AUGUST 23, 2023, 9:00 PM EDT – Eight GOP presidential hopefuls, including two SC locals, gathered in Milwaukee. Former President Trump, who currently leads in the polls, was notably absent. The opening debate of the 2024 primary race showcased personalities, policy positions, and heated jabs while touching on a variety of topics, including economics, climate change, abortion, urban crime, former President Trump, and Ukraine.
ECONOMICS and OPENING REMARKS
The hosts of the debate, Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, opened with a pre-prepared presentation on “Bidenomics” featuring clips from local Milwaukee-ans and part of the viral song “Rich Men North of Richmond,” which recently hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Baier addressed the first question, referencing “Rich Men North of Richmond,” to Ron DeSantis, Florida Governor, former congressman, and Navy veteran, who criticized the Biden Administration: “Our country is in decline… we need to send Joe Biden back to his basement and reverse American decline.” His statement was met with applause. He also received applause later by saying former NIAID director Anthony Fauci should have been fired during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chris Christie, former New Jersey governor and U.S. attorney, also the only candidate to receive boos at the opening of the debate, had the floor second, and spoke on his experience as a conservative governor in a blue state.
Tim Scott, South Carolina Senator and politician, answered a question from Baier about his economic policies and pledged to “…turn the spigot off at Washington, sending the money back to the states.”
Vivek Ramaswamy, billionaire entrepreneur and the youngest candidate, took the first hot moment of the night. He opened unconventionally and spoke about him and his family’s “American dream,” to applause.
Nikki Haley, former South Carolina Governor, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. under Trump, and the only female candidate, also had a bold statement in her opening by arguing that, “Our Republicans did this [economic woes and high spending] to us too,” the first but not the last major criticism of the Republican party of the night.
Mike Pence, former Vice President to President Trump, Indiana governor, and congressman, highlighted his accomplishments with the Trump administration including “reviv[ing] our economy” and appointing “three conservatives to the Supreme Court that gave the American people a new beginning for the right to life,” followed by arguing that he is the most prepared candidate due to his vice presidency.
Doug Burgum, North Dakota Governor and billionaire, made the news the day of the debate because of a leg injury he suffered the night before, but still came and stood through each segment. In his opening remarks, he noted he is from “a town of 300 people” then remarked on energy issues including Russian oil and China.
Asa Hutchinson, former Arkansas Governor, representative, U.S. Attorney, and DEA administrator during the Bush Administration, was the last to give his opening remarks. He defined himself as “a pro-life governor from a conservative state that have [sic] a conservative record…”
CLIMATE CHANGE
MacCallum opened this question, after referencing the Maui wildfires and showing a video stating that young voters care about climate change, by asking the candidates to raise their hands if they believe that “human behavior is causing climate change.” DeSantis immediately responded: “Look, we’re not schoolchildren. Let’s have the debate” then gave a response, after a blunt reminder from Baier about the rules, criticizing the Biden administration’s response to the Maui fires.
Ramaswamy then gave one of his more notable statements of the night: “Let us be honest as Republicans. I’m the only person on the stage who isn’t bought and paid for, so I can say this — the climate change agenda is a hoax.” He received lots of pushback from everyone on stage as well as some boos from the crowd.
Christie fought back at Ramaswamy, saying he “sounds like ChatGPT” and then called him out for plagiarizing former President Barack Obama during his opening remarks, calling him “the same type of amateur.”
Haley was given the first moderated chance to respond to Ramaswamy. She opened by quoting Margaret Thatcher: “‘If you want something said, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman.” Haley then affirmed that she believes climate change is real, and then criticized China and India’s emissions as well as the Biden administration’s policies towards China.
Scott, after being asked his opinion on Ramaswamy’s comment, responded that he is “absolutely not” bought and paid for and that we should “bring our jobs home from China.”
ABORTION
Haley was given the first chance to speak on this issue, because her and our home state of South Carolina upheld a 6-week ban the same day as the debate. She described herself as “I am unapologetically pro-life, not because the Republican Party tells me to be, but because my husband was adopted, and I had trouble having both of my children.” Continuing, she praised the Dobbs decision for putting the issue “in the hands of the people.” She then gave a series of statements starting with “can’t we all agree” on banning late-term abortions, encouraging adoptions, availability of contraception, not forcing pro-life doctors to perform abortions, and opposing criminalizing women who undergo them.
