"nbc 10 news" debate night sponsored by david dodge. i've always been your dealer even if you didn't know it yet. two candidates, one stage. >> i am your voice! >> we'll fix it together! >> tonight an american tradition. >> i am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponent's youth and inexperience. >> you're no jack kennedy. >> can't let the man continue with fuzzy math. it's 1.3 trillion. >> he wanted to run against president bush, you should have run four years ago. >> the 1980s are now calling and

asking for their foreign policy back. >> whole binders full of women. >> this is 2016 "nbc 10" debate night. >> and we are coming to you from xfinity live right here in south philadelphia. welcome. a crowd has gathered here on this historic night to watch one of the most anticipated political showdowns in american history. quite a night ahead much us. good evening, everyone. i'm jim rosenfield here at xfinity live. we have the crowd behind us. we are here to get you ready for this debate which is about two hours from now. we're going to hear from the candidates' campaigns, we're going to hear from the experts and we're going to hear from some of you. we have "nbc 10's" denise mcconnough here. she's been talking to voters. we're going to check in with her. coming up in a moment we want to know what you want to hear from the candidates tonight. let's take you to where this debate is going to unfold in just two hours. there is the stage. the candidates going to take

that stage at hofstra university in hempstead, new york. that's on long island. it will just be the two candidates. you see the two podiums on the stage and tonight's moderator, nbc's lester holt. it's going to last 90 minutes. mrs. clinton's poe podium will stage left. mr. trump's podium stage right. to see them duke it out on national television live is a little less than two hours away. you're going to see it all live on "nbc 10" starting, of course, at 9:00 tonight. as we mentioned, nbc's lester holt is going to be the moderator. he has chosen the topics that are going to be covered at tonight's debate. here they are. america's direction, achieving prosperity, and securing america. and by a decision that was made earlier, mrs. clinton will receive the first question. now here's where the race stands. there are new polls out today. we want to show you these numbers. according to the nbc news survey

monkey weekly election tracking poll just released today. hillary clinton leads by 5 points. she has 45%. donald trump has 40%. libertarian gary johnson, he's clocking in at 10% and there is green party candidate dr. jill stein with 3%. it's important to note that johnson and stein will not be taking part in tonight's debate because by the rules they did not meet the required 15% threshold. all right. let's talk about some other numbers that are out there that are important to keep in mind as we watch this debate tonight. one analytic firm is predicting, listen to these numbers, between 81 to 94 million viewers will be tuning in to this debate tonight. now "nbc 10" is live on long island where it's all going to unfold. we sent "nbc 10's" lauren mayk out on the campaign process. she was with me at both

political caucuses. she's live at hofstra. >> we had some excitement in the spin room where i am. vice presidential candidate pence came through here. he caused quite a bit of commotion. you might be able to see behind me. there is a big crowd of people over near the door there. that is a crowd that has been moving around this spin room all surrounding mark cuban, businessman mark cuban who is a guest of the clinton campaign. his appearance here has caused a bit of controversy because donald trump had tweeted that he might invite gennifer flowers, who as we know, had an affair with bill clinton. that has been a whole side show. mark cuban just making an appearance here in the spin room behind me. but, you know, i spoke with an advisor for the commission on presidential debates who tells me every one of these debates is special, but they and we as well are certainly aware of the very

heightened interest in this one. debate nights throughout history have come with surprises. >> who's going to get things done? >> sometimes laughs. >> my opponent's youth and inexperience. >> always high stakes. this year it's hillary clinton versus donald trump. >> what do they have to do? >> well, i think they have to be careful that they don't stumble is really what comes down to it. >> when it comes to the influence of a debate on the race, drexel university political science professor points to a 1976 debate with jimmy carter versus gerald ford who made a foreign policy gaffe. >> it was basically a brain mistake. you know, he knew that poland was an oern block country but just didn't express himself that well. >> reporter: among those that had come before this presidential debate will be a first because one of the major party presidential candidates is a woman. >> it's going to be interesting to see, particularly because of the gender issues, i think,

whether or not trump is overly aggressive against hillary clinton and whether that's going to be perceived as a negative. >> reporter: clinton and trump have been on stage back to back at nbc's commander in chief forum but this time they'll share the stage. expectations are building. >> i think hillary is going to come out being very aggressive and trump is going to be his normal self but he's going to try to be a little bit more calm and collected. >> i just hope she really makes him come out and tell people about issues because he has not talked about issues. >> i'm looking for real presidential character and that can come up in a bunch of ways. but i'm looking for stability and a presence of mind. >> reporter: rosenberg says the significance of debates has changed. 24 hour media gives voters more info on candidates up front. this year's candidates are well known. the big meeting is when they're face to face. >> that's the challenge for both of them. that's the excitement for a lot

