The first presidential debate of 2020 was last night between incumbent President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate, Vice President Joe Biden. The 90-minute debate was moderated by journalist and Fox News anchor Chris Wallace, but the evening was more of an unproductive shouting match filled with interruptions than it was a moderated discussion. Everyone is sharing their thoughts on yesterday’s first debate, including many high-profile celebrities.
Dominican-American rapper Cardi B was perhaps one of the celebrities most active on Instagram during the debate. The artist posted a whopping 11 times on her official account, which has over 75 million followers. In her first video post leading up the highly-anticipated event, Cardi encouraged Vice President Biden to get “spicy” and not let President Trump “pick on you.”
The mother ended her night of posting with a sentimental video that called out the president for the “unnecessary” personal comments made about Vice President Biden’s son Hunter Biden. The former vice president’s son, a lawyer, struggled with addiction, but Vice President Biden said he’s proud of his son for overcoming it. Cardi described Donald Trump’s attacks as a “low blow, especially to people who have to turn to drugs for comfort.”
Star Wars franchise actor Mark Hamill was very adamant about how terrible the evening’s debate was to watch. The Luke Skywalker actor offered a few suggestions on how The Commission on Presidential Debates could maintain order.
Pop singer Lizzo shared a 5-minute video criticizing the two-party system and how it was designed to divide us. It was somber, straight-to-the-point content most followers aren’t used to seeing from the “Truth Hurts” artist.
“If you did watch the debates, are you okay?” she asked while looking earnestly into the camera. “Regardless if you watched it or not, this election is happening with you or without you. And all I ask is for you to be present.”
Grant Gustin, known as the Flash on the CW’s superhero series, reposted a video from Time. The 30-year-old actor shared a screenshot from the video, which he then shared on his story and asked followers to watch it in full on the Time’s Instagram page. He too was unsettled by the “absolutely insane debate.”
American filmmaker Ava DuVernay shared a few words on Twitter. She says President Trump’s handling and comments of last night’s debate only emphasize the racist narrative he’s set forth for the last four years.
Storm Reid did not hold back. The 17-year-old Euphoria actress and activist took to Instagram to express her confusion and frustration with the presidential debate.
“I’m mind-blown. I’m sitting here on my couch literally baffled because one, that 90 minutes was chaotic,” Reid says at the beginning of her reaction video. “Two, he took that 90 minutes and he saw it as an opportunity to turn it into a personal roast session when he should’ve been answering questions. Instead, he was deflecting.”
Reid shares other sentiments in the video, but ends the post asking followers to “please vote.” I think it’s safe to assume the “he” Reid was referring to, is President Donald Trump.
Actress, producer and director Kerry Washington called President Trump’s presence on stage an “immoral and illegal and unconstitutional tantrum.” The Scandal star later quote tweeted a notable fact checking moment when the Sheriff of Portland came forward saying he never supported Donald Trump. The president claimed to have won over the sheriff’s endorsement during the debate.
Even Saturday Night Live comedian Pete Davidson who’s known for actively avoiding social media and not having an online presence posted a response on Instagram. Clearly, Davidson thought the debate was just as much a hot mess as the rest of the United States watching.
During the 2016 presidential election, Davidson was a strong advocate for the then-Democratic candidate and former U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. This time around he’s leaning left again and throwing his support behind Vice President Biden.
Fellow SNL personality and comedian Leslie Jones relished Vice President Biden’s remarks about Donald Trump being a clown. In this case, a picture is worth just one word.
This Is Us actress Mandy Moore had plenty to say on Twitter about President Trump during the debate. For the American singer, tuning into the debate was so terrible she couldn’t even sit through its entirety! She’s definitely ready to #VoteHimOut.
Award-winning actress and star of How to Get Away with Murder, Viola Davis, poked fun at what she described the “Reality Show.” Her takeaway? To vote!
Comedian and actor Kevin Hart shared his thoughts about the Commander-in-Chief’s “stand back and stand by” comment. The debate’s moderator asked Donald Trump if he was willing to condemn white supremacy then and there, which prompted the president to say “sure, I’m willing to do that.” Instead, however, Mr. President acknowledged a far-right hate group called the Proud Boys, telling them to “stand back and stand by” because “somebody has to do something about Antifa and the Left.”
Hart captioned the photo with several statements, several specifically proclaiming Trump’s words as “blunt f**king racism.” He was another celebrity urging followers to vote when the presidential election comes around this November. Yesterday was also the day he welcomed his fourth child, Kaori Mai.
Heartthrob and actor Dylan O’Brien has always been public about his distaste for President Donald Trump. The Maze Runner star even called the president “a perpetual jackass” through a tweet he published back in April. Today, O’Brien quote tweeted a video report from news organization NowThis highlighting how Mr. Trump gave the far-right Proud Boys their new slogan.
Not only did the Internet immediately nominate The Real Housewives of Atlanta legend NeNe Leakes as the moderator for the next presidential debate, but the reality star is ready to lend a hand to Joe Biden. The TV personality isn’t afraid to speak her mind or pass judgment when it’s needed. And looking back at how unproductive last night’s debate was, the Democratic candidate could benefit from a quick training session with the comeback queen.
Actor and comedian John Leguizamo shared a screenshot of a text conversation between him and a friend about the debate. Not a surprise to see he and his pal exchanged the same thoughts as every other celebrity listed—utter disgust and disappointment.
Aside from their shared stardom and statuses as celebrities, these famous faces all share one common opinion. All of them condemn President Trump’s performance during last night’s first presidential debate.
