GOP Candidates Face-Off in Trumpless Debate
(Washington Post) – The main Republican debate has begun in Iowa, but without front-runner Donald Trump – who earlier Thursday evening reaffirmed that he would boycott the event, as part of his continuing feud with host network Fox News Channel.
For the seven candidates on stage, this first Trump-less debate could provide a new chance to stand out, or to attack the bombastic billionaire who has so far managed to overshadow a stable of better-credentialed politicians. This is the last televised debate before Monday’s Iowa caucuses, and it is especially crucial for Sen. Ted Cruz (Tex.), Trump’s closest rival in this early-voting state.
Earlier Thursday evening, four lower-polling candidates met in the “undercard” debate – and then two of them, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and former senator Rick Santorum (Pa.), left to join Trump at the rally he is holding to counterprogram the debate he has chosen to skip. Another of the undercard candidates, former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore, chided them in his closing statement. “I’m not about to go across and carry the coat for some billionaire,” Gilmore said.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/republican-debate-seven-candidates-against-the-man-who-isnt-there
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