Last weekend, I watched the Republican debate (online of course) hosted by ABC News. David Muir and Martha Raddatz co-hosted the event in New Hampshire and botched the introduction (with help, of course, from Ben Carson). As they announced the candidates, Mr. Carson neglected to appear on stage after his name was called. If you look at the video, you can see Mr. Carson taking his sweet time on his way to the stage, and then, after hearing the announcement of Ted Cruz, refusing to make his way to his podium.
Donald Trump, upon hearing his name called, made his way towards the stage, only to stop after seeing Ben Carson in the passageway onto the stage. This caused a small traffic jam, forcing Jeb Bush to comically weave his way around Trump and Carson, while former Ohio governor John Kasich quietly waited behind Trump and Carson, only to be forgotten about by the moderators. It appeared that Trump stopped because he thought Carson was trying to one-up him in some sort of showman-type maneuver. However, Carson merely seemed confused and startled after hearing Cruz’s name called before he could make it to the stage.
After the initial mishap, the debate progressed in a (surprisingly) relatively constructive way. Raddatz grilled candidates on foreign policy proposals, asking candidates about their reactions to the North Korean missile launch and the Islamic State. Rubio actually offered a brilliant, although somewhat unrealistic answer about defeating the Islamic State. Referring to Sunni Arabs and ISIS, Rubio said, “It will take Sunni Arabs to reject them ideologically and defeat them militarily.”
The Florida senator also noted that the Kurds are not the proper force to defeat the Islamic State because they will only seek to protect their own sovereign territory. Rubio also spoke about an alliance of Arab countries, among them Jordan, Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia that would provide ground troops. After facing some criticism for that suggestion, Rubio pointed out how the United States nuclear deal with Iran dis-incentivized majority Sunni Arab states to play a role in defeating the Islamic State.
Rubio also took a beating for sounding like an animatronic, Washington D.C. robot, offering the same line in responses to attacks from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. Although Christie lost his New Hampshire surge, his performance in Saturday’s debate could propel him forward in the polls and in the voting booth. The New Jersey successfully labelled Rubio as a DC insider and bolstered his own governing record in the Garden State.
Donald Trump, with the exception of a brief spat with Jeb Bush, came out of the debate unscathed and still looks poised to win the Granite State primary. Senator Ted Cruz really didn't change his strategy. He continued to belittle the Obama administration and laid out plans for the U.S. military to systematically destroy the Islamic State. It doesn't appear he will get a boost in the polls. Cruz also apologized to Ben Carson about his campaign's actions during the Iowa caucus, when it spread rumors Carson was suspending his came. The Texas Senator tried to pin the blame on CNN, but Carson and most of the mainstream media did not buy it.
For now, Trump leads in New Hampshire. It will be interesting to see if Rubio loses support to the other establishment candidates who performed well (Bush, Christie).
