Jim Gilmore is hardcore leaning in
DES MOINES, Iowa — Thursday’s undercard debate was special for one reason and one reason only: Jim Gilmore, alleged presidential candidate, who has yet to campaign in Iowa, was thrilled to be onstage. And the Internet was loving it.
The former Virginia governor, who has been excluded from nearly every previous debate due to his low poll numbers, gave his all onstage tonight. He even seemed to be taking tips from former Democratic presidential candidate Jim “I need more time” Webb.
After feeling ignored by the Fox News debate moderators, Gilmore decided to speak up: “Did you miss me?” he asked. “Did you skip me?”
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While answering another question, he implied that he was down in the polls because the media was manipulating the public, and noted that the moderators had spent much more time speaking to his fellow candidate Carly Fiorina (as opposed to him).
“I just noticed just now that you gave Carly Fiorina two one-minute answers in a row,” he said. “This media across the country is manipulating and shaping and framing this campaign, and has been for at least a year now.”
His sassiness seems to have paid off. Gilmore began trending on Twitter, and Google search results for his name surged by 700 percent. Queries included “Why is Jim Gilmore still in the race?” and “Who is Jim Gilmore?”
When Yahoo News asked him after the debate how he felt about his newfound Internet fame, he had this to say:
“If I’m trending on Twitter, it’s because of the performance that I did on stage, where I affirmatively made the case that we’re in an international dangerous situation, and I am the only one that has the real credentials to deal with it,” he said.
He added, “The one thing that we can say from this debate is that
there is now Gilmentum in this race.”
Meanwhile, he seemed grateful for the attention, thanking Fox News in his closing statement for the opportunity to take part in the debate.
It’s your moment, Gilmore. Shine like a star.
Additional reporting by Hunter Walker.
(Cover tile photo: Chris Carlson/AP)
