A Cory Booker Reaction Is the First Great Meme of the 2020 Election

The first debate of the long, long 2020 Presidential Election arrived Wednesday night. NBC hosted a Democratic debate for the party's presidential hopefuls. It was the first of two nights with a ton of candidates taking part. The first night, which featured 10 total candidates, was highlighted by Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker, Beto O'Rourke, Amy Klobuchar, and Bill De Blasio.

So, naturally, we also got the first memes of the election cycle. It came early in the debate when former Texas Representative Beto O'Rourke answered his first question in English and Spanish. His ability to speak more than one language is, of course, an asset in a country where an estimated 41 million people speak Spanish at home. However, it prompted some strong reactions. Many viewers felt O'Rourke went bilingual as a way to avoid actually answering the question in any substantive way. Others saw the face Booker made and couldn't tell if he was annoyed or perplexed. (Both Booker and Julián Castro spoke Spanish later in the debate as well.)

A screengrab of Booker and Warren, the candidates to O'Rourke's right, became an instant meme. People read the reactions in different ways, but the whole situation spawned a deluge of hilarious responses on social media.

O'Rourke's answer also prompted a response from presidential candidate Marianne Williamson, who is participating in Thursday's edition of the Democratic Debate. 

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