This Joe Biden Debate Move Has The Internet Buzzing

The final presidential debate of 2020 is over and, as expected, President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger and former vice president Joe Biden traded barbs like a couple of drag queens reading each other for filth (only with less emphasis on hair and makeup). As RTE reports, Trump was less wild-eyed than the last time the two men locked horns, but there's clearly no love lost between them. One of the biggest debate points, naturally, was the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed the lives of over 223,000 Americans to date, according to The New York Times.

As Biden argued succinctly, "Anyone who's responsible for that many deaths should not remain president of the United States of America," to which Trump reasoned the country simply couldn't afford to shut down again, suggesting there was no choice but for everybody to learn to "live with it." Biden countered, "Learning to live with it? Come on. We're dying with it." Although there were plenty of take-notice moments during the debate, one has become a particular bone of contention with Republicans online.

Biden visibly checked his watch, presumably to see how much longer was left in the event, midway through, much to the consternation of social media. The moment happened, as The Daily Caller notes, as moderator Kristen Welker was asking a question about climate change. Biden moved his shirt sleeve up and calmly checked the time. Commentators quickly connected the moment to a similar one back in 1992, when President George Bush Sr. checked his watch during a debate. Bush later admitted, in a Newshour interview, "Was I glad when the damn thing was over? Yeah."

Conservatives seized upon the moment, with Republican Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar demanding to know, "Why did Joe Biden just check his watch," while National Review columnist John Fund argued, "Trump has made mistakes, but Biden should have known not to bring a watch on stage." Meanwhile, Danielle D'Souza Gill, daughter of controversial far-right commentator Dinesh D'Souza, ominously stated, "Joe Biden just stared at his watch during the debate. He's done." Whether this moment gains as much traction as the infamous fly remains to be seen.