Much of the attention on Thursdayā€™s presidential debate fell upon President Joe Bidenā€™s faltering performance, which has called into question whether he can even remain the Democratic candidate. In the aftermath, some have focused on former President Donald Trumpā€™s nonstop lies.

Left largely overlooked, however, has been the open xenophobia Trump deployed against Palestinians and immigrants, and the silence with which it was met.

The most striking illustration might be Trumpā€™s response to a prompt from CNN moderator Dana Bash, regarding Israelā€™s war on Gaza and the ā€œhumanitarian crisisā€ that Israel has created while killing thousands of Palestinians.

As Biden insisted that Hamas was the only entity standing in the way of a ceasefire, Trump actually pushed back on the idea. ā€œYou got to ask him,ā€ Trump began, referring to Biden, ā€œas far as Israel and Hamas, Israel is the one that wants to go. He said the only one who wants to keep going is Hamas.ā€ He continued: ā€œActually, Israel is the one, and you should let them go and let them finish the job. He doesnā€™t want to do it. He has become like a Palestinian. But, they donā€™t like him because he is a very bad Palestinian. He is a weak one.ā€

  • Suavevillain@lemmy.world
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    5 months ago

    Moderation was the biggest issue with the debate. Everyone knows how Trump doesnā€™t believe in objective reality, so not pushing back on lies is harmful and dangerous.