of viewers. >> reporter: and for at least the next couple of hours there are there is plenty of advice to go around for the candidates. i spoke to a debate coach here at hofstra university that says that donald trump should maybe try to focus a little bit more on policy and hillary clinton perhaps a little bit less, instead focusing on sharing with voters who she is. really though, it is all up to the candidates, and the truth is, we have no idea what they're going to do when that moment comes. for now live at hofstra university, i'm lauren mayk, "nbc 10 news." >> lauren, i'm sure at this point they want to tune out some of that advice and just focus, focus, focus. we're joined right now by our political punchout team, democrat mark alderman and republican jim schultz. guys, thanks for being here. big, big night for these two candidates. we've watched this process along the way at both conventions. tonight is the night though for these two candidates to try to

bring voters into their tent who are still undecided. what does each need to do to try to convince people who are still on the fence and maybe will look to tonight to make that decision? let's start with you, jim? >> i think on the donald trump -- on the donald trump front, i think he needs to be very serious this evening. he has to get away from the jokes and the name-calling and everything else we saw during the initial debates. for hillary clinton, she has to try to be credible. i think america's pretty much made up their mind that she's not credible, not truthful. so in addition to doing that, she can't fumble by making a misstatement or talking her way through an answer. she needs to be direct with her answers, to be truthful with the american public and try not to get into the trap of the -- allowing the debate to devolve into something into the mud puddle. >> mark? >> secretary clinton needs to give voters a reason to believe. she's the most qualified candidate to run for president

since thomas jefferson, but that's not enough. she has demonstrated to over half the country that donald trump is not qualified to be president, but that's not enough. she has to talk straight to the american people. she can't lawyer it. she has to convince them that their lives will be better with her as the president, and i think that's what we'll see from her tonight. >> if you could boil this down to really one piece of advice, which obviously they're not going to hear from you directly tonight, but from your point of view, if you had to give donald trump one piece of advice, what would it be, mark? and we'll ask about hillary for you. >> well, i don't have that much experience advising donald trump, but i would tell him, be respectful. i think his campaign has suffered from the disrespect he has shown. i think it has suffered from a lack of seriousness. i would say be respectful and serious because that's the job that you're asking nor. for. >> what would you advise hillary clinton? >> be truthful, be likeable.

that's what she struggles with the most. if she's unable to do that, she's going to struggle. >> we have our audience here. denise is here talking to people to find out what's on their minds. denise, who do you have here with you? >> reporter: we are on the floor of xfinity live. there are a lot of people who have turned out, some educators making this a part of their curriculum. as the topic of undecided voters have come up with you and jim and mark, we've got some undecided voters here. we have james robertson who is from west philadelphia. james, what question do you have, what's the main issue you have for the candidates tonight in this debate? >> i'd like to see the candidates talk about climate change and how they're going to deal with that issue. >> reporter: you're wondering if they're going to get to the issues that concern you the most? >> yes, like fracking and pollution especially. >> reporter: give us a include, jim, can you consult and ask if these are topics that might come up in the debate? >> yeah, they were asking if the undecided voter there, james robertson was asking will these two candidates weigh in on

climate change, fracking, those kinds of things? that will help him make a decision apparently. >> i think we're going to hear a lot about climate change. i think we'll also hear a lot about the economy and the jobs that have been lost as a result of the obama administration's attack on coal. so you're going to see two very divergent perspectives on that issue. >> mark? >> there are a lot of voters who agree with bernie sanders who said in the democratic primaries that the greatest threat to our national security was climate change. i think you will hear from secretary clinton how she participated in the paris conference and the unprecedented global agreement and how she is committed to working on that issue with nations around the world. i would love to hear from donald trump why he doesn't believe it is even happening. >> all right. denies denise, i know you've been talking with others. tell us about them. >> a big issue tonight is trust for both candidates.

we have kitty snyder from fish town who is here. what's your question you have for the candidates? >> i'm particularly interested in how the candidates are going to address political corruption in the particular election cycle. >> reporter: how is she going to be able to gain trust from hillary clinton or donald trump? that's the big question. >> the voter there is worried about this issue of trust, political corruption and let's talk about how hillary clinton addresses that first of all. >> i think the voter is very appropriately worried about that, and i think that secretary clinton owes the american people a straight answer on what she intends to do about that in her administration. she has talked around it and it's time for her to look it squarely in the face and address it. i believe that she is a woman of presidential integrity but she's going to have to explain that to the american people. >> jim?

