The country got a look Wednesday night at a feisty field of Republican presidential hopefuls.
The eight candidates on the first 2024 presidential debate stage in Milwaukee had plenty of space to spar, given former President Trump’s absence.
Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and former Vice President Pence came out of the evening as perceived winners for their forceful answers, clear stances and zingers. The night could give a boost to any of them, though Ramaswamy is closer to the top of the polls than Haley or Pence.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.) and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got in their points but may not have gotten the energy their campaigns sought out of the evening.
The candidates’ post-debate momentum and cleanup comes the morning before Trump turns himself in at the jail in Fulton County, Ga., where he faces 13 criminal counts in District Attorney Fani Willis’s election interference case.
We’ll have updates on the candidates and Trump all day, right here.
Live analysis from The Hill
A breakdown of the first 2024 presidential primary debate: Join reporters Rafael Bernal, Mychael Schnell and Julia Manchester, live now, right here.
Sununu says debate drove Trump ‘nuts’
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu told CNN on Thursday morning that the debate showed former President “Trump in trouble,” as candidates talked about their positions and attacked one another.
“He wasn’t mentioned, I guarantee you that drove him nuts,” Sununu said.
The governor noted that Trump would’ve run away with the debate — even not in attendance — had the eight candidates on stage been “flat.”
“But what you saw was three, four or five candidates really show some energy, show a future of the party without Trump and people liked it.”
Ramaswamy ‘flattered to be attacked’
GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy acknowledged in the spin room to Fox News he was “flattered to be attacked,” taking jabs from Pence, Christie, Haley and more.
He said he came out feeling that former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, “like much of the establishment … felt threatened by my presence.”
Ex-Trump adviser: GOP presidential debate a ‘s—show’
Former Trump campaign adviser David Urban described the first GOP presidential debate on Wednesday as a “s—show.”
“I think tonight proves that you don’t need Donald Trump to be at a debate to have a s—show there, right? So I mean, it was complete train wreck,” Urban said on CNN when asked about his first impression of the debate.
— Caroline Vakil
Greene: Christie comparing Ramaswamy to Obama was ‘pretty racist’
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) tore into GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie for comparing fellow White House hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy to former President Obama during Wednesday night’s primary debate.
“I was pretty disgusted at Chris Christie and his racist comment towards Vivek Ramaswamy,” Greene said during an appearance on a Right Side Broadcasting post-debate program. “He compared him to Obama. I honestly thought that was pretty racist.”
— Dominick Mastrangelo
Christie knocks debate moderators
GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie was not pleased with how Wednesday night’s first Republican debate was moderated by a pair of Fox News anchors.
“I think the weakest vote for me was the weakest moment for everybody … which was that that stage was completely out of control,” Christie said during an appearance on CNN. “And I’m disappointed that the moderators didn’t play a stronger hand in controlling what was going on.”
Read more about it here.
— Dominick Mastrangelo
Klain describes debate as ‘pointless bickering’
Former Biden chief of staff Ron Klain was not impressed with GOP candidate performances on Wednesday night.
“I was surprised by the fact that with Donald Trump not being there was a big opportunity for the eight of them to really step up and stand out and not be under his shadow,” he told CNN on Thursday morning. “I don’t think anyone really stepped up to that. There’s a lot of bickering, a lot of sometimes pointless bickering.”
Trump takes shot at Hannity
Former President Trump took a shot at Fox News host Sean Hannity for what he called a “softball” interview with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, his top Republican rival, after Wednesday night’s primary debate.
“DeSanctimonious was a ‘BOMB’ tonight, especially with his softball interview with Sean Hannity,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social website early Thursday. “This guy has totally forgotten his past. Who cares!?!?”
The former president was referencing a short interview DeSantis granted from the spin room in Milwaukee. Hannity hosted interviews with a number of other GOP candidates, as well.
— Dominick Mastrangelo
Trump praises Ramaswamy after first GOP debate
Former President Trump praised biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy after the Republican millennial defended him during the first debate.
“This answer gave Vivek Ramaswamy a big WIN in the debate because of a thing called TRUTH. Trump posted early Thursday morning on his Truth Social platform. “Thank you Vivek!”
Trump included a clip of Ramaswamy’s remarks, in which the 38-year-old Republican contender said during the debate, “President Trump, I believe, was the best president of the 21st Century.”
Read more here.
— Caroline Vakil
How is Burgum’s injury?
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum participated in the debate while nursing a torn Achilles tendon, a basketball injury from Tuesday night.
He told Fox News on Thursday morning that he’s headed for an MRI “then we’ll be, I’m sure, talking surgery after that.”
Khanna touts Obama’s vision for ‘multiracial democracy’
California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna said after the debate that former President Obama “must be smiling” in seeing entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy on the debate stage.
“Obama’s vision for a multiracial democracy is seeping into our politics despite the intense backlash. A slow but satisfying vindication,” Khanna tweeted.
Trump touts Carlson interview in Truth Social post
Trump posted on Truth Social early Thursday lauding his conversation with Carlson.
“Looks like the Tucker Carlson interview will end up with an “over 100 Million” number. Wow,” Trump wrote.
“Views,” on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, indicate only how many users saw the video on their timeline but do not show how many actually engaged with the post or how long they watched it for.
Trump’s pre-recorded conversation with Carlson spanned just over 45 minutes.
Who won the Republican debate?
Former President Trump’s decision not to participate in the Fox News debate at the Fiserv Forum overshadowed the event and likely lowered its ratings.
The Milwaukee debate gave his rivals a rare opportunity to reach a huge audience without the former president directly intervening or interrupting. Without him, who won?
The Hill’s Niall Stanage says former Vice President Pence, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley scored the biggest wins. Read the full list of winners and losers here.
Trump Jr. takes Fox to task
Donald Trump Jr., who said he was barred from the spin room where candidates and media met after the debate, criticized Fox News for trying to “silence” Trump’s backers.
“Fox News is trying to censor and silence Trump supporters to protect their hand-picked establishment candidates,” he tweeted just after midnight Thursday. “That’s a big reason why their ratings are dying, while my father’s interview with Tucker Carlson is already at 93 million views!!!”
Read more here.
— Dominick Mastrangelo
Trump adviser: DeSantis campaign just died
Trump adviser Jason Miller didn’t mince words about Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s performance Wednesday night.
“We saw the death of Ron DeSantis’s campaign tonight as Vivek Ramaswamy leapfrogged him into second place,” Miller told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in the spin room after the debate.