The first presidential debate got off to a fiery start and one thing that many people noticed: Donald Trump was interrupting Hillary Clinton a lot.
According to PBS, Trump interrupted Clinton 51 times, and she interrupted him 17 times. One CNN pundit counted 26 interruptions in 25 minutes.
Whether it was over Bill Clinton’s record on NAFTA, Clinton’s record as Secretary of State, or her position on taxes, Trump assumed an aggressive posture against the Democratic nominee.
Even someone’s dad was angry at Trump for interrupting.
The Trump interruptions became a “thing” on Twitter, with related searches such as “Trump child”:
Some blamed moderator Lester Holt for letting Trump repeatedly interrupt.
Others noticed that Trump also interrupted Lester Holt.
This was a gamble; other candidates have had difficulty debating Clinton. Remember when Rick Lazio lost the 2000 New York Senate race against Clinton? Some observers blamed that loss on the fact that voters – especially women voters – did not like how Lazio had invaded Clinton’s personal space during their debate. Some have studied the Clinton gets interrupted a lot phenomenon.
Sure enough, some said women might not like the interrupting:
Trump stayed at the podium during the first 2016 presidential debate on September 26, but both candidates had negative words for each other, as Clinton attacked Trump on issues ranging from how he treats workers to his refusal to presently release his tax returns.
However, it was Trump’s interrupting – as well as his sniffling – that gained attention on Twitter as people created memes, joked about it, or expressed anger.
Others noticed, though, that Trump seemed to calm down and interrupt less as the debate continued, with his interrupting rapid fire in the first half hour of the debate and more sedate as time went on.
Here are some of the “Trump is interrupting too much” Twitter responses that capture the tone: