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Elizabeth Warren put Michael Bloomberg on blast in the debate, and the internet loved it

"Someone changed Mike Bloomberg’s Wikipedia. Cause of death: Senator Elizabeth Warren."

Caitlin Welsh

on February 20, 2020

Michael Bloomberg's bizarre Nega-Trump presidential tilt has produced plenty of mortifying moments so far, from the Meatball Tweet and cringeworthy influencer meta-sponcon to that time he shook a dog's snoot.

But unless this entire campaign is some kind of I'm Not Here style performance art, there's no way Bloomberg's strategy team planned for him to get absolutely read for filth by Elizabeth Warren five minutes into Wednesday night's Democratic debate.

"I'd like to talk about who we're running against: a billionaire who calls women 'fat broads' and 'horse-faced lesbians,'" Senator Warren began. "And no, I'm not talking about Donald Trump — I'm talking about Mayor Bloomberg."

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The audience let out a gleeful "oooohhhhh," and you could almost hear everyone at home sit forward in their chairs.

"Democrats are not going to win if we have a nominee who has a history of hiding his tax returns, of harassing women, and of supporting racist policies like redlining and stop and frisk," Warren went on, as a delighted nation hunted through their phones for that 'Stop, stop, he's already dead' Simpsons GIF.

"Look, I'll support whoever the Democratic nominee is, but understand this: Democrats take a huge risk if we just substitute one arrogant billionaire for another. This country has worked for the rich for a long time, and left everyone else in the dirt. It is time to have a president who will be on the side of working families and be willing to get out there and fight for them."

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It was a smart swipe — precise and factual, with each charge carefully calibrated to be applicable to Trump as well.

Later on, she went back in, absolutely hammering the former NYC mayor after Bloomberg addressed the accusations of sexist comments, discrimination, and harassment.

"I hope you heard what his defence was: 'I've been nice to some women,'" Warren said pointedly. She then challenged Bloomberg to release "dozens" of women from non-disclosure agreements, live on air, in order to defuse them as liabilities in the general and allow the women to speak for themselves. She also repeatedly asked him how many there were.

The audience hooted and hollered while Bloomberg stammered and demurred, dismissing his conduct as "jokes I told." Even Joe Biden could be heard muttering "C'mon."

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No matter who you're backing in this race, one of America's greatest pastimes is watching one well-paid person smack another well-paid person with a chair, either literal or rhetorical. The instantaneous flood of delighted memes during the debate is proof.

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(Someone made that same joke back in July when Warren ended John Delaney on a debate stage. Remember him? Exactly.)

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It wasn't all Democrats enjoying the show, either.

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I hope she had one of her BILLIONAIRE TEARS mugs under the lectern for the commercial breaks.

Topics Politics

Caitlin Welsh

Caitlin is Mashable's Australian Editor. She has written for The Guardian, Junkee, and any number of plucky little music and culture publications that were run on the smell of an oily rag and have since been flushed off the Internet like a dead goldfish by their new owners. She also worked at Choice, Australia's consumer advocacy non-profit and magazine, and as such has surprisingly strong opinions about whitegoods. She enjoys big dumb action movies, big clever action movies, cult Canadian comedies set in small towns, Carly Rae Jepsen, The Replacements, smoky mezcal, revenge bedtime procrastination, and being left the hell alone when she's reading.