Social media has field day with best lines of debate
Social media users had a field day as Kamala Harris and Donald Trump went head-to-head in their first televised debate of the US presidential campaign on Tuesday night, with Trump’s claim about people in the US “eating dogs” prompting one of the biggest responses of the night.
The 90-minute debate hosted by ABC News saw both candidates trade insults, with Trump frequently veering off message as he attempted to portray the Vice President as being weak on immigration and responsible for high-inflation during the Biden administration.
Meanwhile, Harris attacked Trump’s integrity, calling him a “disgrace” and claiming that world leaders are laughing at the former US president – while appearing to suppress her own laughter as he made some spurious claims throughout the debate.
Analysts say Harris sought to get under his skin, and the insults provoked a bizarre reaction from Trump as he claimed that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio were “eating dogs” and “eating the cats”, while pushing his anti-immigration policies.
“What they have done to our country by allowing these millions and millions of people to come into our country and look at what’s happening to the towns all over the United States,” the former president said.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in. They’re eating the cats. They’re eating – they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame,” Trump claimed.
“THEY’RE EATING THE DOGS” quickly trended on social media platform X, as users took a swipe at Trump’s comments with viral tweets that could leave a lasting impression ahead of November’s election.
The former president, who struggled to stay on message throughout the debate, at one stage also claimed Harris was in favour of allowing “transgender operations on illegal aliens in prison”.
Others picked up on Harris’s skeptical facial expressions and eye-rolls. Celebrities also reacted to the debate, with the vast majority of Hollywood stars coming out in support of Harris, while lambasting Trump.
Avengers star Mark Ruffalo posed on X: “Honestly, I was anxious about this debate but what is clear is that Kamala not only has a vision for the future and lifting America up but she is just so much even-tempered and so much smarter than Trump. She crushed him.”
However, what could be the biggest endorsement for the Harris campaign so far, came from Taylor Swift, who posted on Instagram in support of Harris.
“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight. If you haven’t already, now is a great time to do your research on the issues at hand and the stances these candidates take on the topics that matter to you the most,” she wrote.
“As a voter, I make sure to watch and read everything I can about their proposed policies and plans for this country.
“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 presidential election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.
“I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”
She added: “I’ve done my research, and I’ve made my choice. Your research is all yours to do, and the choice is yours to make.”
More users on social media reacted to the endorsement, with some nodding to Republican VP nominee JD Vance’s controversial comments when he lamented the country was being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies”.
Star Wars actor Mark Hamill also mocked Trump’s claims about killing babies, and Haitian migrants eating pets, while calling Harris “presidential.”
Social media has taken on a critical role in this election, with both parties drafting influencers to share information about their candidates.
“[Social media] both is what people think and shapes what people think,” Shannon McGregor, an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media, told Reuters.
Trump’s campaign significantly outperforms Harris for followers. The Harris campaign’s official Kamala HQ account has 1.3 million followers on X, compared to the Trump campaign’s 2.4 million, for example. However, her campaign has received over 100 million “likes” on its videos on TikTok versus Trump’s 44 million, Reuters reported.
Harris also took her share of criticism with people gathering outside the debate venue to protest for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The debate dedicated only a short segment to questions on Israel-Gaza, with Harris reaffirming her support for Israel while acknowledging “too many innocent Palestinians have been killed”.
The quote invited a response on social media from users angry at the government’s continued arming of Israel.
Trump’s campaign also blasted Harris’s economic plan as simplistic and a carbon copy of President Joe Biden’s.
“Run, Spot, run,” Trump said, in reference to a popular book series used to teach children to read in decades past, leading the term to also trend on X.
As the debate concluded, the polarisation that divides American politics was on clear display, with both Democrats and Republicans claiming victory for their candidates.
Trump said, “People are saying big win tonight” on his Facebook account. On TikTok, Make America Great Again Inc, a Trump-supporting super PAC, also posted a series of victorious videos after the debate to its 3.6 million followers, including a clip from a CNN focus group in which a Pennsylvania voter said post-debate, “When facts come to facts, my life was better when Trump was in office”.
Amy Kock, a Republican strategist, said Trump clearly “prepped for this debate”.
“It’s the most on message – save eating dogs departure – he has ever been. He missed [an] opportunity on immigration because of dogs and he should try to bring it back at some point.”
Karen Finney, a Democratic strategist said: “This is going to be remembered as the one of the most impressive debate performances in modern politics. The VP is doing exactly what she needed to do: talk about her vision and policy ideas, illustrate the contrast between herself and Trump and stay out the way of his unraveling.
Additional reporting by Reuters