I alone can fix it.

HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON: I'm going to close my campaign focused on opportunities for kids

and fairness for families.

DONALD TRUMP: Hillary failed on the economy.

Everything she touched didn't work out, nothing.

HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON: Even if you're totally opposed to Donald Trump, you may still have

some questions about me.

JUDY WOODRUFF: Good evening.

I'm Judy Woodruff.

GWEN IFILL: And I'm Gwen Ifill.

Welcome to this "PBS NewsHour" special coverage of the first debate between the two major-party

presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.

The stage is set at Hofstra University on Long Island, New York.

With the election 43 days away the race tightening, a lot is on the line tonight, Judy.

JUDY WOODRUFF: It certainly is, Gwen, and given that this is the first time these two

have faced each other one on one.

Lester Holt of NBC News will be moderating.

Joining us at the table are our regular contributors, syndicated columnist Mark Shields, New York

Times columnist David Brooks, and from The Cook Political Report, Amy Walter.

We welcome all you have here for the next two hours.

Amy, let's start with you.

What are you looking for?

AMY WALTER, The Cook Political Report: Each of these candidates has an enthusiasm gap

problem within their own party.

So, they have got to get their partisans fired up.

For Hillary Clinton, it's young people.

For Donald Trump, he's got to get those white college-educated voters back into the Republican

fold, where they have been.

And then they have got to get those voters, both of them, who are torn, don't like either

choice they have in front of them, to pick them.

GWEN IFILL: Mark Shields, what would you -- surprise you the most of what these candidates might

or might not do tonight?

MARK SHIELDS: Does Donald Trump dare to be boring?

Does he come out sedated/presidential?

And can Hillary Clinton, who is a marvelous and superior deliverer of information, make

an emotional connection with American voters?

JUDY WOODRUFF: David, what are you on the edge of your seat looking for?

DAVID BROOKS: We have been around each other too long.

I wrote down emotional connection.

(LAUGHTER)

MARK SHIELDS: Did you?

DAVID BROOKS: This is not a cognitive night.

This is not philosophy.

This is not grand strategy.

It's moment of intimacy, that unscripted moment when the unconscious is revealed that will

be replayed on YouTube over and over and over again.

And so it's just, is he commanding or is he cruel?

Is she relatable and does she seem calmly smart?

And it's whether people get that vibe, the first they vibe, that will determine the night.

GWEN IFILL: Is this about what they know or who they are?

AMY WALTER: Well, I think it's mostly about who they are.

For voters at this stage of the game, they are looking up on that dais to see who they

can spend the next four years with, who they want to invite into their homes moment after

moment.

Many voters say, I don't want either one of them in there.

GWEN IFILL: A lot of them.

AMY WALTER: A lot of voters are saying that.

But this is the one maybe that they're not going to like, but they will feel comfortable

enough.

JUDY WOODRUFF: But, Mark, people are going to be fact-checking this debate.

They're going to be raising questions about whether what either one of them said was correct

or not.

MARK SHIELDS: No, you're right, Judy.

And if it's what they know, it will be a short evening...

(LAUGHTER)

MARK SHIELDS: ... for the Republican nominee, whose knowledge bank has been overdrawn.

And I think it's about, more than anything else, each case, what does he know, his command

of it, is he comfortable with it, and who she is.

And I think that is really the question.

DAVID BROOKS: And there is the gender politics.

GWEN IFILL: OK.

Well, we're turning now to Lester Holt of NBC News.

TRANSCRIPT START

HOLT: Good evening from Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.

I'm Lester Holt, anchor of "NBC Nightly News."

I want to welcome you to the first presidential debate.

The participants tonight are Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

This debate is sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates, a nonpartisan, nonprofit

organization.

The commission drafted tonight's format, and the rules have been agreed to by the campaigns.

The 90-minute debate is divided into six segments, each 15 minutes long.

We'll explore three topic areas tonight: Achieving prosperity; America's direction; and securing

America.

At the start of each segment, I will ask the same lead-off question to both candidates,

and they will each have up to two minutes to respond.

From that point until the end of the segment, we'll have an open discussion.

The questions are mine and have not been shared with the commission or the campaigns.

The audience here in the room has agreed to remain silent so that we can focus on what

the candidates are saying.

I will invite you to applaud, however, at this moment, as we welcome the candidates:

Democratic nominee for president of the United States, Hillary Clinton, and Republican nominee

for president of the United States, Donald J. Trump.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: How are you, Donald?

(APPLAUSE)

HOLT: Good luck to you.

(APPLAUSE)

Well, I don't expect us to cover all the issues of this campaign tonight, but I remind everyone,

there are two more presidential debates scheduled.

We are going to focus on many of the issues that voters tell us are most important, and

we're going to press for specifics.

I am honored to have this role, but this evening belongs to the candidates and, just as important,

to the American people.

Candidates, we look forward to hearing you articulate your policies and your positions,

as well as your visions and your values.

So, let's begin.

We're calling this opening segment "Achieving Prosperity."

And central to that is jobs.

There are two economic realities in America today.

There's been a record six straight years of job growth, and new census numbers show incomes

have increased at a record rate after years of stagnation.

However, income inequality remains significant, and nearly half of Americans are living paycheck

to paycheck.

Beginning with you, Secretary Clinton, why are you a better choice than your opponent

to create the kinds of jobs that will put more money into the pockets of American works?

CLINTON: Well, thank you, Lester, and thanks to Hofstra for hosting us.

The central question in this election is really what kind of country we want to be and what

kind of future we'll build together.

Today is my granddaughter's second birthday, so I think about this a lot.

First, we have to build an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top.

That means we need new jobs, good jobs, with rising incomes.

I want us to invest in you.

I want us to invest in your future.

That means jobs in infrastructure, in advanced manufacturing, innovation and technology,

clean, renewable energy, and small business, because most of the new jobs will come from

small business.

We also have to make the economy fairer.

That starts with raising the national minimum wage and also guarantee, finally, equal pay

for women's work.

CLINTON: I also want to see more companies do profit-sharing.

If you help create the profits, you should be able to share in them, not just the executives

at the top.

And I want us to do more to support people who are struggling to balance family and work.

I've heard from so many of you about the difficult choices you face and the stresses that you're

under.

So let's have paid family leave, earned sick days.

Let's be sure we have affordable child care and debt-free college.

How are we going to do it?

We're going to do it by having the wealthy pay their fair share and close the corporate

loopholes.

Finally, we tonight are on the stage together, Donald Trump and I. Donald, it's good to be

with you.

We're going to have a debate where we are talking about the important issues facing

our country.

You have to judge us, who can shoulder the immense, awesome responsibilities of the presidency,

who can put into action the plans that will make your life better.

I hope that I will be able to earn your vote on November 8th.

HOLT: Secretary Clinton, thank you.

Mr. Trump, the same question to you.

It's about putting money -- more money into the pockets of American workers.

You have up to two minutes.

TRUMP: 21:08:32 Thank you, Lester.

Our jobs are fleeing the country.

They're going to Mexico.

They're going to many other countries.

You look at what China is doing to our country in terms of making our product.

They're devaluing their currency, and there's nobody in our government to fight them.

And we have a very good fight.

And we have a winning fight.

Because they're using our country as a piggy bank to rebuild China, and many other countries

are doing the same thing.

So we're losing our good jobs, so many of them.

When you look at what's happening in Mexico, a friend of mine who builds plants said it's

the eighth wonder of the world.

They're building some of the biggest plants anywhere in the world, some of the most sophisticated,

some of the best plants.

With the United States, as he said, not so much.