The Republican presidential candidates are set to appear in another round of debates on Thursday night. Fox Business Network will host the two debates which will be held in South Carolina which hosts its primary after Iowa and New Hampshire have their says.
The field is starting to narrow down with U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-SC, and former Gov. George Pataki, R-NY, bowing out since the last round of debates. Businesswoman Carly Fiorina and U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., were both removed from the main event debate and sent to the undercard to be joined by former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Penn. Paul protested the decision and has opted out of this round of the debates.
Trish Regan, an anchor and markets reporter with the Fox Business Network, will be one of the moderators on Thursday night. One of the leading financial journalists on TV, Regan hosts “The Intelligence Report” on the Fox Business Network and, before that, hosted “Street Smart” on Bloomberg Television and worked as an anchor for “The Call" on CNBC. Regan is also a featured columnist for USAToday.
Sunshine State News touched base with Regan this week as she readies to host the undercard debate on Thursday night.
SSN: With some of the dark horses dropping out of the race, fewer candidates will be on the stage in both debates. Do you think having few candidates will lead to more or less attacks come the debates?
Regan: These candidates have a lot to gain and nothing to lose at this point – so, my bet is that there will be some fireworks. Normally, you’d think fewer candidates would create a more cordial environment, but, with so much on the line, I’m betting they’ll come out swinging.
SSN: With the clock ticking to Iowa and New Hampshire, how do you think the candidates will try to reach voters in two states with often differing concerns?
Regan: New Hampshire and Iowa are different, you’re right. I grew up in New Hampshire and voters there are very fiscally minded, while in Iowa they are more focused on social issues. I think candidates will have the opportunity to hit on both topics.
SSN: Rand Paul opted out of this round the debates, insisting he did not want to be on the undercard. Do you think that helps him or hurts him?
Regan: If you’re running for president, you need to get your message out to as many people as humanly possible. I grew up in New Hampshire where candidates spend a lot of time campaigning and they don’t care if it’s just ten people down the street at the neighbor’s house for coffee, if there are registered voters there, then the candidate shows up. In this case, Sen. Paul had the chance to speak to millions of Americans. In you want to win the election, I think you need to take every opportunity to get your message out – and you probably shouldn’t say, “I’m going to take my ball and go home.”
SSN: What do the candidates in the earlier debate have to do to make a splash?
Regan: They need to be real. They need to answer the questions we ask. Too often, candidates veer off on talking point tangents and viewers see right through it. I think the candidates that are thoughtful about how they answer questions will come out ahead.
SSN: Any dark horses you will be keeping your eye on come Thursday night?
Regan: All of them
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