>> she's been in government her whole career and the american people still don't trust her. i think she's going to have to turn it a little bit and talk about her vision for america rather than trying to convince the american people that she's absolutely trustworthy because i don't think she can get there. >> what about donald trump on that issue of trustworthiness? >> i think especially on the issue of corruption, druonald trump is an outsider. he hasn't been part of the political perspective. he has the strongest ability to come in and change things and not be part of the status quo in this corrupt political system and he has to talk about the game being reaped a bit. >> tax returns. >> he hasn't released those yet. >> big issue. i expect we may hear something on that matter tonight during the debate. we'll have to see. guys, we're going to check in with you against during the next hour. appreciate you being here and weighing in, but we'll bring the punchout team back. right now we want to talk about our digital team. they have been out on the campaign trail. we call them the battleground

bros. they bring unique campaign coverage to us this year. they've been hitting the road visiting college campuses trying to get the pulse of millennial voters. such an important voting block. they're doing a facebook lip chat now here at xfinity live. we're going to check in with them coming up. also, both candidates have made claims on the campaign trail that just have not stood up to scrutiny. we're going to look at some of the statements that have kept our fact checkers busy. don't go away. we'll be right back. ♪

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>> me, too. welcome back to xfinity live. so glad you're joining us on this historic night. we want you to join us online. we have a hashtag tweet us using #nbc10debatenight. weigh in with your thoughts. what do you want to hear from the two candidates tonight? have you made up your mind? what do you think it will take for either one of them to win? are you interested in watching this debate tonight? join in with that online conversation #nbc10debatenight. we're so glad to have you join in. you might see the tweet on the crawl at the bottom of the screen. pennsylvania, we know, the push for pennsylvania, we've been telling you that for weeks, it's shaping up to be a make or break state for candidates for president, for both candidates, i should say. a lot of analysts say it could be the tipping point, in fact. mullenberg college morning call poll released over the weekend shows hillary clinton holds just a 3 point lead in a head-to-head

match-up with donald trump among likely voters here in pennsylvania. 3 point lead. that's it. clinton has 44% to trump's 41%. this is a tight race in this key battleground state. so to talk more about the battle for pennsylvania and more than that, we want to bring in two great local experts joining us here with us here at xfinity live. professor matthew kerble, a member of villanova's department of political science and melanie price, an assistant professor of political science at rutgers university. thanks to both of you for coming out tonight. >> thank you for having us. >> talk to me about the historic night we're facing in a couple of hours. millions and millions, up to 90 million people are going to be watching. how does that resonate? >> the biggest part is we have to force our students. >> not tonight? >> tonight everyone wants to watch. it's the thing that they're really interested in. it's the thing that people are trying to anticipate what's going to happen.

uncertain. normally we have a sense of who's going to do well, who's not. very unclear in this debate tonight what's going to happen. >> you have these two personalities who are so different in their approach to campaigning. we've got that larger than life donald trump personality that people may know from reality television and then you have hillary clinton who people may know from history as a first lady, senator. very different personalities going into tonight's debate. we know that. let's talk about pennsylvania right now. it has not gone republican since 19 -- >> '88. >> '88. is this hillary clinton's fire wall this time around? what does she need to do to keep it a democratic state? let's start with you, professor. >> well, she is leading the polls as you said. the margin looks to be narrow. she's been leading consistently since last spring. in order to win pennsylvania for a democrat to win pennsylvania they have to win right here in the philadelphia suburbs, the four counties surrounding philadelphia. and the advantage that hillary

has had so far is that she's performing very well with educated white voters, in particular educated white female voters. you have a lot of those voters in the four county area. that's a vote that's traditionally been republican. she's doing very well because they have not warmed up to donald trump. if she can hold that vote and then hold the typical democratic constituency, she should win the state. >> what are you seeing out there in terms of her ability to hold onto the state? >> i think he's absolutely right. we have to start thinking about what's going to happen in the suburbs. i think in pittsburgh and philadelphia it's a pretty sure thing that it's going to go democratic but there has been a move towards more republicanism in the suburbs since 2008. that's what we have to pay more attention to. the difficulty is that donald trump hasn't been able to move women in the way that he should be able to given that there is a

