U2 took on Donald Trump at the Dreamforce benefit concert Wednesday night in the Bay Area via a virtual face-off: Bono vs. video clips of the Republican presidential candidate.
As thousands packed the Cow Palace in Daly City to watch the legendary rock band perform, the group’s lead vocalist slammed Trump’s wall with the help of a brilliantly-choreographed pseudo-conversation.
“Now candidate … the only question we have for you this evening is, what is your vision for this great nation?” Bono asked, to which Trump replied on a pre-made video clip to simulate a read dialogue: “I will build a great, great wall on the southern border of the United States.”
"A wall? Like the Berlin Wall? Like the Great Wall of China?” Bono asked, as a beaming Trump declared on a giant screen: “And I will have Mexico pay for the wall.”[[396246681, C]]
Bono, who called Trump “potentially the worst idea that ever happened to America,” on Charlie Rose last month, didn’t hesitate to use the concert to send a strong message to the Republican presidential candidate. The Cow Palace, for the night, was nicknamed the “Cloud Palace” in honor of Salesforce’s massive technology conference in San Francisco.
“Now candidate, you understand, it’s not just Mexican people who are going to have a problem with this wall of yours,” he said. “It’s everyone who loves the idea of America. Like the Irish, for example, or the French, or the Brazilians. Everyone who believes what they read at the foot of the Statue of Liberty: 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’”[[238904721, C]]
“If I win they’re going back,” Trump declared in another pre-made clip.
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“All of them, I mean all of us?” Bono asked. “Now candidate, you are going to make a lot of people very upset around here. Good people are not going to stay silent while you run off with the American dream. Alright, candidate? Hear me, candidate. Smart girls in the Bay Area are not going to stay silent, even the nerdy guys around here are getting revved up, not going to stay silent. And these people here, they know a little bit about the business of America. And these guys have a message for you candidate: “You’re fired.”
Bono then went on to play the now-viral clip where Trump makes the comment about how he wants to punch a protester in the face. “Guys like The Edge? Like Adam Clayton? Like Larry Mullen Jr.? Anyone who stands up to you? Anyone who speaks out, you want to punch him in the face?” Bono asks.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff supported U2’s message in a tweet: “Incredible & riveting political statement as @u2's Bono creates a pseudo conversation with @realDonaldTrump in a surprise set at Dreamfest!”
U2 raised more than $10 million from sponsorships and ticket sales Wednesday which will go toward helping pediatric care and research at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals.
Many Salesforce employees and concert attendees also took to social media to applaud Bono.
“#Bono vs #Trump at #DF16. Feeling proud to work @salesforce who give a chance to those types of initiatives,” tweeted Olivier Girard.
“Slay him Bono,” another person tweeted.
As of 9 a.m. PST, Trump had not directed any tweets toward Bono.
During his interview with Charlie Rose, Bono didn’t hide his feelings for Trump either.
"I don't think he's a Republican," he said. "I think he's hijacked the party, and I think he's trying to hijack the idea of America. And I think it's bigger than all of us. I think this is really dangerous ... Wise people of conscience should not let this man turn your country into a casino."[[396437031, C]] [[396121511, C]]
