The format was a town hall, just like Sunday's debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, but on Thursday night in New Hampshire Trump immediately and repeatedly batted away the notion that the event had any connection to the upcoming clash with his Democratic opponent.
"They were saying this is practice for Sunday. This isn't practice, this has nothing to do with Sunday," said the GOP presidential nominee, whose performance in the first debate against Clinton was widely planned. "We're just here because we just wanted to be here."
Clinton's announced preparation for the upcoming debate was actually an excuse for the Democratic nominee to rest, Trump added, who then shook his head as he said incredulously, "Debate prep?"
But the nearly hour-long gathering with voters in Sandown, N.H., moderated by conservative area radio host Howie Carr, sure felt like a practice session for Sunday's debate, which begins at 9 p.m. eastern.
Trump, who rarely holds town halls, gave an opening statement, reciting a list of polls that were favorable to him. Then he responded to about a dozen pre-screened questions from the audience, about topics such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, foreign policy and job creation. Carr gave him two minutes to respond_roughly the time candidates get during real debates.
Some queries concerned the debates themselves, such as one question from a Bedford resident about whether Trump would go after Clinton more aggressively than he did in their first debate. (Trump has previously said he didn't raise former President Bill Clinton's "indiscretions" because the Clintons' daughter, Chelsea, was in the audience.)
"I did hold back. I thought it was inappropriate to say what I was thinking," Trump said Thursday. "I'd much rather have it be on policy."
He said he preferred to keep the debates out of the "gutter," but then indicated he was open to raising the matter on Sunday.
"Let's see what happens," Trump said.
Another voter asked Trump about reports that he was upset that running-mate Mike Pence out-performed him in the vice presidential debate earlier this week. Trump responded by trashing reporters who had cited anonymous sources claiming he was displeased, and said he was ecstatic by Pence's widely praised performance against Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine.
"We were jumping up and down," Trump said. "And I'll tell you what, he's a great human being, you can't root against him, you can't."
New Hampshire is renowned in political circles for its town halls, where voters often aggressively question candidates. But Thursday's event was invitation-only, full of Trump supporters.
The questions were softballs, such as his favorite memory _ sitting by his father's knee as he negotiated _ and who would win the World Series.
"Of course it's Boston," said Trump, whose demeanor and tone during the town hall was far calmer than during the first debate.
He recognized the crowd was friendly, noting after a Sandown woman asked about taxes and repeated Trump's campaign slogan of "Make America Great Again."
"I like this audience," Trump said. "I like this audience."
The event concluded with Carr thanking Trump, calling him the next president of the United States and wishing him luck in the debate. The crowd members leaped to their feet and chanted, "Trump!"