high factor among men and women. he hasn't been able to make in roads there. as a matter of fact, he's turned off women to vote republican in this election. they aren't willing to because of who is on the republican side. >> as the commander in chief forum which aired here on "nbc 10," in the postscript, a lot of criticism about both candidates. what do you think they need to do differently tonight that perhaps they didn't achieve or accomplish at that forum? >> i think tonight's a different situation. for the first time you're going to see both of these candidates together on the same stage. they're going to be able to engage each other, probably ask each other questions or correct each other to some extent. >> that's part of the forum. >> one candidate and then the other. any time you add that dynamic and you have them both on the stage at the same time, you're adding an extra element. >> i think the unpredictability is the thing that everyone's

waiting for. it's unclear who's going to -- who's going to critique who, who's going to question who. they really don't know. i think if we'll all admit it, we'll really admit donald trump is the unpredictability factor here. hillary clinton is the excellent debater, knows how to well, has great detail. she is substantively be a better debater than him. the thing that will be difficult, we don't know what donald trump will do? from a previous debate he was a wild card in that wild card factor, how she handles that is the thing that will be telling in this debate. >> so interesting to be in your classes that you're teaching tomorrow and doing a postmortem on the debate. >> very excited about it. >> thanks so much. >> thank you very much. >> all right. we talked about them earlier, our digital team is here taking the pulse of voters this year, specifically millennial voters. our battleground reporters here. they're conducting a facebook live. hop on our "nbc 10" facebook

page. go ahead and do it and ask them a question or weigh in with your opinion. we know you have many strong opinions about this upcoming election. we're going to talk to them and find out what they're hearing from voters coming up. plus, fact checking the candidates, we're going to show you some of the statements that both of them have repeated that the fact checkers have poked holes in. why do they keep repeating them? we'll be joined by one of those fact checkers on our set here at xfinity live. don't go anywhere, we'll be right back. i'm really good at war. i love war in a certain way.

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ii'd look her right in that fat ugly face of hers.age. she's a slob. she ate like a pig. a person who's flat chested is very hard to be a 10. does she have a good body? no. does she have a fat [expletive]? absolutely. do you treat women with respect? i can't say that either. who am i? why am i here? >> and welcome back to "nbc 10" debate night here live from xfinity live in south philadelphia. wants you to join the

conversation online. tweet us using that hashtag, "nbc 10" debate night. what do you need to hear to make your decision? and will tonight's debate help you decide who you are going to vote for in november? you may see your tweet crawling at the bottom of your screen. millennials, they are the largest voting group in the country. so important in this national election, so two of our own millennials from the "nbc 10" digital team have been hitting the road. we've dubbed them the battleground bros and they are vince and david. they are joining me. they've been on facebook live throughout the broadcast. they've been visiting with young people on campus talking to those very special voters. first stop, penn state. >> support trump now. >> trump. trump, trump. >> very, very troublesome to be a trump supporter on campus. i'm not. i've had people yell obscenities. i've had people flip me off. >> if i'm honest, i don't think

either has come out and spoke to college kids. >> my fear is under employment. >> to be quite frank with you, i'm not really excited for this election. it's between cholera and the plague. that's how i feel between the two candidates. ♪ ♪ and we have our battleground bros here with us live tonight at xfinity live. vince, david, thanks so much for joining us. you've been out there talking to these young voters, visiting college campuses, but before you went out on this tour you dove into some research from pew. what did you find? what was top of mind? >> let me tell you this. if you were a millennial, 18 to 35 this year and you're going to be voting. for those of you who don't know, if you don't fit into that, you're not a millennial. >> nothing wrong with that? >> nothing wrong with that. . yes, yes, mr. boomer. the pew research center do a lot of political research.

they look at millennials a lot because they are coming into power. 41% are registered as independents which is pretty large. kind of mimics again ner races -- generations as they go along. what's interesting is when they ask the independents where they lean, they come across more democrat particulars. this whole group when you count the democrats and democratic leaning, the most democratic group in history, modern history that they've found. the issues most important to them, david is going to talk to them, what's very important for you when you cast your vote as president? 80% said the economy. not a huge surprise. what we learned and what pew surmises from that is that our age group came to, you know, come into the work force, came into the work force when the great recession was just starting. so we really got held back. there were huge groups of young people who were living at home with their parents after they graduated college and so what

happens is the cost of college just compounds that problem and it makes it more difficult for them moving forward. >> other issues you found, david? >> yeah, education is a huge one. millennials, they're the most educated generation according to the pew research center. with that comes concerns about affordability and access and social justice. the pew research center found that millennials are the most diverse generation in history. because of that, that goes into their concern about social justice. they found that 74% of millennials find the treatment of minorities a critical issue during the election system. that doesn't concern just race, lgbtq and immigration. we'll be going to temple universi university, vince and i, tomorrow. >> you have to watch their reports on our facebook page. they're great. so innovative. >> thank you. >> fascinating to see what you guys come up with. >> thank you. >> denise is in our crowd with some questions that deal with millennials.

