DeSantis Emerges as the Crowd Pleaser in GOP Primary Debate That Manages, for the Most Part, To Dodge the Trump Question
GOP saves the best debate for last, as the candidates are off to Iowa, where Trump is way ahead.
Four Republican presidential candidates are off to Iowa, building on their performances in the final primary debate at Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They dodged the Trump question for the most part, but their mutiny against President Trump may fall short. Best not expect these political soldiers — full of facts, fire, and ideas — to just fade away.
The event’s two-hour runtime might have scared off viewers; if so, it was the best debate they never watched. The first hour was civil and serious with none of the crosstalk and interrupting that have reduced modern debates to childish, mudslinging affairs.
NewsNation deserves praise for delivering this public service. Having worked at Fox News Channel during its launch amid the 1996 presidential campaign, I was impressed by this professional production put together fast on a shoestring budget.
Before the debate, one of the anchors at NewsNation, Chris Cuomo, offered a unique suggestion that fit the network’s battle to stand out against the big names. “You’re not going to hear a journalist say this,” he said, “but I’ve always wanted to see a debate with no moderators.”
Mr. Cuomo was unsure if this had ever been tried, but it was the format of the faceoffs between President Lincoln and Senator Douglas in 1858. With wide agreement that the current format isn’t working, it’s a change worth considering.
Although there were moderators, they did the next best thing to Lincoln and Douglas. They asked short questions and acted as referees only when needed. They didn’t try to be part of the story or join the debate themselves.
There were no stunts like asking for a show of hands or who candidates would “vote off the island,” as Fox News Channel moderators did. The questions were short and there were fewer of them, allowing in-depth discussions to emerge on everything from Iran and Ukraine to fentanyl and anti-Semitism on campus.
The spirit of comity carried through the first hour of the debate, but at the top of the second, Governor Christie of New Jersey accused the entrepreneur in the race, Vivek Ramaswamy, of shattering it. “This is the fourth debate,” he said, “that you would be voted, in the first 20 minutes, as the most obnoxious blowhard in America.”
Mr. Ramaswamy accused his opponents of shifting with the political winds. “All three of them,” he said, “have been licking Donald Trump’s boots for years for money and endorsements,” but now are “Monday morning quarterbacking” his record.
If Mr. Ramaswamy’s goal is to be Mr. Trump’s running mate or win a cabinet post, he did himself a favor by calling out the “disloyalty” that the former president despises. But he hurt his standing with the other candidates and their supporters whom he’d need as the nominee.
Taking a page from the props Governor DeSantis of Florida used last week to great effect in his debate with Governor Newsom of California, Mr. Ramaswamy held up a legal pad reading “Nikki = Corrupt.” It was a good visual but drew boos.
Ambassador Haley, showing strength in the polls and racking up donors, found herself on the defensive most of the night. “Thanks for all the attention, fellas,” she said, but during one long stretch she faded into the background, beaten into brooding silence.
Mr. Christie rose to Ms. Haley’s defense, pointing out it was a debate about politics not personalities. The attack flustered Mr. Ramaswamy, driving the first-time candidate to say the governor should go “enjoy a nice meal,” a veiled attack on Mr. Christie’s weight, “and get the hell out of this race.”
Mr. Ramaswamy seems unaware that some things said cannot be withdrawn, the foundation of President Reagan’s 11th Commandment. After the debate, Messers Christie and DeSantis clustered together with Ms. Haley to exchange pleasantries while, like the new kid in class, Mr. Ramaswamy stood alone. It was very different from the way opponents gladhanded Mr. Trump after he bloodied them in the 2016 debates.
Judged by the crowd reaction, Mr. DeSantis was the victor. Of course, without Mr. Trump — “who doesn’t have the guts to show up,” as Mr. Christie put it — that’s rather like winning the NFL Pro Bowl, a little-watched affair that’s a poor substitute for a Super Bowl ring.
Nevertheless, Mr. DeSantis made the most of his moment. Applause and cheers blew the roof off at the University of Alabama when he promised to challenge Communist China’s crimson tide, deploy the military to the border, and protect children from irreversible transgender surgery.
Messers Ramaswamy and DeSantis both challenged Ms. Haley for doing business with military contractors after her service at the United Nations and with Beijing while governor of South Carolina, the third primary state. When she called the charges lies, Mr. DeSantis pointed people to his website where he promised evidence.
Mr. DeSantis was the only candidate to get in that kind of plug, save Mr. Christie, who mentioned he’s writing a book on Reagan when asked to cite his role model as commander-in-chief. Reagan was an obvious answer, and by getting the question first, Mr. Christie took the Gipper off the board.
Ms. Haley chose Washington and Lincoln. Mr. Ramaswamy tapped Jefferson because he, too, was in his youth when he wrote the Declaration of Independence.
Mr. DeSantis cited President Coolidge, “who got almost everything right.” It was a clever way to embrace the origin of Reaganism. The 40th president used the 30th as his template for governing, hanging his portrait in the White House Cabinet Room.
The NewsNation debate set the bar higher for the future. America may never go back to the Lincoln-Douglas format. Yet more events that focus on substance over style with moderators who stay journalistic may be the next best thing for the republic.
