Ag AFP
CLEVELAND: Former US vice president and Democratic White House hopeful Joe Biden on Tuesday night took on incumbent President Donald Trump in the first debate and used the word “Inshallah”.
Apart from its original meaning of 'If God wills it', the phrase 'Inshallah' is also often used sarcastically by Muslims when they are talking about something that is unlikely to happen. A video going around on social media of the debates showed President Donald Trump saying that he will soon release his tax returns filed with US authorities, when Joe Biden interjected with "Inshallah". “You will get to see it [tax return] and you will get to see it,” said the US president, when Joe Biden interjected saying: “When?…Inshallah”
Hours later, Asma Khalid, a correspondent for the US-based National Public Radio, said she contacted Joe Biden’s presidential campaign and they confirmed that he did say “Inshallah”.
Khalid also said that Biden’s team also confirmed to her that Biden did use “Inshallah” as an “appropriate sarcastic” remark.
“Yes, he did. I confirmed with his campaign - that is indeed what the man said,” tweeted Khalid. Both Joe Biden and Donald Trump exchanged heated barbs, attacking each other´s competence and credibility, in a fiery first presidential debate 35 days ahead of the most tense US election in recent memory.
There was no handshake as the two men took the stage and while this was due to COVID-19 restrictions, the absence of the traditional greeting symbolized the bitterness engulfing the country in the final countdown to November 3.
Just minutes in, the debate turned into an all-out and personal brawl as they raced through issues from a Supreme Court vacancy to the coronavirus pandemic to the US health care system. "Everything he´s saying so far is simply a lie. I´m not here to call out his lies. Everybody knows he´s a liar," former vice president Biden said.
Biden -- taking on a feisty, aggressive tone despite Trump´s taunts that he had low energy -- then told the US president: "Will you shut up, man?" "It´s hard to get a word in with this clown," Biden snapped at one point.
Biden, who is leading in polls, sought to tie Trump squarely to the COVID-19 pandemic that has claimed more than 200,000 lives in the United States, more than in any other country. "How many of you got up this morning and had an empty chair at the kitchen table because someone died of COVID?" Biden said.
Mocking the 74-year-old Trump for one of his more notorious statements from the White House podium, Biden said: "Maybe you could inject bleach in your arm and that would take care of it."
Trump hit back that his bleach remark had been in jest and quickly tried to land punches on Biden. He attacked both his track record as Barack Obama´s vice president and even questioned the 77-year-old´s educational record.
"Don´t ever use the word smart with me. Don´t ever use that word with me. There´s nothing smart about you, Joe," Trump said. Trump at one point charged that the "radical left" has Biden "wrapped around their finger."
He also attacked Biden´s insistence on wearing a mask to prevent COVID, a decision in line with medical experts´ advice. "You have to understand, I have a mask right here. I put a mask on when I think I need it," Trump said. "I don´t wear a mask like him, every time you see him, he´s got a mask."
Before they even appeared for the first of three 90-minute TV showdowns, barbs were flying.
The debate in Cleveland, Ohio, was as bad-tempered as had been feared, with Trump leading the way in yelling over his challenger and the Fox News moderator Chris Wallace alike.
Biden, though, not only gave as good as he got -- he launched the kind of attack on Trump the billionaire president has rarely had to endure to his face. "Liar," "racist" and "clown" were just some of the missiles launched from Biden, who also branded Trump the "puppy" of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Before they even appeared for the first of their scheduled three 90-minute TV debates, Biden was capitalizing on bombshell revelations in The New York Times that the businessman managed to avoid paying almost any federal income taxes for years.
US President Donald Trump drew outrage on Wednesday after he dodged an opportunity to condemn white supremacists, and instead dropped the name of a far-right militia group during the first presidential debate.
When asked if he was willing to reject racist and militia groups Trump deflected and said: "Proud Boys -- stand back and stand by." "But I´ll tell you what, I´ll tell you what, somebody´s got to do something about Antifa," he continued, referring to the far-left movement. The Proud Boys, a far-right paramilitary group, then appeared to adopt the phrase, with one known social media account posting a logo that read "Stand Back, Stand By."
"Trying to determine if this was an answer or an admission. President Trump owes America an apology or an explanation. Now," Jonathan Greenblatt wrote on Twitter.
Joe Biden, Trump´s challenger in the November 3 presidential election, also attacked the president over his mention of the group. "This is Donald Trump´s America," Biden wrote in a re-tweet of a New York Times reporter´s message that noted "The Proud Boys are ecstatic tonight about getting mentioned in the debate."