DeSantis firmly stated he believes in a “culture of life” and criticized Democrats for allowing “abortion all the way up to the point of birth.” Abortion is legal with no limit in 7 states and the District of Columbia, according to a New York Times study, as MacCallum noted later, but the governor faced criticism for that statement after the debate. He did not directly answer Baier’s question if he would or would not sign a federal ban on abortions after 6-weeks, but stated that he will “stand on the side of life,” while acknowledging that different states will handle the issue differently.
Pence spoke directly to Nikki Haley in his response, arguing that “consensus is the opposite of leadership” and claimed that abortion is “not a state’s only issue. It’s a moral issue.” He went on to describe his support for a “15-week ban… supported by 70% of the American people,” based on a poll by the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America group, which has been somewhat controversial. This sparked an exchange between the two, with Haley arguing that a federal ban is not feasible and that Pence and other Republicans should “be honest with the American people” that Republicans do not have enough support in Congress to enact such a ban.
Burgum sided with Haley, agreeing that it is not the Federal government’s role to legislate an issue that works in some states but will not work in others.
Scott sided with Pence and voiced his support for a 15-week limit at minimum. Hutchinson stated that “it’s most likely going to be addressed in the states, but it’s certainly fine to be addressed at a national level as well” and highlighted his pro-life policies in Arkansas.
URBAN CRIME
The hosts cited an increase in violent crime and homelessness in major cities as well as the pandemic’s effect on those issues.
Pence voiced his support for law enforcement funding, an extension of Trump-era tax cuts, and “clos[ing] the federal Department of Education.”
Christie was asked what he would do as president pertaining to crime and shootings. He blamed weak federal prosecutors and said that he would appoint a strong Attorney General to clean up crime as well as ensure “the laws apply to everybody,” then referenced the charges on Hunter Biden.
Ramaswamy advocated for “More cops in the streets… without looking over their shoulder for getting sued.” He also presented his support for bringing back mental health institutions with a “faith-based” approach. The “national identity crisis” he referenced sparked an exchange with him and Pence.
DeSantis cited “George Soros funding radical left-wing district attorneys” who “get into office and say they’re not going to prosecute crimes” as a major issue. This came after Baier called out the Florida Governor for a rise in crime in Miami, to which he responded that crime is at a 50-year low statewide.
Burgum had a unique position by standing for “small town values” where “neighbors help neighbors” with “accountability” and “transparency.”
Hutchinson cited his experience with the DEA, spoke on the fentanyl crisis, and criticized former President Trump for “undermin[ing]” the justice system.
FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP
Baier opened this segment by asking the candidates to raise their hands if they would support Trump as the republican nominee, per a pledge they signed, if he is convicted in a court of law. Pence, DeSantis, Ramaswamy, Haley, Scott, and Burgum raised their hands. Christie and Hutchinson (notably both former U.S. attorneys) did not.
Christie harshly criticized the former president: “Someone’s got to stop normalizing this conduct… whether or not you believe the criminal charges are right or wrong, the conduct is beneath the office of President of the United States…” He received a mix of cheers and boos from the crowd.
Ramaswamy said that “President Trump, I believe was the best president of the 21st century.” He then accused Christie of basing his entire campaign “on vengeance and grievance against one man,” also referring to Trump. He also criticized “the party in power” for using “police force to indict its political opponents… we have to end the weaponization of justice…”
Christie and Ramaswamy then engaged in a heated back and forth, with Christie receiving some boos from the crowd when he attempted to speak.
Hutchinson also had a significant statement pertaining to Trump: “I said that Donald Trump was morally disqualified from being President… as a result of what happened on January 6th. More people are understanding the importance of that, including conservative legal scholars, who says he may be disqualified under the 14th amendment from being President, again, as a result of the insurrection.”
Donald Trump reported to the Fulton County jail in Georgia the next day, August 24th, and paid bail, indicted for election interference.
