As The Hill reported this morning, it was two Democratic candidates who ended up winning the #GOPdebate. Their basis is off of retweets.
The tweet from Hillary Clinton came as the debate neared its end, and included a video of her brushing a piece of lint off her shoulder.
#GOPdebate pic.twitter.com/rBT90JvCmM
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 29, 2015
Another from Bernie Sanders was more substantial. It criticized the GOP, though without using #GOPDebate, for their stance on climate change.
It is an embarrassment that we have a major political party that rejects the overwhelming science on climate change.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) October 29, 2015
During the undercard debate, Gov. George Pataki (N.Y.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) addressed climate change however. And, Gov. Chris Christie (N.J.) did during the primetime debate.
As The Hill ended up admitting, the candidates were too busy actually debating while these tweets were sent out. It’s also possible that Hillary’s tweet was retweeted so many times because of how amusing many may consider it. The tweet contained zero substance, and has evoked some anger over what may be interpreted as a casual take on the Benghazi situation and hearing.
@HillaryClinton You lied to the faces of the families while standing over the coffins! Disgusting! pic.twitter.com/5uREPipPNi
— Josh Hewitt (@jhewitt1280) October 29, 2015
The Democratic front-runner got a little more substantial, in the form of texts she sent to supporters, which the Hill also reported on. At one point she called Ben Carson out to criticize his views on health care. An early text still lacked actual ideas, but rather just focused on criticizing Republicans. “Seems to me: 10 candidates. 0 new ideas.” The text was signed H.
When it comes to Twitter followers, Hillary is among the leader of the pack. She has 4.58M followers, though Donald Trump edges her out with his 4.69M.
Fortunately there’s still a ways to go before Election Day 2016, paving the way for many more factors besides Twitter and these debates.
