The idea that all of this is "not that complicated" and "pretty simple" is Ramaswamy's pitch. He's organized his campaign around the idea of simple truths. As expected, he's already drawn attacks from other candidates on the stage. Pence has already hammered him on his lack of experience.
-Analysis by Monica Potts of FiveThirtyEight

Christie received loud boos from the crowd as moderators introduced the Republican field at the start of the debate. As of August 2023, the former New Jersey governor’s unfavorability rating is nearly 49%, according to the latest polling averages [published by FiveThirtyEight], () while his favorability rating hovers at 23%.

-ABC News’ Nicholas Kerr and Olivia Osteen

On COVID-19, Republicans are not happy with the Biden administration’s response. According to a Ipsos/Reuters survey from August, only 27 percent of Republicans think the administration has done the right amount to promote public health and fight COVID-19, compared to 66 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independents. Thirty-three percent of Republicans said the administration has done too much, and 30 percent said it has done too little.
-Analysis by FiveThirtyEight

Haley has been struggling to distinguish herself among the presidential field, so it's notable that she came out swinging against not just the men on the stage with her but Republicans in Washington, DC as well, for passing those substantial spending bills during the Covid-19 pandemic.
–Analysis from Jacob Rubashkin, Inside Elections

I’m tracking Burgum and Haley tonight. In another universe, the two might be top-tier contenders — a billionaire two-term governor from the heartland with great hair, and a trailblazing former governor and U.N. Ambassador long seen as a rising star in the GOP — but neither have made much of an impact on the race so far. Haley had a brief moment of prominence in February, when she was the first non-Trump candidate to jump in the race, but has since polled consistently in the low single digits. Haley will be the only woman on stage, and she may try to play to her strengths by drawing sharp foreign policy contrasts with higher-polling contenders like DeSantis and Ramaswamy (who she went after over Israel policy this week). Most of the attention Burgum has received surrounds his innovative tactic of paying people to donate to his campaign. The North Dakotan has been polling marginally better in Iowa and New Hampshire, where he’s spent millions on TV ads. If he makes it to this debate — he was in the emergency room earlier due to a basketball-related injury — his task will be to tell voters who he is, since he’s one of the least-known people on the stage, and maybe sell his Trump-free economic argument.

–Analysis from Jacob Rubashkin, Inside Elections