Who Won The First Trump-Biden Presidential Debate?

CLEVELAND, OH — Who won the first 2020 presidential debate between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden?

For many people, that answer was already settled even prior to Tuesday and isn't likely to change now that the first of three scheduled debates is over: Many Trump backers will maintain Trump won; many Biden supporters will insist Biden won.

History, though, indicates that television clips from the debate will help form a general consensus that may take a day or two to be reached. Heading into the second debate, count on media reports to include phrasing such as, "Trump, who is widely considered to have won the first debate ..." or "Biden, who many believe dominated the first debate ..."

And what will determine that?

Here are six portions of the debate and other factors that are sure to influence the consensus "winner":

1. Sleepy Joe: Trump was amped up big time throughout the debate. But for a long time now, Trump has ridiculed Biden as "Sleepy Joe." That may have backfired given the energy Biden showed during the debate. He was feisty, garbled few words and fired back at Trump without hesitation, once calling him a "clown" (before immediately apologizing).

2. Testy, Testy: Trump consistently interrupted not only Biden but also moderator Chris Wallace. He once told Wallace it seemed it was Trump v. Biden and Wallace. Biden had his own moment after being repeatedly interrupted by Trump, asking the president, "Will you shut up, man?"

3. Wall Street vs. Main Street: Biden went after Trump on his handling of the coronavirus crisis by framing it as "totally irresponsible" and managed in such a way that the rich got richer while working-class people suffered disproportionately. This is an emerging theme in Biden's campaign.

4. The Tax Question: The New York Times reported this week that Trump had paid no income taxes in 10 of the 15 years prior to his presidency. When asked about it, Trump doubled down, claiming he paid millions of dollars in income taxes over that period. "Then show us your taxes," Biden said.

5. The Stock Market: When all else fails, look to the stock market. Biden has proposed raising the top tax rate for capital gains for the highest earners to 39.6 percent from 23.8 percent, and he would boost the corporate tax rate from 21 percent to 28 percent. If the markets go down Wednesday or Thursday or both days, that's a good indication that Biden was considered the winner, says CNBC. If they go up, that's a nod to Trump's performance. That may be a dubious claim since the number of people who drive the markets is relatively small.

6. Chris Wallace: It's hard to imagine that Wallace, of Fox News, will be seen as anything but a winner. When Trump interrupted, Wallace asked him (and eventually pleaded with him), to stop. He did the same to Biden on the relatively few occasions the former vice president interrupted. Toward the end of the debate, he asked Trump why he would not abide by the rules of the debate to which both campaigns had agreed.