't speak a word of English?

Possibly, but she could at least smile.

Right, But of course, in the end, there's only one final that really matters.

So, Ohio voter, who do.

You think wants anist invite?

Oh? I thought Obama won?

Obama it is then, because you are the only one who counts waste of time.

A few months ago I went down to Florida to see how some older Jewish residents were feeling about Barack Obama. Now, with the election just a few weeks away, I returned to watch the first presidential debate with miss my Mispath. Exactly like CNN, we armed our panel of voters with the latest in perception feedback analyzers. Under your seats. There you have some little controllers, these clickers. What they'll do is they're actually gonna record what you're feeling as you're

Good evening, Senators Obama and McCain. I'm not getting up.

Our panel weighed in, make sure you're hitting the button. Are you hitting the buttons? And then send hit send.

I'm pressing.

It's not going Unfortunately, not everyone was having success with the feedback system. You aren't pushing the buttons hard enough, so we switched to a simpler technology. Why don't you just yell what you're feeling off the list?

A little bit of naevite there, he doesn't understand. Agreed, agreed, Russia committed.

Sure, Georgia, he does not the state Now it's an idiot.

And I know that they know that I'll take care of them.

Having all this time, I immediately said that this was illegal.

Agree, disagree.

We shut down with acmudenagive, and.

You both.

Agreed, with the debate over. It was time for the post debate analysis.

He didn't let him speak, Obama interrupted McCain. It was correct him.

No, no, why do you why do you say?

Interrupted him a lot.

He tried to tried to control.

The debates he interrupted him. He tried to control the debate.

He tried to take the control away from the moderator.

All right, all right, we're gonna have to go one of the how dare John McCain insult me and everyone else by picking Sarah Palin?

A woman who's totally inadequate.

She's the governor because she was a governor of what of Alaska?

What was Barack Obama?

He spent a couple of days in the Senate.

I am definitely afraid of him.

Yourself, and I read I read magazines, and I know what the truth is.

She wants to recks right.

Right, Fox is fair and balanced.

The others are in the tank for Obama.

Do you have any idea how sick McCain is.

He's physically ill.

He can die any minute.

And he can die in office, and that gives her the presidency. That's frightening, So good Obama?

He smokes, Maybe he has lung cancer.

Right now, you wish it was a lively discussion, but perhaps the last words should go to art.

In four or five weeks, we're going to elect the president of the United States, and we're sitting here talking over irrelevant nonsense.

On second thought, let's end with this, because she's a big horse.

I shouldn't say that that's nothing against her.

Who Michelle's she's got she's a big horse.

Yeah, she has a lot of black women them a certain Stoy.

Daily Show Bush can Pain correspondent Rob Cordrey, and of course, his counterpart with the Kerry campaign at Helms, thanks for joining us, guys, Ed let's begin with you talk to us.

How are people in the Kerry camp feeling a night ecstatic? John Kerry's people couldn't be happier. Their candidate went up against a sitting war president who's never lost a debate and held.

His own And Rob, what's the mood over there?

At the Bush Camp?

Triumph John? Or gasmic triumph? Their man faced off against John Kerry, a golden tongued virtuoso of words, captain of the Yale debate team. He's been honing his oratorical skill since the age of three. The way they see it, by not allowing himself to be reduced to tears, the president was a big winner tonight.

If I can just interject here at Helms, the Carry campaign would like to remind America the senator was raised in France by a pack of homosexual billionaires and going into this had little chance against a plane speaking, hard working man of the people like George Bush. So for Carrie to be even close in this debate, they say, is a huge victory.

If I made John, that's a bit of a stretch.

The Bush people would.

Like to remind everyone their man held his own against what they call the smartest man in the.

History of the world.

John is RNC chairman Ed Gillespie told me before we came on air, this is a president who's nearly killed by a pretzel.

John Kerry held his own against the man.

Even he's going to vote for George Bush.

If that isn't a victory, I don't know what is.

Now.

Joining me right now.

Are two senior political correspondents on The Daily Show, Staff Moroka and Nancy Wallace. What really struck me about the debates last night was the abortion issue. It came to the forefront and I thought really divided the two candidates. Mo, what were your impressions about their abortion issue?

Well, John, I can say with certainty that for countless American women, the deciding factor in how their vote is cast depends on whether or not the candidate is pro choice.

Yes, Oh, that's an interesting point. You know you really you feel like abortion is the swing issue this year?

Absolutely?

Oh, Nancy, you know what.

I'm sorry, Nancy.

I've got word that advanced degenerous in Tampa would like to weigh in, Dvance.

You know, the next administration is going to appoint three, maybe four Supreme Court justices.

Now all the experts.

Agree that Roe v.

Wade will be a litmus test.

Well that that's a valid point. Vance, I'd have to say, uh.

Right, you know the real issue.

Yeah, hold that thought, honey. We've actually got Steve Carell on the phone. I believe he's off today, but he's calling in from his home in New Jersey. Steve, did you have something you wanted to contribute to the abortion discussion?

Yes, John, if abortion, if abortions are outlawed, only outlaws will have abortion. And and I ain't gonna place on city.

That's an excellent point, Steve. I've got to say, that's exactly you feel like.

I have to comment, whoa, whoa, whoa there, I'll handle this one.

Yes, I'm sorry, Stephen Colbert.

John, I think there's one thing that no one is naming. Last night.

On that stage, two men stood behind podiums, two men and talked about whether women should have reproductive rights.

Now, why haven't we, uh you know, heard from any of the chicks.

Well, that's a valid point. We've got time for one more comment, Nancy, what about that?

Why are women dropping the ball on this?

You know, John, I've.

Been sitting here listening to all of you and issue of whether women show you know what?

Uh oh is that over there?

Our camera man, Tom has been waiting very patiently. Tom, you had something you wanted to say. Yeah, I just think that women should definitely have the right to decide what happens to their own bodies.

Also, I think prostitution should be legalized.

All right, like an excellent discussion.

I want to thank everybody.

Mo Vance, Steven, Steve Crow at hometom the cameraman terrific work.

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