At the second Republican debate, which took place in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, there was a hint of desperation in the air due to the fact that Donald Trump did not attend the event for the second time.
The seven candidates who were on stage all realized that they needed to do something to shift the dynamic of the contest because they were all trailing Mr. Trump in the fight for the party’s nomination by a large margin.
They frequently attempted to accomplish everything at once, talking over each other, the moderators, and occasionally even themselves during the tumultuous two-hour discussion that took place.
In a striking Freudian mistake, Vivek Ramaswamy said to Tim Scott snidely, “Thank you for talking while I’m interrupting.” This was a remarkable example of a Freudian slip.
Take a look at some of the most important points that were discussed during the discussion, as well as the winner.
“Donald Trump has been unable to be reached for comment. Tonight is the perfect time for him to be on this platform. It is his responsibility to defend his track record in front of you. “Ron DeSantis,”
The governor of Florida got the ball rolling early with an assault that gives the impression that he may be having second thoughts about his decision not to directly confront the former president.
This strategy depended on Mr. DeSantis becoming an appealing option for voters interested in Trump in the 2020 election. However, Mr. Trump’s core supporters have remained loyal to him. Therefore, it’s possible that Mr. DeSantis has come to the conclusion that he needs to defeat the former president in order to have any chance of catching up to him in the polls or even reducing the gap before voting begins in January.
It is obviously going to be a lot more difficult for Mr. DeSantis to throw punches on a candidate who is more than one thousand miles away, so this is going to be an issue for him.
Throughout the entirety of the discussion, the governor of Florida maintained his composure and repeatedly touted his state record as an implicit contrast to Mr. Trump’s. “I’m the only one up here who has been in the big fights and delivered the big victories for the people of Florida,” he added. “I’m the only one up here who has been in the big fights and delivered the big victories.”
However, implicit contrasts have not been successful up to this point. We will test whether or not a frontal assault is more effective.
You aren’t here tonight because you don’t want to face the music and defend your track record. You’re trying to avoid… You’re going to be known as Donald Duck around here.’ – Governor Chris Christie
Chris Christie, a former governor of New Jersey, has made it a defining element of his presidential campaign to oppose Donald Trump. Mr. DeSantis, on the other hand, has not made opposing Trump a central focus of his campaign. As a kind of mockery, he referred to his adversary as “Donald Duck” this time, making fun of his choice to abstain from participating in another argument.
However, the audience did not respond favorably to the swipe.
On top of that, the disorganized atmosphere of this discussion, in which the candidates talked over one other for extended periods of time, took them all down a notch. The proceedings were more like a backyard battle, which chewed up a lot of time and may have turned off some viewers.
According to recent polls, Donald Trump did not suffer any electoral repercussions as a result of his decision to miss these debates. In point of fact, it seems as though he has increased his lead over his competitors. There was nothing that occurred on Wednesday night that is likely to change that dynamic, and it is being reported that Mr. Trump is preparing to boycott the third debate that will be held in Miami.
Nikki Haley is quoted as saying, “Honesty requires me to admit that every time I hear you, I feel a little bit dumber for what you say.”
Vivek Ramaswamy entered the discussion that took place a month ago riding an upward trend in the polls. This made the quick-witted businessman a target for some of his adversaries, including Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, and Chris Christie.
New argument, but the same old story. In point of fact, a greater number of Mr. Ramaswamy’s adversaries participated in the conflict this time around. Tim Scott, the representative for South Carolina, attacked Mr. Ramaswamy for having done business with China earlier in his career in an assault that was obviously well-planned.
Mr. Ramaswamy highlighted that he had halted his business ties in China, but it left him subject to criticism from Vice President Pence. Pence stated that Mr. Ramaswamy must have pulled out of China in 2018, which is roughly the same time that the 38-year-old candidate began voting in presidential elections, and he made a joke about it.
The people who Mr. Ramaswamy competes with see him as a risk. The fact that these attacks are of a personal nature lends credence to the theory that some of the target’s opponents just do not like the political newcomer.
A victory for Ramaswamy in the discussion that took place one month ago helped him to gain the attention of his opponents. This time around, his adversaries appeared to have more focused strikes, and he appeared to be more shaken as a result.
“I have been on the receiving end of discrimination, but the United States is not, at its core, a racist nation.” – Tim Scott [and]
Tim Scott become becoming less noticeable over the past month. While others, like Ms. Haley and Mr. Ramaswamy, found success with their strategies, he stuck to his positive attitude and avoided being negative. This prevented him from gaining momentum or generating headlines.
This time around, Mr. Scott, who was seen sporting what appears to be the beginning stages of a goatee, was only too happy to confront his competitors.
He also had one of the most personally heated moments when he took issue with Mr. DeSantis’ previous comments that slaves learned vital skills while they were under their master’s control, which was another one of his most memorable moments.
Mr. Scott, who is the sole black contender in this election, stated that “there is not a redeeming quality in slavery.” “The United States of America is a wonderful country because we have looked our demons in the eye and made a determination,”
Recent reports have suggested that some wealthy Republican donors who were initially interested in Mr. Scott are now considering Ms. Haley as a potential alternative to Mr. Trump as the Republican presidential nominee. It’s possible that another opportunity will arise as a result of his performance in the debate on Wednesday night.
“Which one of you here on the stage tonight do you think ought to be eliminated from the game?” Dana Perino, who serves as the moderator
At the end of the discussion, one of the moderators for Fox Business, Dana Perino, pointed out that if there is not a significant reduction in the number of candidates before the voting begins in January, Mr. Trump will be the one to win the nomination. She then requested that the participants chose one of their opponents to be the first to withdraw from the discussion.
Nobody bit, and some of them appeared to be getting obviously angry about it. Their disdain was a suitable finale to a difficult two hours, during which all of the candidates defied the moderators’ repeated pleas to observe speaking time limitations, minimize interruptions, and respect the debate rules. Their disdain was a fitting end to a tumultuous two hours.
In the end, it’s possible that the viewers wanted the incompetent moderators to be the ones eliminated off the island the most.
