The "Eight Immortals" come on stage with sharp tongues, and Republican presidential candidates in the United States begin their first debate
According to foreign media reports, on August 23, local time, the first debate of the Republican primary in the 2024 US presidential election kicked off in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The party's most popular candidate, former US President Trump, did not participate. During the two-hour debate, despite the eight candidates doing their best to promote themselves, the scene was chaotic and even mocked by Democrats as "like Trump at a party.".
The Republican Party's "Eight Immortals" Come to Power
The first debate was full of heated debates
As the 2024 US election cycle officially begins, the other eight presidential candidates within the Republican Party, apart from Trump, engaged in heated debates in the first presidential primary, each displaying their own abilities and even arguing fiercely.
According to Fox News, on the evening of the 23rd local time, eight Republican presidential candidates attended a televised debate, with their positions ranked according to the support rate in the poll. Without Trump, who leads in popularity, Florida Governor De Santis and businessman Wake Lamaswamy, who ranks second and third in popularity, occupy the middle position. On either side of them are former United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations Haley and former Vice President Pence.
According to reports, the Ukrainian issue was one of the most controversial topics in the debate that night. Florida Governor De Santis said that unless European governments step up their aid efforts, the United States should promptly "stop assisting Ukraine.". However, Heili refuted De Santis's statement, stating that in terms of aid to Ukraine, "11 European countries provide more aid to Ukraine than the United States.". Pence and others criticized the Biden administration for still insufficient assistance to Ukraine.
It is worth noting that that evening, Republican political newcomer Ramaswamy became the target of "siege" by other opponents. According to the Associated Press, Ramaswamy said, "I am the only candidate on stage who is not bought or spent money." He criticized his opponent as a "puppet of the Super Political Action Committee.". Pence, on the other hand, called him a "rookie" in person, saying, "Now it's not on-the-job training, let's not introduce new talent."
Former Governor of New Jersey, Christie, interjected in the intense "melee" and said, "I'm tired of someone who sounds like ChatGPT standing there... I've been a prosecutor and governor before, and you've never made a significant contribution to the US government except for running tonight."
This debate was met with ridicule from the Democratic Party. Although Trump himself did not participate in the debate, The Washington Post quoted Democratic National Committee spokesperson Moussa as saying that the debate was simply "Trump having a party.".
Absenteeism with ulterior motives
Trump's approval rating still leads the way
Another focus on the debate that night was Trump, who did not participate in the debate.
The organizer, Fox News, had previously made it clear that candidates must strive to win in order to qualify as Trump's main opponent, with a tone of "whether they can stand out".
And Trump himself declared as early as August 20th that he had "skipped" the television debate segment, "the public knows who I am and how successful my presidency was. So I won't participate in the debate!"
But Trump, who refused to participate in the debate, was not idle. Instead, he accepted Tucker Carlson, a well-known host on Fox News Channel, for an online interview and uploaded the video to social media at the same time, gaining billions of views and greatly seizing the spotlight of television debates.
In addition, Trump chose to surrender himself at Fulton County Prison in Georgia during prime time on the 24th local time. Foreign media reported that Trump is seeking to maximize television ratings for his own benefit.
According to the latest CBS poll, Trump's approval rating as a Republican presidential candidate is 62%, while De Santis and Ramaswamy have 16% and 7% respectively.
According to Reuters on the 24th, six out of eight Republican presidential candidates have stated that they will support Trump even if he is found guilty on criminal charges.