Twilight News Edition 547
Edition 547, 28th September 2023
KEY POINTS FROM THE SECOND REPUBLICAN DEBATE
By Saachi Mehra
A wave of desperation was felt by Republicans in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, when Donald Trump once again, did not arrive at the debate, once again.
There were 7 candidates on stage, who knew something needed to be done to alter the dynamic. These candidates all trail Mr Trump by a meaningful margin in the competition for the nomination of the party.
Over the course of the 2-hour debate, they all frequently tried to do this at once, leading to them talking over each other and the moderators.
Let’s take a look at some of the most important points in the debate, and who emerged victorious.
“Donald Trump is missing in action. He should be on this stage tonight. He owes it to you to defend his record.” - Ron DeSantis
This attack indicates the governor from Florida may be reconsidering his disagreement to tackle the former president head-on. That plan depended on Mr. DeSantis becoming a compelling substitute for 2020 Trump supporters. However, Mr Trump’s supporters have not been switching sides. This is why it is likely that Mr DeSantis decided to bring the former president down to gain any hope of even closing the gap before the voting begins in January. Yet, landing blows on a candidate over a thousand miles away is much harder.
“You’re not here tonight before you’re afraid to defend your record. You’re ducking… We’re going to call you Donald Duck.” - Chris Christie
Contrary to Mr DeSantis’ approach, Mr Christie (former New Jersey Governor) made it abundantly clear that attacking Mr Trump was the focus of his presidential campaign. He mocked his opponent’s choice of missing another debate by calling him “Donald Duck”. Yet the jab had no impact on the audience. In fact, the chaos of the debate and backyard brawl nature wasted time and perhaps turned off viewers. According to polls, Mr Trump did not lose anything from missing these debates, and what’s more, could have increased his lead over opponents.
“Honestly every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say.” - Nikki Haley
Vivek Ramaswamy is going up in the polls, putting himself as a target for opponents such as Mike Pence, Nikki Haley and Chris Christie. Tim Scott brought up Mr Ramaswamy’s dealings with China earlier in his career, which Mr Ramaswamy claimed had been stopped. But Mr Pence retaliated, stating he must have stopped it in 2018, approximately the same time Mr Ramaswamy began voting in presidential elections. This was clearly a planned attack, to bring down Mr Ramaswamy, who had won the previous debate. It was successful, as he appeared to be more rattled this time by his rivals who had cleverer attacks.
“I have been discriminated against, but America is not fundamentally a racist nation.” - Tim Scott
Last month, Tim Scott was out of the headlines and momentum, due to his sunny, don’t-go-negative attitude. This let other candidates prosper, making Mr Scott challenge his opponents. Additionally, he found fault with Mr DeSantis’ previous comments about slaves learning important skills throughout their servitude. “There is not a redeeming quality in slavery,” Mr Scott, who also happened to be the only black candidate in the competition, stated. “America is a great country because we have faced our demons in the mirror and made a decision.”
“Which one of you on the stage tonight should be voted off the island?” - Moderator Dana Perino
Towards the end of the debate, one of the Fox Business moderators, Dana Perino, stated Mr Trump would win the nomination if the number of candidates did not reduce before January. After which she asked the debaters to choose a candidate who they would pick to drop out first. This lay flat, as no one obliged, and some appeared visibly angry.
The candidates’ disdain served as an appropriate conclusion to a chaotic two-hour event, as they repeatedly disregarded the moderators’ requests to adhere to speaking time limits, reduce interruptions, and abide by the debate rules. Ultimately, it might have been the ineffective moderators who viewers were most eager to see off the island.
Compiled and Edited by Saachi Mehra