what did you find, denise? >> reporter: joining us now is lawrence moore. he's a senior at rutgers university. he's a republican which is rare for college students. you are having a hard time deciding which candidate you're going for. what is your question? >> my question is can mr. trump be more presidential? i'd like to see in this debate if he can bring it in a little bit, put his policies and tell us what his initiatives are and give us real substance on what he wants to do. >> all right. so that's from lawrence moore, a college republican. he's saying can mr. trump appear more presidential. do you hear that a lot as a concern on campuses that you've visited so far? >> when we went to penn state and when we were on the campaign trail, there's not a lot of students who really support donald trump. there are a small group that we are for trump, specifically at penn state. if you watch our piece, you'll see this. the college republicans, typical republicans, they chose not to endorse him. they're not telling their group

how to vote but they're saying they can't endorse him. they don't feel that he's presidential, specifically his concerns. can he attract them? everybody we spoke to said no. do you agree, david? >> yeah, i agree. we saw a lot of rep support for the libertarian candidate, gary johnson. he's more in touch with their ideals than donald trump is. >> you still hear bernie sanders supporters out there? >> oh, my gosh. definitely. over and over again. a lot of students said they were lukewarm on secretary clinton because they feel as if she is not going after the ideals that they're really looking for. and one student describes voting for either donald trump or hillary clinton as choosing between cholera and the black plague. she said that she probably would lean towards voting democratic if she decides to cast a vote for president, but some students are saying they might abstain which will have a huge impact on this election whereas turnout could have been much higher if the millennial generation comes out and casts a vote.

>> let's go back to denise who has another voter out there in the crowd. >> reporter: yes, we do have a millennial, earnernest owens. >> i am decided. i'm going for hillary clinton, no doubt about that. one of the things i want both of the candidates to focus on is beyond just social issues, talking about the income disparity. we're in philadelphia right now and there is a lot of economic disparity. you can see a difference between the rich and the poor. both of these candidates are extremely rich. i want to know what they're going to do to address these issues. social issues are important. i'm black and i'm gay. i want to see them dig in the surface level when it comes to people getting a job, getting access to great education, affordable health care. the social issues are great. let's talk about economic inequality. >> reporter: equalizing that and stopping the disparities is the big picture for you? >> yes, definitely. you can't do anything if you don't have money, if you don't

have resources. these communities, you know, are struggling because of the fact that there's no economic boost to help them. i want to hear the presidential candidates talk about how they're going to guarantee jobs to everyday americans. >> battleground bros? >> specifically to how they're going to guarantee jobs, there are economic plans from both secretary clinton and donald trump, but a lot of let's say secretary clintons, for example, one of the students that we spoke to, his name is ramone, his parents are factory workers here in philadelphia. he says that he feels a lot of her economic policies are helping his parents, not necessarily himself. i think that's something they both have to go towards. in terms of fixing in common equality, they both have said the minimum wage is not where it needs to be. i think that it's really going to be interesting to see what they come up with. >> definitely. >> david chang, vince letanze, our battleground bros, you're

out on the road going to temple. >> tomorrow. >> thanks, guys. >> thank you. we want to go back to the site of tonight's debate at hofstra university, hempstead, new york. we're joined by nbc news kristen welker who's been out on the campaign trail for i just can't imagine how many days it is, kristen. we're so glad you're here with us tonight. what would you say is on the line for both of these candidates tonight? >> reporter: jim, it's so great to be with you. and hello to everyone in philadelphia. the stakes couldn't be higher tonight simply put. this is a key catch for both of these candidates. for secretary clinton, her challenge tonight is going to be rebuilding trust with voters. also coming off as more relatable. she has been studying hard. she's had a number of mock debates, including mock debates at 9:00 at night to set her body clock for tonight. she's had a trump stand in. one of her former state department staffers who is really tough. i'm told he's been throwing some

