Sarah McBride says “politicians seeking to go viral” will not distract her from lowering costs
Sarah McBrideDemocratic U.S. representative for Delaware, posting on her X account
The morning after the forum, McBride posted that she is proud to represent Delaware and that nothing — “and certainly not politicians seeking to go viral” — will distract her from lowering the cost of gas, groceries, housing, childcare and health care. The post does not name Arminio or the forum; her office referred reporters to it as her response.
“I am always so proud to represent Delaware and Delawareans. Nothing - and certainly not politicians seeking to go viral - will ever distract me from my laser focus on lowering the cost of gas, groceries, housing, childcare, and healthcare.”
Original post
Reporting
Reporting
Other statements by Sarah McBride in this case
- Sarah McBride says Arminio’s conduct wasn’t “right or appropriate” but that his removal wasn’t at her requestSame day: Mixed or conditional
Where this statement fits
Did Joe Arminio’s misgendering of Sarah McBride warrant his removal from a Delaware candidate forum?
On September 17, 2026, at a candidates forum at the Siegel Jewish Community Center in Wilmington, Joseph Arminio, the Republican nominee for Delaware’s at-large U.S. House seat, referred to his opponent, Rep. Sarah McBride, with male terms, including “his” in his opening statement, which the audience met with boos, and “gentlemen” later. McBride is the first openly transgender member of Congress. After the first instance the moderator, Ken Grant, told Arminio: “This is your final warning. If you fail to show respect to anyone else on this stage, you will be asked to leave.” Arminio said in a later answer that he had “committed an error.” After the second instance his microphone was cut and he was removed. McBride said on stage that she did not want Arminio to be unable to speak. Mike Katz, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, who was on the same stage, has said he called for Arminio’s removal, and afterward called on him to withdraw from the race. Grant later said the rule was applied “as they would have been for any candidate, of any party, on any subject.” Whether Arminio’s conduct warranted his removal from the forum, and whether it warrants his withdrawal from the race, is the matter in dispute. In his first public statement since the forum, issued September 22, Arminio said he appreciated McBride defending his freedom of speech and that he is “a firm supporter of freedom of speech and the Constitution in its entirety.”
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Posted the morning after the forum. It does not name Arminio or the forum. WHYY and The Hill report that McBride's office pointed reporters to it as her response, and WHYY and The Philadelphia Inquirer describe it as her statement on the incident.
Reporting
About this source
WHYY's report. It says the forum was co-sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Delaware and the Wilmington Chapter of Hadassah, quotes Katz's apology and statement, and says McBride's office referred it to her posted statement.
Reporting
About this source
The Hill's report. It quotes Arminio's opening remark and reports that McBride's office deferred to her Friday social media statement.
Before the quotation
The previous evening Arminio had been removed from the forum after using male terms for McBride. In her closing statement at the forum, McBride had referred to “politicians who want to create fights on petty, stupid things” and “people who want to go viral,” without naming Arminio. Her office referred WHYY and The Hill to this post rather than commenting further.
After the quotation
Arminio did not respond to requests for comment from WHYY, The Hill, The Philadelphia Inquirer or Spotlight Delaware at the time of their reports.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
On Arminio’s use of male terms for McBride at the forum after correction and warning, and his removal for it, McBride’s post downplays the episode’s importance (“Nothing … will ever distract me”) and characterizes the conduct as seeking to go viral. It does not name Arminio or the forum; it is included because her office pointed reporters to it as her response, and WHYY and The Philadelphia Inquirer describe it as her statement on the incident. The closest competing label is “Explicitly stayed out”, because the post redirects to policy; it loses because the post also characterizes the conduct rather than only refusing to address it.
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- Joseph Arminio
More from this case
Read the full caseArminio invokes free speech in later response to the candidates-forum incident
“I myself am a firm supporter of freedom of speech and the Constitution in its entirety. That, of course, extends to one’s right to assert the “gender identity” of one’s choosing, as well as to assert the facts as one sees them.”Read statement
Delaware Republican Party says no forum should “substitute enforced language for open political argument”
Delaware Republican Party
“Delawareans deserve a real debate, not a debate that ends the moment a Republican nominee refuses to recite the other side’s talking points. We stand with the First Amendment. Candidates should be able to speak, voters should be able to hear them, and no forum should substitute enforced language for open political argument.”Read statement
Nancy Mace calls Arminio’s removal “The Left policing biology and speech”
“The Left policing biology and speech...”Read statement
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- Sarah McBride says “politicians seeking to go viral” will not distract her from lowering costs
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The Dispute Index. "Sarah McBride says “politicians seeking to go viral” will not distract her from lowering costs". First published: 2026-09-20. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1237-the-morning-after-the-forum-mcbride-posted-that