Republican debate highlights and analysis: Fiery faceoff on Trump, Ukraine and more
The 2024 hopefuls took the stage in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, without Trump.
The first Republican debate of the 2024 presidential primary was held in Milwaukee on Wednesday night.
Eight candidates qualified for a spot on the stage: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, former Vice President Mike Pence, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott.
Missing from the event was the primary's early front-runner: former President Donald Trump, who declined to participate and instead released a pre-recorded interview with Tucker Carlson.
ABC News and FiveThirtyEight live-blogged every major moment and highlight from the debate, aired on Fox News, with FiveThirtyEight providing analysis and a closer look at the polling and data behind the politicians. PolitiFact made real-time fact checks of key statements.
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Ramaswamy says he would support Trump if he's the nominee, hits Christie
Ramaswamy repeated that he would support Trump if he is the nominee regardless of whether he's convicted of a crime.
"President Trump, I believe, was the best president of the 21st century," Ramswamy said before knocking Christie for his attacks on the former president:
"Your claim that Donald Trump is motivated by vengeance and grievance would be a lot more credible. If your entire campaign were not based on vengeance and grievance" against Trump.
-ABC News' Tal Axelrod
A majority (56 percent) of Republicans in a recent TIPP Insights/Issues & Insights poll feel that the charges against former President Donald Trump in both the classified documents case and the investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol are political harassment by the Biden administration. And in an August poll from Morning Consult, 69 percent of Republicans felt the 2020 election indictment was primarily motivated by a desire to damage Trump’s political career, rather than by evidence that he committed a crime.
-Analysis by FiveThirtyEight
Six Republican candidates raised their hands when asked if they'd support Trump as the party's nominee if he were convicted and still went on to win. Two, Christie and Hutchinson, did not. Christie wagged his finger and criticized Trump, saying it was "unbecoming" to behave as Trump had. The crowd booed Christie extensively, to the point that Baier has to shush the crowd like a schoolteacher, telling them they need to "get through" this part. -Analysis by Geoffrey Skelley of FiveThirtyEight
The debate turns to Trump
Trump has largely been absent from this debate so far. In the first half, he was only mentioned five times by name, although Hutchinson did take a swipe at “a former president who is under indictment.” But now the moderators are asking about his legal troubles directly.
-Analysis by Nathaniel Rakich of FiveThirtyEight
Haley gets cheers when striking back at Ramaswamy on Israel
Ramaswamy and Haley traded shots on his Israel and Russia-Ukraine views, with Ramaswamy interrupting Haley and claiming she has been saying misleading things about his proposals on Israel. Ramaswamy has called for winding down aid to Israel after integrating the country more into the region.
"I wish you well on your future career on the boards of Lockheed and Raytheon,” Ramaswamy quipped, referring to the aerospace and defense companies.
Haley struck back: "You have no foreign policy experience and it shows," she said -- and was met with cheers and applause from the audience.
-ABC News’ Abby Cruz