UKRAINE
To open this topic, Baier asked if there was anyone on stage that would not support more funding for Ukraine, because the Biden administration recently asked for $24 billion more in funding.
DeSantis remarked that “Europe needs to step up… pull their weight… our support should be contingent on them doing that.”
Ramaswamy said he would not support an increase in funding: “I find it offensive, that we have professional politicians on the stage that will make a pilgrimage to Kyiv, to their Pope, Zelenskyy, without doing the same thing for the people in Maui or the Southside of Chicago or Kensington.” He also referenced the southern border and stated that “the Russia-China alliance is the greatest threat we face” and later claimed that “nobody in either political party is talking about it.”
Chris Christie then spoke on his visit to Ukraine and the horrors he saw. Following his statement, Pence and Ramaswamy had a lengthy and heated back and forth that forced the hosts to step in and remind the candidates of the rules of the debate.
Haley was given the next moderated chance to speak. She spoke on her experience as Ambassador to the U.N., and noted that the U.S. has given less in terms of percentage of GDP than 11 European countries. Following that, she criticized Ramaswamy, resulting in a back and forth between the two, saying he has “no foreign policy experience and it shows.”
DeSantis spoke on the border and said he would not send troops to Ukraine but would send troops to the U.S. Southern border.
CHINA and THE SOUTHERN BORDER
Burgum spoke first on this issue and emphasized energy and protection of Taiwan while criticizing the Biden administration’s policies on China. He also voiced his support for Ukraine and the U.S. Border Patrol.
On the border, stated that he “will make that border wall complete” and claimed there have been 70,000 fentanyl deaths and 6 million illegal border crossings including 200 people on the national security watch list since Biden took office. This study reveals there may be even more fentanyl deaths than Burgum claimed.
The hosts showed a picture of suspected armed cartel members crossing the border and asked the candidates if they “consider this an invasion? Would you authorize lethal force along that border?” Hutchinson said “There will be lethal force used by the Border Patrol, law enforcement as needed to protect the border…”
DeSantis pledged that he would use force and “treat [the cartels] as foreign terrorist organizations.”
Pence promised he will “partner with the Mexican military, and we will hunt down and destroy the cartels that are claiming lives in the United States of America” as well as highlighting his accomplishments on the issue while in office.
Christie was asked by MacCallum how he would handle the 7 million immigrants who have crossed the border illegally during the Biden administration. He responded that he would ensure the “people who come here illegally are not rewarded for being here illegally… we have… people… waiting in line following law to try to come here and pursue the American Dream.” He also emphasized that he believes China is part of the problem because they are exporting chemicals that give the cartels access to the fentanyl finding its way into America, calling it an “act of war.”
EDUCATION
Baier opened this segment by stating that the most recent nation’s report card, a government report, was the “weakest ever for American school children.”
DeSantis spoke first, affirming that he would close the Department of Education, then highlighting his policies in Florida, including keeping schools open during the pandemic, “eliminat[ing] Critical Race Theory,” “eliminat[ing] gender ideology,”-which several different bills have addressed-and “elevat[ing] the importance of American civics and teaching our kids about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.” He then said “I’m going to lead an effort to increase civic understanding and knowledge of our Constitution. We cannot be graduating students that don’t have any foundation in what it means to be an American.”
Ramaswamy also said he would shut down the Department of Education, and advocated for school choice and “end[ing] teachers unions at the local level to allow public schools to compete.” He also stated that he would require the U.S. Citizenship test for highschool seniors to “revive our national identity.” He furthermore said that “part of the problem is we also have a federal government that pays single women more not to have a man in the house than to have a man in the house contributing to an epidemic of fatherlessness.”
Burgum affirmed that he would shut down the Department of Education as well as answering the hosts’ question to him about his state ban on biological males competing in girls’ sports. He criticized a “one-size-fits-all” federal plan for education, highlighted his experiences as governor, and said he would give merit-based block grants to schools.
Haley noted that “if a child can’t read by third grade, they’re four times less likely to graduate high school” and voiced her support for reading remediation and transparency in the classroom for parents. She also supported “parents… deciding which schools their kids go to,” vocational classes, and said she is “going to fight for girls all day long… and biological boys don’t belong in the locker rooms of any of our girls.”
