By Glynn Wilson –

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A majority of American voters, 54 percent, who tuned in to the final presidential debate in Tennessee Thursday night tell pollsters that Joe Biden was the clear winner over Donald Trump. Only 39 percent said Trump won, although many pundits gave him credit for not being as much of a rude asshole as he was in the first debate.

But credit for that went to the moderator’s ability to mute the microphones of the candidates, which led to “a much more digestible discussion for the viewing audience at home,” they say. “But the outcome was similar to the first debate in the eyes of voters, most of whom declared Democratic nominee Joe Biden the winner.”

In announcing the results of a Morning Consult/Politico poll conducted Oct. 23 with 1,848 registered voters, including 1,163 respondents who said they watched the debate, the margin of victory of 15 percentage points for Biden was similar to the 16-point gap from polling conducted among viewers of the “fractious” televised debate on Sept. 29, when Trump constantly talked over Biden and turned off many older voters who were already turning against Trump for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Like he did in the previous debate, Biden exceeded voters’ expectations,” they concluded.

In a pre-debate survey conducted Oct. 19-22, 45 percent said they expected Biden to win, compared with 36 percent who thought Trump would.

The debate opened on Biden’s turf, they say, with questions about the coronavirus pandemic and the Trump administration’s response. Clearly Biden scored there, with Trump fumbling and lying about his administration’s response.

When Trump tried to change the subject to Biden’s family and false allegations of corruption, Biden scored again by demanding that Trump release his tax returns and be honest with the American people about his taxes and debt.

Trump reiterated his lies from the campaign trail, claiming he has paid “millions and millions” in taxes, when investigative reporting has shown that he only paid $750 a year in taxes since becoming president, and owes $421 million in debt on many of his failing businesses, for which he has used his position as president to prop up in clear violation of the U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause.

Donald Trump the Criminal Tax Cheat

On climate change and race relations, Biden holds a significant trust advantage over the incumbent Republican, and Biden came out ahead by talking about his plans to combat climate change and tackle race relations when he is elected, while Trump repeated the lies he’s told over and over on the campaign trail, claiming he has done “great things” for African Americans and the environment.

Anyone in the audience who has been paying attention to the news on any channel but Fox over the past four years knows Trump is a racist and a global warming denier, who has gutted every agency of the federal government of scientists, including the Environmental Protection Agency.

Despite Trump’s attacks on Biden’s character, Biden left the debate stage with advantages over Trump intact on a number of traits, according to Morning Consult.

Roughly 3 out of 5 debate watchers agreed that Biden is honest, mentally fit and a clear communicator and strong leader, all double-digit leads over Trump.

Voters were also more likely to say Biden discourages his party’s extremes than Trump, 45 percent to 32 percent.

The overall pattern in public opinion that has held steady over the past few months shows Trump trailing Biden by 9 points among likely voters, 52 percent to 43 percent.

Many commentators say the debate was Trump’s last chance to do something to sway public opinion his way, but there were no earth shattering moments to change anyone’s mind heading into the election that is now only just over a week away.

Fewer voters tuned in for Thursday’s matchup compared with the Sept. 29 event, with 63 percent of registered voters saying they watched the debate, down 6 points from the previous “fiasco.” That included an 8-point drop among independents who said they watched, down to 53 percent.

The Commission on Presidential Debates’ decision to put the two candidates under the threat of a mute button helped facilitate a more orderly discussion, according to pundits, which did not go unnoticed by voters who responded to polls. The latest survey found 65 percent said the two candidates respected each other’s time, a notable shift from the polling conducted after the first debate, when 86 percent of voters called the candidates “interruptive,” mainly Trump.

Respondents also gave credit to the moderator. Nearly 3 in 4 voters (73 percent) said NBC’s Kristen Welker’s performance was “excellent or good,” including 83 percent of Democrats and 63 percent of Republicans. Almost a month ago, 43 percent of voters who watched said the same of Fox News’ Chris Wallace, with half or more rating his handling as “poor” or “fair.”