Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will be asked to comment on three specific topics in the first presidential debate on Sept. 26.
The moderator, NBC News’ Lester Holt, will ask the presidential candidates about “America’s direction,” “achieving prosperity” and “securing America,” according to a statement released Monday afternoon by the Commission on Presidential Debates.
The topics, which Holt selected, are subject to change depending on major news developments.
Clinton has reportedly pulled out all the stops preparing for the debates, including consulting with psychology experts and the ghostwriter for Trump’s The Art of the Deal.
The Democratic nominee and her team have also reportedly dedicated hours to digging into the GOP nominee’s past.
Clinton’s campaign is ” undertaking a forensic-style analysis of Mr. Trump’s performances in the Republican primary debates, cataloging strengths and weaknesses as well as trigger points that caused him to lash out in less-than-presidential ways,” the New York Times reported in August.
Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon promised at the time they are putting in the hours prepping for the first debate, which will be hosted at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y.
“She feels like it is a proving ground, that this is a job interview. I think she will approach the debate with a great deal of seriousness and a sense of purpose, and also keenly aware that Donald Trump is capable of anything,” Fallon said.
“We are fully expecting to have our hands full. It was his television personality that carried the day and made him a success at the [primary] debates,” he said. “What normally would make for low expectations in terms of a lack of substance and not sort of exuding that commander-in-chief demeanor has actually been turned on its head.
“She does her homework,” Fallon said.
In comparison, Trump’s approach has been fairly low energy, as the GOP nominee has reportedly adopted something of a let’s-cross-that-bridge-when-we-get-their approach to the debates.
The GOP nominee has so far put in little effort looking for a sparring partner, and at one point floated the idea of having his daughter stand in as Clinton.
“Wouldn’t she be great at that?” Trump told the Times.
He is also reportedly uninterested in staging mock debates.
“I believe you can prep too much for those things,” he explained in an interview with the newspaper. “It can be dangerous. You can sound scripted or phony — like you’re trying to be someone you’re not.”
The first presidential debate will run for 90 minutes, with no commercial breaks.
“The format calls for six 15-minute timed segments. Two 15-minute segments will focus on each of the topics listed above,” the commission explained.
