The final presidential debate between Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden went down last night and it was many things. More inside….
Last night, the final debate between Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden went down in Nashville before Americans head to the polls on November 3rd.
Thankfully, this debate - moderated by NBC’s Kristen Welker - was conducted like an actual debate between Trump & Biden because the first one was a total circus where Trump interrupted Biden over 70 times and the American people got nothing from it. The second debate never happened because Trump tested positive for COVID-19 and he said he would NOT participate in a virtual debate.
At least last night’s debate allowed Americans to actually hear their stances on current issues, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. is facing half a million deaths by the end of this year, a number that could be DRASTICALLY curbed if the POTUS would be a leader and actually lead with masks and social distancing enforcement. Other topics included healthcare, the economy, domestic & foreign affairs, immigration, and racial justice.
However…
President Trump: I have pre-paid my taxes "tens of millions of dollars." #PresidentialDebate2020pic.twitter.com/EKoNRZHY91
— KMOV (@KMOV) October 23, 2020
Trump was TRUMP’N, per usual. After accusing Biden of receiving money from other countries, Biden stressed that’s the farthest from the truth.
"I have released all of my tax returns. Twenty-two years. Go look at them. Twenty-two years of my tax returns. You have not released a single, solitary year of your tax returns. What are you hiding? Why are you unwilling? … Release your tax returns, or stop talking about corruption,” Biden said.
Trump responded with (repeat) false claims that he can not release his tax returns because he is under audit. Then, he said he has already pre-paid millions of dollars in taxes. Peep the clip above.
You either OVERPAID your estimated quarterly taxes and that overpayment is automatically applied to the next quarters' taxes, or you took a loss the previous quarter(s). There is NO such thing as "pre-paying millions of taxes." Language matters, and he knows his base will take "pre-payment of milions in taxes" as if he has so much money he has it to spare ahead of time.
Here’s some clarification from The Wall Street Journal’s Richard Rubin:
"Though it's not clear exactly what [Trump] meant, it's common for people to make estimated income tax payments in advance and then use those balances to settle their tax liability, just like salaried people have income taxes withheld from their paychecks and settle up on their tax returns," he wrote.
The New York Times' Peter Baker said "when [Trump] says he paid millions of taxes, that does not mean he paid federal income taxes. According to the tax records our colleagues obtained, he paid just $750 in 2016 in federal income taxes and $750 in 2017 and zero in 11 of 18 years examined."
Trump boasted about how his personal relationship with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un was better than President Barack Obama’s—and that’s what has kept the nation safe.
We don’t know about you all, but we’re happy the leader of North Korea “didn’t like Obama,” as Trump said. Trump says things that he thinks is shade when it's actually a plus for the other person. Anybody who a dictator loves is NOT someone you should praise. You can lay down the law without being "liked", and Obama did just that when it came to Russia and North Korea. And that’s that on that.
Trump also had folks confused when he addressed immigration. He said separated migrant children were brought across the border by “coyotes,” “cartels,” and “gangs.”
Peep the clip below:
“These 500 and plus kids came with parents … coyotes didn’t bring them over,” Joe Biden says, responding to President Trump. “It makes us a laughing stock and violates every notion of who we are as a nation.” https://t.co/HR9MFfjFDv#Debates2020pic.twitter.com/q3eC25URJB
— ABC News (@ABC) October 23, 2020
By the way, Kristen Welker killed it as moderator. It always takes a black woman to save the day....
In case you missed, you can watch the full debate below:
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Needless to say, the memes were endless and hilarious. And we’ve rounded up the funniest ones for you to laugh at below!
Photo: Jim Bourg/Pool via AP
