Eight Republican candidates entered the debate stage on Wednesday evening, one big name was missing in the room: Donald Trump.
As they emerged, they waved to the crowd and took their places on the podium. Their order was determined by their placement in the polls, with the focus on the people with the highest poll numbers.
It’s the first major prime-time event for the Republican presidential candidates, and everyone knows they must seize the moment to make their mark.
The candidates take the stage of the Republican debate: LR), Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Former US Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, US Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy — second and third in post-Trump polls — are likely to be the night’s biggest targets.
Joining them on stage are former Vice President Mike Pence, Ambassador Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Senator Tim Scott, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum .
Haley, who made several attacks on Ramaswamy before the debate, stands next to him on the stage.
Burgum came out with a boot on his left leg after sustaining a severe Achilles tendon tear during a basketball game on Tuesday night. During commercial breaks, he rests on a stool.
The first question of the evening revolved around the economy, which voters say is one of their top issues for the 2024 election.
It went to DeSantis, and he used it to attack Joe Biden and the President’s eldest son, Hunter.
“We need to send Joe Biden back to his basement and reverse America’s decline,” the Florida governor said.
‘We can’t thrive as a country if you work hard and can’t afford groceries, a car or a new home, while Hunter Biden can make hundreds of thousands of dollars from crappy paintings.’ That’s wrong.’
Trump, in turn, had his own counter-programming. The former President conducted a pre-taped interview with Tucker Carlson. In a preview of the interview posted online by Carlson, he called his critics “savages” and claimed his opponents would try again to “steal” the election.
Former Fox News host Carlson asked the former president in the first clip of their conversation, which will air at 9 p.m., asking the former president if the US is headed for civil war and if he fears his enemies want to kill him .
When asked about his health, Trump told Carlson he didn’t think President Joe Biden “will make it” and also accused Mitch McConnell of trying to rally support for an impeachment trial against him.
Fox News debate anchors Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum have said they will make sure Trump makes an appearance at the event – in video clips they will show and in the questions they will ask about the four charges against the former president .
Additionally, several of the Republican candidates – like Chris Christie and Asa Hutchinson – have vowed to attack Trump, while others – like Ron DeSantis – will court his supporters.
Trump has proxies in the crowd: his eldest son Don Jr., Kimberly Guilfoyle, Kari Lake and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The four met among Trump supporters outside the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, where the debate will be held. About two dozen MAGA fans outside waved Trump placards and signs labeling the debate an audition for Trump’s vice president.
Trump declined to take part in the debate but is expected to dominate it – just as he is ahead of his rivals by double digits in the polls.
Former Vice President Mike Pence, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and Ambassador Nikki Haley on the debate stage
An armored vehicle and security personnel outside the Fiserv Forum before the start of the Republican presidential debate
Donald Trump Jr. and his partner Kimberly Guilfoyle mingle with attendees as they arrive in the debate room
people in a dr Antony Fauci costume (left) and a Donald Trump costume (right) stand outside the Fiserv Forum before the start of the Republican presidential debate
Donald Trump had his own counter-program in the form of an interview with Tucker Carlson
Speaking to reporters during his Lake Tahoe vacation after practice and while sipping a banana-blueberry smoothie, President Biden said he will be watching the debate
In fact, he’s so far ahead that even if one of the candidates has a viral moment, it may not be enough to gain ground on the former president, who will be in the headlines again on Thursday when he arrives in Atlanta for his impeachment hearing at the… Georgia election arrives in interference case.
“I don’t think a lot of people are going to be talking Thursday morning about what’s happening here at this minor league game,” Trump ally Kari Lake said in an interview with on Tuesday.
It remains unclear whether any candidate can use the night to gain enough ground to seriously challenge Trump: The former president leads DeSantis by 41 points and Ramaswamy by 49 points on the RealClearPolitics poll average.
And those are his two biggest challengers.
It is unclear whether Trump will observe the event.
President Joe Biden said he would step in.
But he joked he had no expectations for the night Republicans first officially gathered and attempted to defeat him in next year’s election.
“I’ll try to see as much as I can — get, yes,” he told reporters Wednesday in Lake Tahoe, where he’s vacationing for a week. As he spoke, Biden was holding a banana and blueberry smoothie and had just returned from Pelodog, a combined Pilates and spinning class studio.
When asked about his expectations, Biden smiled broadly and laughed, “I don’t have any.”