On Sunday, former Vice President Joe Biden and democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) faced off in their first one-on-one primary debate — a debate held with no audience in an attempt to curb the spread of coronavirus. While the rather surreal audience-less debate went over better than many of its more chaotic predecessors, and the left-leaning media celebrated it as “substantive,” the man that one of the two candidates on the stage Sunday will be going toe to toe with in November had a far different reaction.
In a tweet Sunday night, Trump offered his summary of the CNN-hosted event followed by a series of retweets highlighting moments he wants to make sure his 74 million followers don’t miss.
“I must say, that was a VERY boring debate,” Trump tweeted Sunday. “Biden lied when he said I want to cut Social Security and Medicare. That’s what they ALL said 4 years ago, and nothing happened, in fact, I saved Social Security and Medicare. I will not be cutting, but they will. Be careful!”
I must say, that was a VERY boring debate. Biden lied when he said I want to cut Social Security and Medicare. That’s what they ALL said 4 years ago, and nothing happened, in fact, I saved Social Security and Medicare. I will not be cutting, but they will. Be careful!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 16, 2020
Trump followed up his single original post on the debate with a series of retweets of unflattering clips and factoids on Biden promoted by the Trump campaign.
“Sleepy Joe is SO CONFUSED,” tweeted Trump campaign national press secretary Kayleigh McEnany, along with video from the debate. “Joe has… – Called the coronavirus ‘SARS’ – Called the coronavirus the ‘swine flu’ – Called the H1N1 virus the ‘N1H1’ – Forgot the name of the Ebola virus, describing it as ‘what happened in Africa'[.] Joe is SO LOST!”
“Joe Biden would set an extreme and dangerous course on illegal immigration,” wrote Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh in another post retweeted by Trump. “Wouldn’t deport anyone except convicted felons. Says local police should not cooperate with ICE. In Biden’s America, EVERY city is a sanctuary city.”
“Joe Biden is a train wreck on illegal immigration and would harm national security,” tweeted Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale along with more footage from the debate. “He’d have ZERO deportations for the first 100 days INCLUDING CRIMINALS and after that deport only felons. Trashes the rule of law and makes us less safe. Insanity!”
Sleepy Joe is SO CONFUSED. Joe has…
– Called the coronavirus “SARS”
– Called the coronavirus the “swine flu”
– Called the H1N1 virus the "N1H1"
– Forgot the name of the Ebola virus, describing it as “what happened in Africa”
Joe is SO LOST!pic.twitter.com/nDKvztN6yf
— Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) March 16, 2020
Joe Biden would set an extreme and dangerous course on illegal immigration.
Wouldn’t deport anyone except convicted felons.
Says local police should not cooperate with ICE.
In Biden’s America, EVERY city is a sanctuary city.
— Tim Murtaugh (@TimMurtaugh) March 16, 2020
Joe Biden is a train wreck on illegal immigration and would harm national security.
He’d have ZERO deportations for the first 100 days INCLUDING CRIMINALS and after that deport only felons.
Trashes the rule of law and makes us less safe.
Insanity!
pic.twitter.com/MCUSAt83Wo— Brad Parscale (@parscale) March 16, 2020
Among the left-leaning outlets that have praised the audience-free CNN debate is The New York Times, which described the event as somewhat of a relief after all the disjointed and disruptive previous debates in which the candidates repeatedly talked over each other, ignored time restraints, and spent more time playing to the crowd than giving substantive answers.
“With no live audience on hand because of coronavirus concerns, there were no jeers or cheers disrupting the proceedings, no playing to the crowd by the two men onstage,” the Times’ wrote. “The candidates, typically armed with punch lines and YouTube-able zingers to make the most of limited speaking time, had ample room to dwell on substance. Moderators had the grace and good sense to stay silent when the candidates questioned each other directly.”
Grynbaum also couldn’t help but point out the glaring fact that is haunting the party of “Intersectionality”: After what at one point being the most diverse collection of Democratic presidential candidates ever, onstage Sunday “were a pair of white men.”
“Add a sepia Instagram filter to the broadcast and viewers might have mistaken it for a snippet from the Kennedy-Nixon debates of 1960, the last time that presidential candidates sparred inside a closed TV studio. (The similarities, it should be said, included the fact that the contenders onstage were a pair of white men, even if, 60 years later, two of the three moderators were women.)”
Related: WATCH: Sanders Dodges When Asked About Italy’s Overwhelmed Health Care System Under Coronavirus