Marianne Williamson loves New Zealand and other meme-worthy moments of the Democratic debate
Ten more candidates took the stage Thursday night.
Kamala Harris landed zingers, Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders defended their longevity and Marianne Williamson heaped praise on ... New Zealand?
Here are the top five buzzy moments from night two of the first Democratic presidential debates.
'Passing the torch'
California Rep. Eric Swalwell -- who at 38 was the second-youngest person on the debate stage after Pete Buttigieg, 37 -- wasted little time in going after Joe Biden, the 76-year-old former vice president and front-runner in most early polls.
"I was six years old when a presidential candidate came to the California Democratic Convention and said, 'It's time to pass the torch to a new generation of Americans.' That candidate was then-Sen. Joe Biden," Swalwell said.
"Joe Biden was right when he said it was time to pass the torch to a new generation of Americans 32 years ago," Swalwell continued. "He is still right today."
Biden was having none of it.
"I'm still holding onto that torch," he said, and pivoted into a discussion of his campaign platform.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, 77, offered that ideas are more important than age.
"Who has the guts to take on Wall Street, to take on the fossil fuel industry, to take on the big money interests who have unbelievable influence over the economic and political life of this country?" Sanders said.
As more candidates chimed in, California Sen. Kamala Harris shut it down.
"Guys, America does not want a food fight, they want to know how we put food on their table," Harris said.
Harris challenges Biden on race
Another big moment also came courtesy of Harris.
When the topic turned to race relations, Harris took the floor: "As the only black person on this stage, I would like to speak on the issue of race."
She then launched into an attack on Biden's past opposition to busing as a way to desegregate American schools.
"And there was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools, and she was bused to school every day," Harris said. "And that little girl was me."
Harris later tweeted an image of herself as a schoolgirl, captioned with a repeat of that line.
Mayor Pete taking responsibility
The discussion of race began when Buttigieg was asked about his handling of a fatal police shooting of a black man in his town of South Bend and why the police force is overwhelmingly white.
"Because I couldn't get it done," Buttigieg said.
"Until we move policing out from the shadow of systemic racism, whatever this particular incident teaches us, we will be left with the bigger problem," he said. "The fact that there is a wall of mistrust, put up one racist act at a time, not just from what happened in the past, but from what's happening around the country in the present."
New Zealand?
One of the least-known candidates, at least in political circles, was Marianne Williamson, the bestselling author, spiritualist guru and activist.
As president she said that her "first call" would be to the prime minister of New Zealand because the country is "the best place in the world for a child to grow up."
She continued: "And I would tell her, girlfriend, you are so on, because the United States of America is going to be the best place in the world for a child to grow up."
A 'she' president
Two women on the debate stage, Harris and New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, made purposeful use of the female pronouns in discussing the next president.
Early in the debate, Harris was asked about her top priority as president and responded that she would "release children from cages and get rid of the private detention centers" -- a position close to the heart of many Democratic voters dismayed by President Donald Trump's treatment of children along southern border.
But it was her suggestion that the Oval Office would be occupied by a woman -- saying that the president would hold a leader's microphone "in her hand" -- that drew the biggest applause.
Gillibrand had a similar moment towards the end of the two-hour debate.
"Now is not the time to be afraid of firsts," Gillibrand said in her closing statement. "We need a president who will take on the big challenges even if she stands alone."