US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump stirred social media ire on Wednesday after he said: "We have some bad hombres here" and referred to Democratic rival Hillary Clinton as "such a nasty woman."
The remarks during the third and final presidential debate came as Trump struggles to attract support from Latinos and women ahead of the November 8th presidential election.
During the face-off in Las Vegas, Trump repeated his call for tougher security at the Mexican border, saying: "We have to keep the drugs out of our country." Adding he would also go after major drug dealers in the United States, he said: "We have some bad hombres here and we're going to get them out."
"We've got to do something about these bad hombres." #debatenight pic.twitter.com/diPhtJliya
— Missy Baker (@TheMissyBaker) October 20, 2016
American women when they heard Trump say "such a nasty woman" pic.twitter.com/V0pB0U801X
— Nancy Jo Sales (@nancyjosales) October 20, 2016
Wait. Rewind. Did that racist just say "bad hombres"?
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) October 20, 2016
I hear the bathrooms in Trump Tower are being relabeled "Bad Hombres" and "Nasty Women."
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) October 20, 2016
#badhombres is my new fantasy football team name.
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) October 20, 2016
Album name:
— Andrew Katz (@katz) October 20, 2016
Bad Hombres
Track list:
Bigly
I Don't Know Putin
You're the Puppet
Radical Islamic Terrorism
You'd Be in Jail
Build a Wall
The most bizarre part about "nasty woman" is that it came during an answer about the Social Security Trust Fund.
— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) October 20, 2016
if i have to listen to this dude say "no one has more respect for women than i do" ONE MORE TIME pic.twitter.com/Y0uvyhGOov
— kate wadkins (@kwadkins) October 20, 2016
"We have some bad hombres"... is he implying that these bad men are of Latino descent? Just trying to get my racism- I mean facts straight.
— herculez gomez (@herculezg) October 20, 2016
Social media users quickly seized on the remark.
“This #BadHombres is the first of his family to graduate from college, did Americorps & taught in public schools,” tweeted José N Miranda.
"Sometimes I forget this is a presidential debate and not an SNL (Saturday Night Live) skit #badhombres," wrote Twitter user Ian Mayberry.
The term "Bad Hombres" became one of the most-discussed topics of the night on US social media and was tweeted out about 134,000 times during and immediately after the debate, according to brand intelligence firm Amobee.
Trump has aroused criticism for inflammatory comments about Mexican illegal immigrants during his presidential bid.
During a speech to kick off his campaign in June 2015, Trump accused Mexico of sending rapists and other criminals to the United States.
In late August, Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto met with the Republican nominee and said later that Trump's policies "could represent a huge threat to Mexico."
'Such a nasty woman' '
Later in the debate, Trump interjected as Clinton said she would raise taxes on the wealthy to help fund the US government’s social security retirement program and that Trump would be paying higher taxes too unless he could get out of it.
“Such a nasty woman,” he said.
The comment struck many online as sexist, with over 300,000 tweeting the phrase “nasty woman” by the early hours of Thursday.
"Calling someone a 'nasty woman' on live television is so deeply and unbelievably offensive," tweeted Danielle Suchet.
"'What a nasty woman.' That was the viscerally, awful, genuine part," wrote Jake Swanton.
Trump’s campaign was shaken by the recent release of a 2005 tape in which he boasted of kissing and touching women without their consent.
Several women have since charged that he groped them, allegations he has described as “absolutely false.”
Reuters