LIGHTNING ROUND
The hosts asked a few short questions to a few of the candidates, with intermittent jabs between candidates.
Pence clarified he would not support mental and/or physical competency tests for people in the Federal government but advocated for himself by saying “I’m running because… we don’t need a president who’s too old, and we don’t need a president who’s too young.” He also said he would shut down the Department of Education and “give school choice to every family in America.”
In response to the same issue about competency tests, Ramaswamy said he “believe[s] in the people of this country.” He then remarked that “I think we do need someone of a different generation to lead this nation forward… to deliver a Reagan 1980 Revolution.”
Hutchinson spoke on education, emphasizing his policies and Arkansas pertaining to expanding computer science education, saying he would expand that for the whole country in order to compete with China.
Scott was asked about religious faith in the country, responding that “our nation was founded upon the Judeo-Christian values that has made this the greatest nation on God’s Green Earth… our responsibility should be the modeled behavior we want others to follow.” Speaking on education, he then criticized teachers unions for opposing school choice.
When asked by Baier, DeSantis said he would not support mandatory military service, only voluntary, remarking on his military service post-9/11. He also stated that as president, “it’s not about me. It’s not about all these other side issues. My sole focus will be on your future and reversing this country’s decline.”
Christie was asked a question about UFO’s, which got laughter from the crowd and jokes from the candidate. He responded that “the job of the president of the United States is to level with the American people about everything.” He then gave his position on teachers unions, criticizing them, referencing what Scott said.
CLOSING STATEMENTS
The hosts opened this segment by quoting President Ronald Reagan and asking each candidate why they can “inspire this nation to a better day.”
Burgum criticized “Biden’s inflation,” the fentanyl crisis, Biden’s energy policies, and promised to “secure the border…, get this economy sprinting, not crawling…, focus on innovation, not regulation…, cut the red tape…, [and] win the cold war with China… by growing our economy and through innovation.”
Hutchinson: “Our nation is in trouble… because of failed leadership. And the solution is not four more years of Joe Biden [or]… four more years of Donald Trump.” “I’ll bring out the best of America in terms of individual responsibility, building our economy, securing our border, enforcing the rule of law… in terms of our national character, our faith, and our hope for the future.”
Scott: “I can stand before you today and say the [American] dream is alive… I had the good fortune of a Mom who worked 16-hour days… she taught me that if you’re able-bodied in America, you work. If you take out a loan, you pay it back. If you commit a violent crime, you go to the jail. And if God made you a man, you play sports against men.”
Christie: “I’m the only one on this stage who has ever beaten a Democratic incumbent in an election… The last Democratic incumbent president was Jimmy Carter. And he was defeated by a conservative governor from a blue state who knew how to get results, who stood for the truth, who cared about accountability, and stood strong and hard against waste.”
Haley described dropping off her husband for deployment several weeks before. She then said “I will beat Joe Biden… strengthen the economy… bring this inflation down… put transparency in the classroom… secure our borders… have the backs of our law enforcement… and we will make sure we have a strong national security.”
Pence criticized the Biden administration heavily then argued that “different times call for different leadership. The Republican Party owes the American people the choice. Proven leadership… that knows how to move a conservative agenda forward.” He then spoke on his faith in God and in the nation.
Ramaswamy said he wants to “revive… common ideals” then stated “God is real. There are two genders. Fossil fuels are a requirement for human prosperity. Reverse-racism is racism. An open border is not a border. Parents determine the education of their children. The nuclear family is the greatest form of governance known to man. Capitalism lifts us up from poverty. There are three branches of government not four. And the U.S. Constitution… is the strongest guarantor of freedom in human history.”
And finally, DeSantis remarked: “This is our time for choosing. We will send Joe Biden back to his basement and reverse the decline of this country…. I worked minimum age jobs to make ends meet. I understand the importance of the American dream…. In Florida… I made promises and delivered… We’re not getting a mulligan. No excuses. I will get the job done and as your president, I will not let you down.”