sharp barbs at her to prepare her for what might be coming her way. look, she has to do more than go on the attack against donald trump according to her top officials. she has to talk about how she's going to create jobs, college affordability, climate change. also the millennial voters that you guys were talking about. for donald trump, his challenges are different. it's what they were saying, he has to look poor presidentimore. he's been studying up on policy but he hasn't had any mock debates. some of his top advisors say they want trump to be trump. that could work. it certainly did during the primary, but it comes with some risks as well. secretary clinton's been preparing to go after two different donald trumps. one who's going to be aggressive and another donald trump who can be more restrained. we've seen that when he speaks from a teleprompter. they are expecting him to be a little bit more restrained tonight, and i think donald trump's top officials want him to be more restrained. so secretary clinton might try

to needle him a little bit, might try to get under his skin and knock him off his game. the stakes couldn't be higher particularly when you think of a state like pennsylvania, that is secretary clinton's fire wall. right now the polls there are getting so tight. remember, the debate starts tonight at 9:00 on nbc. guys, back to you. >> kristen welker, live from hempstead, new york, hofstra university. you're there in the spin room where i can only hear how much you're going to be hearing right after that debate winds up. we'll look for your reports later and tomorrow on "today" as well. thanks so much, kristen welker. >> thanks, jim. >> appreciate it. let's talk about some of the facts the candidates throw out there. are they facts? they're claims that fire up the crowds they're speaking to and sometimes statements they make over and over again on the campaign trail, but as our partners at factcheck.org point out, repeating them doesn't always make them true. >> that's not true. these documents that are circulating around that are

fake, that's simply not true. >> reporter: claims on the campaign trail repeated in tv ads. >> donald trump says he alone can fix the problems we face. well, i don't believe that's how you get things done in our country. >> reporter: hillary clinton's popular talking point that donald trump claimed at the republican national convention that he alone can fix it is a misrepresentation. >> he said that as an outsider he alone can fix what he said was a rigged political system, but he said he would work with others on terrorism, on the economy and other things. >> i was against the war in iraq. >> reporter: trump says over and over again he opposed the war from iraq from the beginning. >> he says this numerous times but no matter how many times he says it there isn't any evidence for it. >> reporter: he points to a 2003 interview as evidence he opposed the war before he started. as factcheck.org pointed out, he urged president bush to make a decision, either you attack or you don't attack, trump said. he offered no opinion on what bush should do.

clinton's use of a personal e-mail server while secretary of state another hot topic. she's sticking to claims that there were no classified materials among the e-mails and says fbi director james comey backed her up when he testified before congress. >> director comey said that my answers were truthful and what i said is consistent with what i have told the american people. >> when he said that she had not lied, he was talking about what she said to the fbi. he wasn't commenting on her public comments about sending or receiving classified information. >> she also lacks the mental and physical stamina to take on isis and all of the many adversaries we face. >> reporter: weeks before clinton suffered a bout of pneumonia, trump was questioning her health. reported medical records for clinton circulating on websites show she suffers from seizures and dementia. factcheck.org says those documents are fake. >> so coming up we're going to be talking with one of those

fact checkers, and we're going to ask who checks the fact checkers when we come right back. live from xfinity live in south philadelphia. don't go away.

joe the plumber. >> joe the plumber. >> i'm happy to talk to you, joe, too, if you're out there. >> memorable moments from debates past, and a big one coming up 9:00 tonight live from hofstra university. you will watch that. you can watch that live right here on "nbc 10." lester holt, of course, will be

the moderator. we are coming to you tonight from xfinity live in south philadelphia where people are gathering to watch what may be the most viewed presidential debate of our time. one analytic firm is predicting that close to 95 million people may, in fact, tune in tonight. we're also going to hear from our audience here at xfinity live. "nbc 10's" denise takano is there talking to voters here to watch this debate who haven't made up their minds yet. they want to hear what the candidates have to say. we're going to check in with denise and our battleground bros are still here. they're on facebook live. you can join the conversation on our "nbc 10" facebook page.

jack kennedy was a friend of mine. senator, you're no jack kennedy. >> and welcome back to "nbc 10's" debate night coming to you live from xfinity live here in south philadelphia. join the conversation online on

our nbc philadelphia facebook page. what's on your mind? do you think the candidates will surprise us tonight? what could they say that might influence your decision? have you already made up your mind but you want to see how the other guy or the other woman may do, you know, the other candidate? maybe it will sway your opinion at this juncture in the campaign. so weigh in on our nbc philadelphia facebook page. we love hearing from you. you know, this campaign cycle, fact checkers have taken on a prominent role and it is fast and furious this campaign cycle. joining us to talk more about separating truth from fiction is robert farleigh who is deputy managing editor of factcheck.org. how has this campaign been different for what you do for a living? >> well, we're extremely busy. traffic is through the roof. it tells me that people are looking for some kind of a nonpartisan arbiter of truth. someone to referee a lot of this claims that are going by. no secret that we have two

