Foreign policy and terrorism were front and center as Republican presidential hopefuls clashed in their fifth debate in Las Vegas -- last before the new year. Even without Michael Buffer bellowing “let’s get ready to rumble,” the debate had a big-fight feel, as some of the candidates tried to get back in the race while the frontrunners looked to keep their leads intact.
The debate had a different feel than the last one. While Trump is still on top of the polls, Ted Cruz has become his chief rival, shoving aside Ben Carson. And in the undercard, Bobby Jindal, who proved the most aggressive in the smaller group, bowed out since the last round of debates.
It was a far more serious round than previous debates because the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino shifted voters’ attention to terrorism and security. This changed much of the dynamics between the candidates on Tuesday.
At the end, Donald Trump told Republicans he would not run as a third-party candidate no matter how he fares in the primary.
Here’s a look at the winners and losers in the fifth round of debates:
WINNERS
Jeb Bush: This was the former Florida governor’s best debate. Despite a weak opening, he was able to show more seriousness and leadership as the debate turned to foreign policy. Unlike past performances, he showed far more energy and got into a few spats with Trump. Bush essentially ignored the other candidates but, with the exception of Trump, generally wasn’t attacked by the other hopefuls. This performance probably won’t be enough to jump start Bush in the polls but it should silence some of the growing buzz that he’s the next Republican to drop out of the race. At the very least, Bush’s performance Tuesday night will keep the vultures away for a few weeks.
Chris Christie. The New Jersey governor was the only candidate to note schools in Los Angeles had been closed on Tuesday due to a terrorist threat. While he has no international experience, Christie showcased his work as a U.S. attorney tackling terrorism and security issues. While Rand Paul and Marco Rubio clashed over Senate votes, Christie jumped in and contrasted his record as an executive with theirs as legislators. Even when Paul brought up Bridgegate, Christie ignored him and kept his focus on foreign policy. Christie is starting to make gains in polls of key states, particularly New Hampshire. His showing on Tuesday night probably helped ensure he will continue to go up, especially as John Kasich, who is also targeting New Hampshire, did not make much of a splash in this debate. A solid performance all around for Christie.
Carly Fiorina. Another good debate for Fiorina. While she offered some biographical details at the start of the debate, Fiorina scored by bringing in her experience with technology and calling for the government to work with the private sector in finding better solutions. Fiorina was spot on in her call for the federal government to look at social media as it ponders letting immigrants in. She also took a shot at how the federal government botched the Obamacare site launch. Still, Fiorina has been here before. She has a history of doing well in debates, moving up in the polls and then falling back. With Iowa and New Hampshire looming, Fiorina still needs more than good debate performances even as she turned in another one on Tuesday night. While she did cut down on her interruptions of the moderators and other candidates, Fiorina did not score points when she complained that she was not getting enough time.
Lindsey Graham. Once again, Graham won the undercard debate, not that it’s done much for him before. Graham was not as memorable or as funny as he has been in past debates and he sounded under the weather. But the senator from South Carolina continued his focus on the Middle East and terrorism and scored points when he ripped into Barack Obama’s leadership. Graham also did well in saying he missed George W. Bush who remains popular with Republican primary voters. When he turned his fire to Ted Cruz, Graham had less success and he botched his “Princess Bride” line of attack. But he got a break when asked about his role in the “Gang of Eight" on immigration as Graham went back to the Middle East while his opponents didn't bother to press him. Since entering the race, Graham has been consistent in his calls against ISIS and his focus on Syria, and that helped him beat an admittedly unimpressive field of opponents Tuesday night. While he got on base, that might not be enough for Graham, who has struggled in the polls even as he continues to excel in the undercard.
