The first Republican debate in the 2024 presidential race has concluded, and here are the key takeaways from the GOP's contentious event.
One of the most controversial parts of the first Republican debate was that former United States President Donald Trump was not in attendance. This left a gap among the GOP candidates vying to improve their poll performance.
Ramaswamy's Explosive Rise
However, despite Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis being seen as the most likely to rival Trump's place in the polls, political newcomer Vivek Ramaswamy came under the spotlight during the Wednesday debate.
Ramaswamy's unlikely rise following the GOP event showed the remarkable degree to which Trump has remade the Republican Party. Heading into the debate, DeSantis stumbled and was considered in need of a stabilizing performance.
The Florida governor sought this by primarily avoiding the scrum and focusing on the core case he makes on the stump to gain incremental ground in front of a national audience.
All eight of the GOP candidates jostled for position among each other, while a few of them targeted Trump, who is the front-runner and is currently set to surrender on Thursday following his fourth criminal indictment, as per the New York Times.
Ramaswamy's surprising performance in the debate hinged on how he hewed closely to former president Trump, not simply on substance but also in style. He also expressed various stances that could be considered unpopular among his competitors but resonate better with the Republican base.
Controversial Stances
These include cutting funding for Ukraine's war effort against Russia, on top of calling Kyiv's president "their pope," and even going so far as promising to pardon the Republican businessman preemptively.
The 38-year-old entrepreneur also drew attention by stirring up controversies and throwing some of the most striking personal slights of the evening. These include accusing Chris Christie of auditioning for an MSNBC contract and Nikki Haley of looking into lucrative private-sector jobs while declaring that he is the only candidate not bought and paid for by special interests.
On the other hand, according to Fox News, the DeSantis-supporting Never Back Down political action committee (PAC) criticized Ramaswamy after the latter allegedly inaccurately recalled Constitutional history during the debate.
In a statement, the PAC said that Ramaswamy may need civics lessons, which DeSantis himself said would "increase civic understanding and knowledge of our Constitution."
Republican Divide
During the event, the question of the United States' role in Ukraine became the center of attention among all other issues the candidates discussed. It showed the division within the party as Haley and Christie both supported the fight against Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On the other hand, DeSantis and Ramaswamy questioned whether or not continuously supporting Kyiv was in America's best interests. However, regarding the question of climate change and the possibility that human factors were the cause, most of the candidates did not want anything to do with the inquiry.
Most debate participants also expressed their intent to continuously support the former president even if he was convicted of criminal charges. According to the Associated Press, Trump is facing more than 90 criminal counts in separate cases across four jurisdictions.
Federal Abortion Ban
Another issue that Republican candidates discussed was the federal abortion ban, and the presidential hopefuls did not downplay their strong opposition to abortion rights. However, the divide came in discussions to enforce a federal abortion ban, which some GOP lawmakers oppose.
