"Many folks only hear what they want to hear and that's why most of the post-debate comments last night were a colossal waste of time. Many opinions on the debate are subject to rooting interest and to expunge that you actually have to step back and think. Talking Points has done that and here is my assessment. Neither candidate broke out last night, the American people did not learn very much because both candidates stuck to what they have said in the past. There were few challenging questions put forth, only general queries except for the birther and tax return stuff designed to hammer Mr. Trump. Let's begin with demeanor, very important to Donald Trump. At the start he was credible, speaking about the need to stimulate the private sector so jobs are created. But as the debate wore on, Mr. Trump began to get a bit testy. For her part, Secretary Clinton stuck to the progressive script and seemed somewhat smug while not speaking. One of the most interesting parts of the debate was the racial aspect framed around stop-and-frisk. The truth is that aggressive police monitoring in high-crime neighborhoods does cut violent crime, especially where guns are used. But stop-and-frisk also does alienate some law-abiding folks who are subject to intrusion. There is no question that permissive local governments run by Democrats have failed dismally in places like Chicago and Baltimore. Mr. Trump missed an opportunity to ask Mrs. Clinton to repudiate those administrations. He also missed chances to pin the secretary down on sanctuary cities, violent protests, disrespect for the anthem and vouchers to improve poor public school performance. Hillary Clinton used three effective grenades: his tax returns, the birther issue and support for the Iraq war. Moderator Lester Holt helped Mrs. Clinton on the birther deal, and Trump made the mistake of over-explaining. He should have simply shrugged off questions designed to trap him, refocusing on Secretary Clinton's many ethical problems. If Donald Trump really wants to be president, he must put frivolities aside and concentrate on three realities: First, the federal government is hurting the poor and working class by punishing the private sector with crazy regulations and high taxation. Second, that Hillary Clinton's acceptance of Barack Obama's ISIS policy allows those savages to continue their terrorism at will. And third, the Democratic Party's embrace of grievance is pitting Americans against one another, demonizing the police and creating an environment where the USA is portrayed as oppressive not the land of opportunity it really is. If Trump would hammer home those three themes he might distinguish himself in a way that would attract voters currently skeptical of him. Finally, Bret Baier had a wise comment today. He said that if the polls continue to build for Trump after the debate, the Clinton campaign will be in serious trouble. Many online surveys are boosting Trump's debate performance, but both candidates can do much better. And to win the White House they will have to."

The Factor asked Charles Krauthammer to react to the instant polls showing that Trump 'won' the debate. "Snap polls are totally meaningless," Dr. K declared, "and they tell you nothing. I guarantee you that if you had a poll on who had the better hair, Trump would get the same 80%. We already know that Trump has the enthusiasm, you don't need a poll to tell you that. If you want to know who won the debate, you need a random sample. On the debate itself, I thought the needle did not move. But because Trump was the challenger and he came out alive, perhaps marginally he wins in a draw." The Factor contended that both candidates have obvious deficits: "The thing that will hurt Donald Trump the most is the tax return deal, there is a strong likelihood that his federal tax payments are low. And Hillary Clinton did not say one thing that was innovative or different from the Obama administration."

Pollster Frank Luntz, who gathered undecided voters to watch the debate, entered the No Spin Zone with his findings. "Hillary Clinton's worst moment," he said, "was when she said let's get the fact-checkers involved. They thought that was an ad hominem attack. Donald Trump's worst moments came when he was talking over Lester Holt. The cardinal rule of debates is to not talk over the moderator, but Trump did it three times and the participants found it rude." Luntz turned to each candidate's most sparkling moment. "Hillary Clinton's best moment was when she talked about working together with Muslim Americans. Donald Trump's high point came when he talked about applying his business principles to Washington." Luntz reported that his group was evenly split as to who won the debate and few votes were changed.

Some conservatives criticized Lester Holt for interrupting Donald Trump and asking him more pointed questions. Bernie Goldberg put forth his evaluation. "I'm not going to get into Lester Holt's motives," Goldberg began, "but he did ask Donald Trump some inconvenient and tough questions about the 'birther' issue and his tax returns. The problem is that he didn't ask Hillary Clinton as many inconvenient questions. There was nothing on immigration, Benghazi, the Clinton Foundation, or her 'basket of deplorables' comment. He interrupted and challenged Donald Trump more than Hillary Clinton." Goldberg also blasted far left loon Howard Dean as "beyond despicable" for suggesting that Donald Trump may be using cocaine.

The Factor asked Lisa Boothe and Juan Williams to predict whether Monday's debate will affect the polls. "I think the debate was ultimately a draw," Boothe said, "because neither candidate did anything to change the trajectory they were on. Donald Trump hit her hard on trade and reached out to disaffected voters. She did nothing to reach out to millennials, she spoke like a politician." But Williams contended that Hillary Clinton's performance will help her. "I think the polling will bump up for Hillary Clinton. She was speaking to the millennials, the Bernie Sanders voters who were not quite there for her. She talked about student debt and she called Trump out as being racist on the birther issue."

On the morning after the big showdown, Jesse Watters hit the streets of New York and elicited these responses: "Trump killed it" ... "She beat the s*** out of him, it was like a boxing match" ... "Lester Holt was softer on Hillary" ... "He didn't bring up her lies." Back in the studio, Watters admitted that a few of his interview subjects seemed to be high, and not just on life.

Bob Cotale, Oxford, FL: "O'Reilly, I am surprised and disappointed by Mr. Trump's lack of preparation and discipline in last night's debate. Does he not know that many of us are counting on him?"

Al Bates, Plymouth, CA: "The moderator failed miserably last night. Why did they have questions and spend so much time on Obama's birth certificate?"

Frank Leonard, Lexington, NC: "What wins? The Hillary eyeball roll or Trump grimace?"

Greg Lamacki, River Forest, IL: "Ten minutes into the debate, I tuned out and went back to reading Killing the Rising Sun. I think I made the right decision."

Singer James Taylor and his wife, annoyed that Fox News was on TV at the Boston airport, asked the bartender to switch stations. But the barkeep, evidently a Factor friend, informed them, 'This is the O'Reilly corner.' Nevertheless, James Taylor, you've always got a friend on The Factor.