Marco Rubio. Certainly Rubio got more cheers in Sheldon Adelson’s casino than he should have. But Rubio did well in the debate and was able to move to the right on Ted Cruz, reminding viewers about the terrorist attacks backed by Libyan strongman Gaddafi and jabbing the Texas senator for saying the world would be safer if he remained in power. Rubio is pretty much in third right now behind Trump and Cruz and he didn’t hurt himself on Tuesday night even as the debate turned to immigration and his role in the “Gang of Eight.” He was able to muddy the waters against Cruz on immigration to some extent, though it remains his weak spot against his GOP foes. Sitting on the Foreign Affairs Committee, Rubio is well versed on international policy and it showed. Rubio was also wise to keep his fire on Cruz instead of Trump. Another solid debate performance from Rubio, even if he spent far more time on the defensive this time out than he has in the previous ones.
LOSERS
Ben Carson: Sinking in the polls as Americans grow more worried about terrorism, Carson needed a big night to stop his support defecting to other candidates, mainly Cruz. Carson had some good moments -- including calling for a moment of silence for victims of the San Bernardino attacks -- but they were few and far between. Carson was near invisible for much of the debate. That’s not where he needed to be to help his campaign bounce back. The doctor even complained about not getting enough time, something that rarely plays well. Even when asked about his experience and personality and how it would serve him as commander in chief, Carson went into the weeds, talking about his surgical work with children.
Ted Cruz: The senator from Texas is now in the top tier, so understandably he drew fire from the other candidates. He had some good moments, including hitting Rubio on immigration. But Cruz got outflanked on the right on foreign policy by Rubio and was often on the defensive. The scrutiny is far more intense for a top candidate and, moments after his clash with Rubio on immigration, even conservative outlets like National Review were poking holes in his inconsistencies on the issue. Cruz wasn’t as sharp as he had been in past debates and he had stumbles, including being shot down by the moderators when he continued to speak well past his time limits. While the senator tries to distance himself from “Washington Republicans,” he can often sound too much like a lawyer. Not a fatal performance for Cruz by any means, but not up to the bar he set in the previous debates.
Mike Huckabee, George Pataki and Rick Santorum. These three candidates needed a big breakthrough and it simply didn’t happen Tuesday night. Huckabee shone in the debates when he first ran for president eight years ago but he was near invisible in this one and did nothing to get back into the main event debate. Pataki spent too much time veering back and forth from the center to the right and his attempts to portray his leadership responding to the 9/11 attacks fell flat. Santorum did nothing to stand out even as he offered Trump more support than the other three Republicans on the stage. To be clear, none of the candidates really hurt themselves, but they did nothing to get back in the race either and their windows are closing. Pataki simply isn’t a factor and Huckabee and Santorum have lost much of their past support, even in Iowa, a state both of them won in past presidential contests. It’s time for at least some of them -- perhaps all of them -- to consider ending their campaigns.
John Kasich. The Ohio governor simply didn’t make an impression Tuesday night. While he did not focus on it, Kasich does have some background here, having served on the House Foreign Affairs Committee during his time in Congress. Kasich has focused on New Hampshire and has tried to claim the political center, going after Trump on a host of fronts. But the Ohio governor was a non-entity for most of this debate. Kasich did score in the second half of the debate when he jumped into a spat between Bush and Trump and rose above both of them. But he needed to do more. Barely a factor in the national polls, Kasich needed a better outing on Tuesday night, especially as voters now turn to the holidays.
Rand Paul. The senator from Kentucky started the year as one of the leading candidates. He ends it barely clinging to a spot in the debate with the top candidates and reports that he would have pulled the plug on his campaign had he not made the main event. In a debate on foreign policy and national security, Paul should have offered his take on the issues which are one of his hallmarks. Instead, he contented himself with taking shots at Christie, Rubio and Trump. Paul should have taken a page from his father who, during his presidential bids, focused more on his ideas than in getting in spats with other candidates. When he stuck to policy, Paul was solid, but he did his campaign little good when he was swinging away at Christie, Rubio and Trump -- mostly Rubio. Too often, Paul came off as Ted Cruz’s attack dog. Not exactly where he needs to be to get back in the race.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestate hisenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
