Updated: September 30, 2020 9:39:36 pm
Former Vice President of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks during the first presidential debate with President Donald Trump on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020, at Case Western University and the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. (AP / PTI)
the first debate Pitting incumbent Republican President Donald Trump against Democratic challenger Joe Biden, the two leaders exchanged personal attacks and insults. As they shot verbal volleys at each other, Biden said something that sent the Middle East into a frenzy.
Citing the New York Times report claiming that Trump had paid only $ 750 in federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017 after being elected president, Biden cast doubt on whether Trump would ever release his tax returns. To this, Trump replied, “Millions of dollars and you’ll see.”
When debate moderator Chris Wallace asked Trump to commit to a deadline, Biden chimed in: “When? Inshallah?
Inshallah in Arabic means ‘God willing’. It can also be used to suggest that something will never happen.
Many on Twitter immediately debated whether or not Biden had actually used the Arabic expression.
Al-Arabiya, a Saudi-owned satellite channel based in Dubai, and The National, a state-linked newspaper in Abu Dhabi, both published articles highlighting Biden’s use of the word.
Arab News tweeted: “@JoeBiden just say?”
#WATCH: Did @Joe Biden just say
?? ??? ???? ? # PresidentialDebate2020 https://t.co/4VhuKc33s0 pic.twitter.com/BGCy4qYK6p– Arab News (@arabnews) September 30, 2020
This is how other Twitter users reacted.
Dang even used it correctly. IA = not going to happen
– Bayan (@Raji_B) September 30, 2020
“Joe Biden: inshallah …” wrote one user. “Habibis, it’s happening …”, he added.
Joe Biden: “inshallah”
habibis, it’s happening …
– Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi) September 30, 2020
“Historic moment in America, inshallah on presidential debate,” BuzzFeed News immigration reporter Hamed Aleaziz tweeted.
a historic moment in America – inshallah at a presidential debate
– Hamed Aleaziz (@Haleaziz) September 30, 2020
An Emirati political scientist, Abdul-khaleq Abdulla, wrote on Twitter that he viewed the debate as a “tumultuous verbal battle.”
“How did the United States get to this level of political decline,” he wrote.
The New York Times report claimed that Trump has not paid income taxes in 10 of the last 15 years, as he reported losing more money than he actually made. Trump has dismissed the charges as “fake news”, claiming that he has paid millions in tax returns over the years.
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