Who Said It: A “Bachelor” Contestant or a 2020 Presidential Candidate?

Will you accept this rose?ABC/Maarten de Boer

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Last week, ABC’s The Bachelor revealed the final two contestants competing for the love of airline pilot Peter Webber during this lackluster season. A day later, Democratic voters also revealed their final two: Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. 

It was a dramatic week. (Perhaps, dear viewers, the most. dramatic. week. ever?)

As it turns out, the longrunning reality show and our democratic process may have more in common than you’d expect. It’s not just that both are competitions—with each week, the cast getting smaller and smaller (and whiter!) as the contestants vie for America’s heart. But they also share in the spectacle: The debates, with their petty attacks and canned zingers, feel like group dates, only with moderators. The Democratic caucuses are like cocktail parties with delegates instead of roses. There are villains and fan favorites, personal feuds and public drama, and always someone who is there for the wrong reasons. 

Before this season’s Bachelor comes to an end Tuesday, we pulled quotes from contestants and candidates, past and present, and from both sides of the aisle, to see if you can tell the difference between the 2020 candidates and Bachelor Nation.

1. “If there was a hot-air balloon that was rising and you needed to try and keep it on the ground, he would be better than me at that, because he is so fat.”

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Answer: Andrew Yang, about Trump

2. “If you don’t know me, watch your mouth, I will put you in your place. If you don’t want to talk about it, don’t bring it up.”

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Answer: Marshana, Bachelor Season 12

plotting chris harrison GIF

3. “I had a cat, but it died.”

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Answer: Marianne Williamson

4. “Gonna start adopting cats now.”

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Answer: Jami, Bachelor Season 20

The Bachelor Ok GIF

5. “Suddenly, eating those eggs for me was something that didn’t align with my spirit.”

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Answer: Cory Booker

I Love You Speech GIF

6. “Michael Jordan took naps. Abraham Lincoln took naps.”

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Answer: Corinne, Bachelor Season 21

women tell all wta GIF by The Bachelor

7. “I like Abe Lincoln.”

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Answer: Donald Trump

8. “You’re getting fucked…and I want to unfuck you.”

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Answer: Andrew Yang

Andrew Yang Netflix GIF by Patriot Act

9. “You have to take responsibility for your own equanimity.”

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Answer: Marianne Williamson

10. “Like seriously, can we just bag this and go play blackjack?”

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Answer: Bentley, Bachelorette Season 7

11. “Deep, intellectual things are just my jam.” 

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Answer: Olivia, Bachelor Season 20

week recap GIF

12. “Mike can telepathically communicate with dolphins.”

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Answer: Mike Bloomberg’s campaign, on Twitter

Democratic Debate GIF by MSNBC

13. “Listen, I’m not an idiot. I run a multimillion-dollar company!”

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Answer: Corinne, Bachelor Season 21

episode 4 corinne GIF by The Bachelor

14. “I know that this girl right here is tough and strong and she is powerful and she is beautiful and she knows what she deserves more than anything.”

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Answer: Mykenna, Bachelor Season 24

Lets Go Abc GIF by The Bachelor

15. “As women, especially in these times, we should be building each other up, not trading each other down.”

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Answer: Liz, Bachelor Season 21

episode 8 thats kinda the whole point GIF

16. “Now, I am Asian, so, I know a lot of doctors.”

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Answer: Andrew Yang

17. “I may be white, but I’m still a minority.”

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Answer: Nick, Bachelorette Season 13

Season 21 Smile GIF by The Bachelor

18. “It’s a shame to find out you’re full of shit. And I’m looking around the room and seeing a lot of people full of shit.”

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Answer: Leo, Bachelor in Paradise, 2018

leo GIF by The Bachelorette

19. “I put a lot on hold for this…I got a dog at home.”

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Answer: Ben, Bachelor in Paradise, 2017

Bachelor in Paradise season 4 bachelor in paradise bip ben z GIF

20. “I’m a little worried. I can’t possibly smell like cabbage.”

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Answer: Shushanna, Bachelor Season 20

im not crazy season 5 GIF by Bachelor in Paradise

21. “I wish everyone was as perfect as you.”

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Answer: Amy Klobuchar, to Pete Buttigieg

22. “You know, I wanna make art. I wanna write. I wanna make music. I wanna create things.”

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Answer: Beto O’Rourke

23. “I’m particularly fond of green grapes.”

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Answer: Marianne Williamson

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AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

Which is exactly why, despite the challenges we face, we just took a big gulp and joined forces with the Center for Investigative Reporting, a team of ace journalists who create the amazing podcast and public radio show Reveal.

If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

Editor-in-Chief Clara Jeffery said it well to our team recently, and that team 100 percent includes readers like you who make it all possible: “This is a year to prove that we can pull off this merger, grow our audiences and impact, attract more funding and keep growing. More broadly, it’s a year when the very future of both journalism and democracy is on the line. We have to go for every important story, every reader/listener/viewer, and leave it all on the field. I’m very proud of all the hard work that’s gotten us to this moment, and confident that we can meet it.”

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