candidates who view -- people view as untrustworthy, so i think that they're looking to, as i said, nonpartisan people to referee it. >> we mentioned this before. who checks the fact checkers? how does that work? >> the public does. we're trying to be as transparent as we can. we link to every source. we're trying to deal with independent sources. people can check our homework. they can ultimately decide if we're doing our job correctly. >> i have to understand in this 24/7 kind of news cycle that we live in now the volume of information that's out there and that needs to be checked is just greater than ever. >> it's true. and you have one candidate who is giving interview after interview on television, giving, you know, probably double the number of stump speeches and speaking for a longer time so you have a lot of volume of things to check. >> let's go to denise takano who is here with our crowd at xfinity live with a question for our fact checker. >> reporter: we have a separation of truth versus fiction. no better than with educators who are joining us here at

xfinity. we have alice hollingshed who is a third grade teacher. this has become part of your curriculum. >> yes. right now we're teaching students the actual process that candidates go through to become president. they're learning about people, places, and how they're related in the community. so they want to know what is going to happen when they become president. >> reporter: so our fact checker is here. what would be a good question that your students would have for the fact checker? >> they want to know what the president will do for them and public education. and they also want to know will they still have to take their standardized tests because third grade, first year of taking the big test for them. they're really anticipating and anxious about that. school reform. >> that's more of an issue/concern for the voters.

>> obviously. >> will they take that on? >> there's the issue of common core is what she's talking about there. you have a candidate, donald trump, who has said he would like to do away with federal funding for that. so that's, you know, an issue for a lot of folks. >> i want to know why is it that the candidates may repeat statements that are fact checked as false and they keep repeating them. >> i think that there's probably not enough consequences. people weigh a decision, is this going to hurt me? if fact checkers fact check what i say is that going to hurt me? they make a calculation, probably not. >> robert farleigh, thank you very much. during and after tonight's big debate, we appreciate it. we'll have more ahead from xfinity live. still to come including a local expert telling us why the role of moderator is so important. we'll be right back. including ws including with nukes. i know more about isis than the generals do, believe me.

nuclear, just the power the devastation, is very important to me. i want to be unpredictable, unpredictable, unpredictable, unpredictable. priorities usa action is responsible for the content of this advertising. does pat toomey speak for you? i also want to thank the nra for it's, uh, strong support for my campaign. pat toomey: he opposes an assault weapons ban and got an "a" rating from the nra. "i have had a perfect record with the nra." and on women's health? "i would support legislation in pennsylvania that would ban abortion, and i would suggest that we have penalties for doctors who perform them." pat toomey: does he really speak for you? senate majority pac is responsible for the content of this advertising. c'mohappy birthday! i survived a heart attack. i'm doing all i can to keep from having another one. and i'm taking brilinta. for people who've been hospitalized for a heart attack. i take brilinta with a baby aspirin.

no more than one hundred milligrams as it affects how well it works. brilinta helps keep my platelets from sticking together and forming a clot. brilinta reduced the chance of another heart attack. or dying from one. it worked better than plavix. >>don't stop taking brilinta without talking to your doctor since stopping it too soon increases your risk of clots in your stent, heart attack, stroke, and even death. brilinta may cause bruising or bleeding more easily, or serious, sometimes fatal bleeding. don't take brilinta if you have bleeding, like stomach ulcers, a history of bleeding in the brain, or severe liver problems. tell your doctor about bleeding, new or unexpected shortness of breath, any planned surgery, and all medicines you take. >>talk to your doctor about brilinta. i'm doing all i can. that includes brilinta. if you can't afford your medication, astra zeneca may be able to help. and welcome back to debate night here at xfinity live in south philadelphia where a crowd is gathering to watch tonight's

historic debate on nbc and "nbc 10" right here at 9:00 p.m. tonight. and we want to get some perspective on the history of presidential debates. let's bring in jeffrey rosen who's the president and chief executive officer of the national constitution center. mr. rosen, thanks for being here tonight. >> great to be here. >> lester holt is the moderator. how has that role evolved and changed over the years? how pivotal is that role? >> the role is completely pivotal. the most famous example of a moderator challenging a candidate was during the second debate between gerald ford and jimmy carter. gerald ford famously said in 1976, there is no soviet domination of eastern europe and under a ford administration there never will be. and max franco said, wait a second, are you saying there's no soviet domination? ford digs in his heels and said yes and carter thinks they've

