5 times Donald Trump's own words came back to haunt him in the first presidential debate

Q: How do you solve a problem like Donald Trump?

A: Just let him talk. 

Some 90 million viewers tuned in to the first live debate of the 2016 presidential election campaign, a historic showdown that saw live fact checking implement in real time. 

It was a decisive tool in picking through the fluff and nonsense of proceedings - and a vital tool in demonstrating that not only will Trump say anything he likes, his faithful amongst the electorate probably don't even care. 

Here are some of the most outlandish claims made by Trump that hold no semblance of truth. 

Ford isn't reducing the number of US jobs

"So Ford is leaving. You see that, their small car division leaving. Thousands of jobs leaving Michigan, leaving Ohio. They’re all leaving. And we can’t allow it to happen anymore."

Fact: Ford is moving small car production to Mexico

What Trump didn't say: Ford will continue to employ a workforce in Michigan, building larger cars than the current set up. 

He did say climate change is a hoax

"Donald thinks that climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese. I think it's real," said Hillary Clinton.

"I did not — I do not say that. I do not say that," said Donald Trump.

But he did. He did it in a manner that required no specialist fact checker with access to a wealth of complex data sets and congressional reports - just any old mug with a Twitter account. He said it in November 2012, in a Tweet that became the most retweeted of the night...

His father gave him a massive loan in 1975

"My father gave me a small loan in 1975," is a line that came up last night, but has echoed around the chamber of Trump's campaign on several occasions.

The truth of the matter is that Donald Trump was given a loan of $1 million by his father Fred Trump in 1978 - which equates to roughly $3.7 million in today's money when adjusted for inflation - to help his son build the Grand Hyatt hotel in Manhattan, New York.

$3.7 million is in no way a "small loan". 

Trump won't be reducing taxes for everyone

"Under my plan I will be reducing taxes tremendously," said Trump. Which is true, if you're focusing on business rate tax - which should fall sharply. 

But the reduction in taxes only has an impact on the top level earners in the US; the Tax Foundation believes that Trump's proposed tax plan would actually help top one per cent of earners see a 10.2 per cent increase to their incomes. 

Trump hasn't been endorsed by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

When the discussion turned to immigration, Trump stated "I was just endorsed by ICE."

But he hasn't been, because the ICE doesn't endorse people. It's a government agency. Government agencies don't make a habit of endorsing political candidates, because that's not a thing government agencies do. The ICE union, or rather its council, has come out to say that it supports Trump's stance on restoring immigration security. 

Trump has heaped praise on Vladimir Putin

Hillary Clinton expressed concern that Trump has been "praiseworthy of Vladimir Putin". 

Trump's reply? "Wrong."

But he has. On multiple occasions. 

Like that time he told MSNBC that Putin was a "strong leader". 

Or when he said this to Larry King on CNN in 2007: "Look at Putin -- what he's doing with Russia -- I mean, you know, what's going on over there. I mean this guy has done -- whether you like him or don't like him -- he's doing a great job in rebuilding the image of Russia and also rebuilding Russia period."

Or this, in 2011: "Putin has big plans for Russia. He wants to edge out its neighbors so that Russia can dominate oil supplies to all of Europe," Trump said. "I respect Putin and Russians but cannot believe our leader (Obama) allows them to get away with so much...Hats off to the Russians."

So Hillary isn't "Wrong". 

(Images: Rex)