While former Florida governor Jeb Bush and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul were categorical in rejecting frontrunner Donald Trump’s call for a ban on non-citizen Muslims travelling to the U.S, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Florida Senator Marco Rubio avoided a direct response on the question. Our sense is his performance in this fifth debate won’t hurt his standing, but it could help Sens.
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When Donald Trump broached the idea this month of killing terrorists’ families, he was answering a question about how to handle Islamic State fighters who use civilians as human shields. “It sounds like what he’s outlining is not to lead at all”, Rubio said.
With Cruz’s criticism on an audio recording, there was an expectation that Trump and Cruz would finally set aside their truce, especially after Cruz had seized the lead in a major poll this week of Republican voters in Iowa, the state which on February 1 holds the first nominating contest of the election. If he should lose the nomination, some fear he would make such a move, possibly preventing the nominee from defeating the Democratic challenger.
Trump promptly fired back, “Jeb doesn’t really believe I’m unhinged”, he said.
Burr said he’d be “a lot more worried” if Cruz were actually a member of the Intelligence Committee, which Rubio is. The two are, instead, focusing increasingly on each other, lashing out over their differences on national security and immigration.
The friendly exchange allows Cruz to go on presenting himself on the campaign trail as a more credible alternative to Trump for some Republicans, while his team works to build an organization that can turn out more voters than Trump can. “That’s easy to say. What are you going to do it with?”
CORNISH: Sarah, you’re speaking to us from New Hampshire.
Has this nation ever had a presidential candidate who advocated killing the families of people who harmed Americans – even, seemingly, when those families were US citizens?
Sen. Ted Cruz may have won his immigration skirmish with Sen.
Ted Cruz came in number two on social media.
“I’ve never supported legalization”. With the candidates jousting over government surveillance, military intervention and the aims of American foreign policy, the national security- and global affairs-themed debate was among the most substantive of the 2016 cycle. Rubio countered persuasively that the metadata collection program was a valuable tool that needed to stay as it was. And while Cruz’s position is not disqualifying, he may have a harder time in the general because of his more stringent stand.
Well, you know, I would note that Marco knows what he’s saying isn’t true.
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He asked if Trump was getting information from Sunday morning news shows or Saturday morning cartoon programs. And he went on to highlight the San Bernardino attack, claiming, “There were numerous people, including the mother, that knew what was going on”. A new law, called the USA Freedom Act, passed in June with broad, bipartisan support.
