In one of several moments from the Democratic presidential frontrunner debate Thursday night that has created a stir online, the candidates were asked to raise their hand if they would support giving illegal aliens free healthcare. Every one of them raised their hand to giving taxpayer money to people living in the country illegally.
“Raise your hand if your government plan would provide coverage for undocumented immigrants,” said NBC’s Savannah Guthrie. All of the the candidates proudly raised their hand, prompting enthusiastic applause among the audience.
That moment inspired the only tweet President Trump issued in response to the Democratic Party’s big frontrunner debate.
“All Democrats just raised their hands for giving millions of illegal aliens unlimited healthcare. How about taking care of American Citizens first!?” wrote Trump. “That’s the end of that race!”
Trump was not the only one to interpret the moment as a major win for his re-election campaign. The Republican Party of New York posted a similar response (h/t Twitchy).
“Raise your hand if you’re ready to hand President @realDonaldTrump victory in 2020 by putting illegal immigrants before American citizens,” the New York GOP tweeted. “That’s everyone, right?”
Co-founder and editor-in-chief of the Washington Free Beacon Matthew Continetti posted a pair of tweets correctly predicting that Trump would have “a field day” with their radical immigration stances.
“Do the Democratic candidates have any idea what they are doing to themselves on the immigration issue?” he wrote. “Decriminalize border crossing, no deportations, free health care for illegal immigrants … Trump is going to have a field day. And deservedly so.”
The Trump campaign has issued its own response to the debate, which it likewise saw as a victory for the president.
“The cast of characters may have changed, but the second night’s script was eerily like the first: a two-hour long infomercial for President Donald J. Trump’s re-election campaign,” a statement issued by campaign press secretary Kayleigh McEnany reads. “All of the Democrats tripped over each other in a race to see who could stand out as the most leftist candidate, threatening government control of every aspect of people’s lives. We are many months away from seeing who the Democratic nominee will be, but one thing is clear — President Trump will be the hands-down victor after each and every Democrat debate.”
As The Daily Wire reported, another moment from the debate that has turned some heads was South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg declaring Christian Republicans hypocrites for “putting children in cages” in immigration detention centers.
The combative exchange between California Sen. Kamala Harris and frontrunner Joe Biden over his complimentary comments about the “civility” of Democrat segregationists he once worked with and his opposition to federally mandated busing for desegregation has also created a buzz, with many declaring Harris the winner among the participants of the second debate in part because she was able to best Biden.
Note: This article has been expanded to include more information.