It was a starkly different show Wednesday night when the vice presidential candidates, Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Kamala Harris, took to the stage for the first and only vice presidential debate of the 2020 election season.
Both candidates appeared prepared, speaking eloquently — if evasively — on the various topics brought up. And for the most part, they were much more cordial to one another than Biden and Trump.GettyHollywood Horrified and Frustrated as First Presidential Debate Devolves Into ChaosVIEW STORY
That meant for viewers, it was a far less volatile experience and one that actually enabled them to hear what the candidates had to say. And when either of them bothered to stick to the talking points presented, or actually answer the questions, this was the first chance for voters to actually hear and attempt to understand their respective platforms.
It also came at the cost of a far less lively debate, though there were certainly moments between the two candidates where they threw digs at one another, or Harris pointedly told Pence that she was talking now, thank you very much.
Sadly for both candidates, as this was their only chance to shine as the leads on a debate stage, they were both ultimately overshadowed completely on social media by an unexpected and very tiny visitor to the stage.GettyHollywood’s Very Mixed Reaction to President Trump and First Lady Testing Positive for COVID-19VIEW STORY
Red Eyes and Hair Flies
Unbeknownst to this little insect as it alighted on a bright white surface for a breather, it was about to become world famous. Immediately, the fly that landed on Pence’s hair while he was talking about Breonna Taylor and systemic racism (which he doesn’t believe) became an internet sensation, stealing the hearts of frustrated Americans everywhere.
It also immediately racked up a Twitter page (well, more than one) all to itself, and even the Biden campaign wasted no time in capitalizing on its monumental popularity with a hilarious picture of Joe Biden holding up a flyswatter alongside a slogan asking supporters to “help this campaign fly.”https://platform.twitter.com/embed/index.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=1314031047013732352&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Ftoofab.com%2F2020%2F10%2F07%2Ffly-on-mike-pences-head-hollywood-vice-presidential-debate%2F&siteScreenName=Toofab&theme=light&widgetsVersion=ed20a2b%3A1601588405575&width=550px
The campaign then quickly nabbed up the flywillvote.com domain, smartly redirecting it to the iwillvote.com to take advantage of the humorous viral energy of the moment to encourage people to get registered and be a part of the democratic process.
And just as quickly as Donald Trump had t-shirts emblazoned with “Fill That Seat” for sale on his campaign site after he made it a rallying cry following the death of Justice Ruth Bader GInsburg, by the end of the debate, Biden had fly swatters for sale on his campaign sitewith the message, “Truth Over Flies.”
The fly quickly replaced the other non-issue — yet still Pence related — obsession that seemed to dominate social media: Pence’s eyes. They appeared pinkish in the whites, with an even more starkly reddish outer edge to his left eye.
