The back-and-forth banter during the final GOP debate before Super Tuesday was like bad reality TV at some points, with senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz swapping vicious digs with frontrunner Donald Trump.
However, it was retired surgeon Ben Carson who had millions of viewers scratching their heads in confusion when he pulled out the phrase “the fruit salad of their life” as he reflected on potential Supreme Court nominations.
“We’re going to have to encourage them to act in an appropriate way or we will lose our religious freedoms. And as president, I would go and look at what a person’s life has been,” Carson said during the debate, which was moderated by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, with Telemundo’s Maria Celeste Arraras, talk radio host Hugh Hewitt and CNN’s Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash contributing.
“What have they done in the past? What kind of judgments have they made? What kind of associations do they have? That will tell you a lot more than an interview will tell you. The fruit salad of their life is what I would look at,” the retired neurosurgeon continued.
The juicy choice of words sparked both hilarious and mocking memes on social media as the phrase quickly became a top trend on Twitter.
See the best tweets below.
https://twitter.com/BeSound/status/703063644389527552
Is Apple part of the fruit salad of their life? #GOPDebate
— Ben Greenman (@bengreenman) February 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/joshingstern/status/703060799384846336
https://twitter.com/whimsyandspice/status/703057769310654464
How would Ben Carson vet a SCOTUS nominee?
He would look at the "fruit salad of their life," of course. #GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/PCSYzqATXX
— AJ+ (@ajplus) February 26, 2016
True story, Stevie Wonder's original album title was "Songs in the Fruit Salad of their Life." #GOPDebate
— MaryCatherine Finney (@mickfinney) February 26, 2016
John Kasich is apparently against "the fruit salad of their life" that Ben Carson believes in. #GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/QFx6Cjaubb
— UltraViolet (@UltraViolet) February 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/cristela9/status/703050494869045249
https://twitter.com/Newyorkist/status/703048770087419905
The Fruit Salad Of Their Life is actually the name of my folk album
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) February 26, 2016
"The fruit salad of their life." No wonder they don't ask Ben Carson questions.
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) February 26, 2016
"The fruit salad of their life." I don't THINK @imillhiser dosed me with LSD over drinks tonight, but I am increasingly unsure. #GOPDebate
— Alyssa Rosenberg (@AlyssaRosenberg) February 26, 2016
"The fruit salad of their life" is definitely some sort of coded homophobic reference right? #GOPDebate
— Rebecca Eisenberg 🥯 (@ryeisenberg) February 26, 2016
"The fruit salad of their life" – Well, Jeb Bush is gone from the race in body, but not in spirit.
— Leon Wolf 🇮🇱 (@LeonHWolf) February 26, 2016
"The fruit salad of their life" – Well, Jeb Bush is gone from the race in body, but not in spirit.
— Leon Wolf 🇮🇱 (@LeonHWolf) February 26, 2016
https://twitter.com/Judy_Taya/status/703064192018837504