“What’s sustained is the foundation you’re laying in the two early states”.
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Bill Crane says using polls to determine the debate participants is imperfect, yet something has to winnow the field. Fox Business used four recent national polls to arrive at its averages – including one, conducted by NBC News and the Wall Street Journal, which included the names of only 10 of the candidates.
However, his White House bid has struggled since he announced his run about nine months ago, and whether his poll numbers would qualify him for main-stage debates has frequently been a question. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Along with Mike Huckabee, Christie was cut from the main debate stage.
Pataki, a former New York governor, and Graham, a South Carolina senator, already faced a tough road to the nomination.
Earlier in the interview, Christie reiterated that he was not concerned about being relegated to the earlier of the two Republican primary debates next Tuesday, saying he was “willing to bet” that “they’re gonna be talking on Wednesday about what I did on Tuesday night”.
FILE – In this October 28, 2015 file photo, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks during the CNBC Republican presidential debate at the University of Colorado in Boulder, Colo. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, former Fla. Rick Santorum, R-Penn.
BUOYED BY a well-received performance at the October 28 debate, Governor Christie’s presidential campaign for a while last week showed signs of moving in the right direction. “Give me a podium, give me a stage, put the camera on, we’ll be just fine.”I’ve never had a problem, as you know… making an impression”, Christie said”.
At the same time, Pataki seemed more upset about his inability to participate in either debate, calling the reliance on polls a “disservice to voters” and a “boost to the worship of celebrity over accomplishment and ideas”.
Still, being in the second debate could help an outspoken candidate like Christie and is no death knell for his campaign, Murray said. And Hillary Rodham Clinton was leading Sen. Barack Obama by about 20 points.
Christie, who has qualified for the previous three top-tier debates, instead described the move as a “transfer”. Ultimately, networks have the flexibility to change their formats as they see fit.
The three televised Republican debates so far have attracted far more viewers than the number who watched primary debates four years ago.
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Huckabee’s odds to suspend his campaign were at 61% and then rose to 76% after Fox Business made the announcement.