lost the election. >> no problems. >> president ford that was a star crossed series of debates. the first one before the even european debacle the audio went out. the candidates are standing there silently for a half hour, can you imagine? >> no, i can't imagine. >> there have been debates, the famous nixon debate, where their appearance and their performance in the debate itself was seen as a pivotal moment in the election, right? >> yes. i want all visitors around philly to go to the national constitutional center to the headed to the white house exhibit and it's striking how dreadful nixon looked. he was a healthy guy as young as kennedy. he refused makeup in the first debate unlike kennedy who looked tanned, rested, pasty faced, pale, twitching. even though people who heard it on the radio thought nixon won the debate, people who saw it on tv thought kennedy won because nixon looked so bad.

>> for more on the great history all you have to do is go to national constitution center and take it all in and re-live moments or learn new things that you didn't know about the rode to the white house. >> absolutely. you can see the debates, read from them. you can swear yourself in as president. it is just a great constitutional feast. >> thanks for that perspective on the debates and the big one coming up tonight with maybe 90 plus million viewers. jeffrey rosen from the national constitution center, we thank you for being here. more live coverage here from xfinity center live. don't go away. third president?

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you're never going to be president of the you states. >> i'm at 42, you're at 3. >> doesn't matter. >> so far i'm doing better. >> doesn't matter. >> so far i'm doing better. >> feisty donald trump there and tonight he will be facing off

with hillary clinton. wrapping up our "nbc 10" debate night coverage live from xfinity live. crowds been growing over the past hour as we get ready for the first debate between republican donald trump and democrat hillary clinton. just about an hour away now before the two presidential candidates square off with nbc's lester holt. you've seen these supporters holding up signs for the libertarian candidate, gary johnson. they've been behind us throughout this broadcast. we just want to reiterate the reason johnson and green party candidate jill steen wiin will e in tonight's debate because they did not reach the mandatory 15% electorate. they are here with us tonight at xfinity live. glad to have them and glad to know your thoughts on this election on our facebook page. join the conversation and join it on twitter as well using #nbc10debatenight. looking ahead to the election, there is still time to register to vote if you have not. in pennsylvania you have until

october 11th. the deadline is october 15th in new jersey and delaware voters, you have until october 18th. this is an important decision so we hope you'll get out there to register to vote so you can cast your vote coming up in november. so we are here at xfinity live, and we are going to watch the debate here on the big screens here at xfinity live. so come on down if you want to watch it on a big, big television screen. we're going to be watching as well on nbc. the moderator again is lester holt. he will be questioning the candidates starting at 9:00 tonight. it will be a 90 minute match-up between hillary clinton, of course, and donald trump. both of the candidates we've been hearing have been preparing for this debate in their own ways. hillary clinton staging mock debates and donald trump speaking with his advisors getting advice on topics on how to comport himself perhaps but not holding those mock debates necessarily. so it will all take place from hofstra university in hempstead, new york, live on long island. for now i'm "nbc 10's" jim

rosenfield. thanks for being here from debate night. approve this message.

i'd look her right in that fat ugly face of hers. she's a slob. she ate like a pig. a person who's flat chested is very hard to be a 10. does she have a good body? no. does she have a fat [expletive]? absolutely. do you treat women with respect? i can't say that either. katiejoey, ricky, eileen,hnny, me, and colleen...immy, all 10 of us raised on a policeman's salary and a mom working as a restaurant hostess. imagine trying to do that today, with washington looking out for the favored few. i'll bring a different point of view to the u.s. senate - working class roots and the mother of three, i'll put middle class families ahead of wall street. i'm katie mcginty and i approve this message

because it's your turn to get ahead. wé:♪ it's a new day n ♪ it's a new life for me miley: i was very nervous at first to be in the chair. i was more nervous about pushing the button. [ cheering ] you don't really know what to expect when you turn around. yes! wow. ♪ and i'm feeling goo-o-o-o-d alicia: i think the coolest thing is when you turn around and you see the person. it's such an amazing feeling because it just opens all possibilities up. yeah! daly: with the debut of alicia keys and miley cyrus... i love you. daly: ..."the voice" returned bigger and better than ever. you are the future of music. oh, my god. and you have just got to pick miley. let's go get 'em! daly: our new coaches wasted no time getting down to business. [ laughter ] -i pick alicia. -yeah! alicia: i have five artists on my team, and it's time for me to be very selective. it's hard because i don't know what else is gonna come. -miley. -yes, yes, yes!