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 introduces himself
Ramaswamy taking a minute to introduce himself shows how he's still a semi-unknown quantity. But he got big applause from the crowd.
-Analysis by Monica Potts of FiveThirtyEight
Ramaswamy’s “skinny guy with a funny last name” line is a direct reference to Obama’s famous line about being a “skinny guy with a funny name” in his 2004 speech at the Democratic National Convention. Ramaswamy, of course, wouldn’t mind following Obama’s same path to the White House.
-Analysis by Nathaniel Rakich of FiveThirtyEight
Burgum stands on the debate stage without crutches
As the debate got underway, Burgum was seen standing without his crutches on the presidential primary stage. Just one day ago, on Tuesday, the North Dakota governor tore his Achilles tendon and was seen just hours ago using crutches.
--ABC News' Kelsey Walsh
Christie just made an electability argument — that he was elected as a Republican in the blue state of New Jersey. (Specifically, he won the 2009 gubernatorial election by 4 percentage points a year after Obama won the state by 16.) The only problem is, only 25 percent of Republicans said the ability to beat Biden was one of the most important factors to their vote, according to a recent FiveThirtyEight/Washington Post/Ipsos poll.
-Analysis by Nathaniel Rakich of FiveThirtyEight
What Trump has said about not attending the debate
Trump teased for months whether or not to attend the first GOP primary debate, citing along the way his yawning leads in early national and statewide polls.
"Why would I allow people at 1 or 2% and 0% to be hitting me with questions all night?" he said in an interview in June with Fox News anchor Bret Baier.
When he ultimately decided to not appear on stage on Wednesday, it was precisely that lead he cited.
"The public knows who I am & what a successful Presidency I had," Trump wrote on social media, adding, "I WILL THEREFORE NOT BE DOING THE DEBATES!"
It also appears unlikely that Trump will attend the second debate hosted next month by The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute, the administration of which Trump has feuded with in the past.
"He's not going to be in California," senior Trump campaign adviser Chris LaCivita said on the conservative "Ruthless" podcast Wednesday. "Well, first of all, with President Trump, you know, he could change his mind at any moment. Right. But I think he said the other day, he should take his history for face value when he said debates, right? And you should just assume that he won't until he does."
-ABC News' Tal Axelrod