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At some point on Thursday, a police photo of Donald Trump will appear on the internet and likely go viral. By then, what Republicans may remember from Wednesday night’s party’s presidential debate will likely be erased.
Trump was a ghost at the party, refusing to be on stage with what he called “losers.” Since he has more polls than all the other candidates combined, it’s their job to bring him down or make him less relevant. They made no progress on either task.
To be fair, for others, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ narrowing candidature, they face an almost impossible dilemma. It’s hard enough to differentiate yourself from Trump without alienating his base, and they need to win a good chunk of that base. As it turns out, things are more difficult when he’s not around.
The Fox News host asked all eight candidates present if they would support Trump as the Republican nominee if he were sent to prison. All hands went up except for former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson. DeSantis checked the reactions of others before offering his own.
The underperformer of the night was Chris Christie, whose argument was to incite Trump to debate him. Without Trump’s presence, Christie’s logical next target would be DeSantis, a campaign trailing far behind the former president.
But Christie took no hits at DeSantis and said nothing memorable about Trump. At least Christie and Hutchinson made it clear that Trump should not be the nominee. Unfortunately for Christie, the loudest noise he elicited on Wednesday came from boos.
DeSantis continued to avoid opportunities to attack Trump and overcompensated by coming off as particularly fierce on other matters. Florida’s governor said on Wednesday he would send U.S. special forces across the Mexican border to “single-shot” drug dealers on “day one.” For the first time in my memory, a presidential candidate has vowed to go to war on his first day in office. The more docile DeSantis appears with Trump, the more manly he appears in other things. So far, the strategy has not worked.
Since none of Trump’s rivals are ready to take on him directly, or in the cases of Christie’s and Hutchinson’s, effectively, the natural conclusion is to view such debates as his vice presidential running mate audition.
In this shadow race, Vivek Ramaswamy, the almost self-made almost billionaire, was the least subtle on Wednesday. Not only was he the first to raise his hand in support of a convicted Trump, but he also promised to pardon him on day one of any conviction.
If this is a normal GOP, it’s food for thought that the only millennial in the race, Ramaswamy, also says climate change is a “hoax.” But a bigger reality intrudes. His Trumpian demeanor alienated others on stage, but certainly increased his chances of being Trump’s running mate.
As it becomes increasingly easy to get used to political oddities these days, it’s worth highlighting that the Republican frontrunner faces 91 charges in four criminal cases, each of which could land him in jail. His recent charges in Georgia will be the first place to generate the elusive picture that Trump will no doubt turn into a high-yielding commodity.
It’s also worth pointing out that former Fox host Tucker Carlson, who conducted a competing interview with Trump during the debate airing on Fox, will almost certainly garner higher traffic.
At one point, Carlson asked Trump if his prosecution would lead to civil war. “I can say that it’s a level of enthusiasm that I’ve never seen. There’s a level of hatred that I’ve never seen, and it’s probably a bad mix,” the former president responded. Asked whether his enemies were prepared to kill him, Trump said: “They are savage animals. They are sick people.”
It will be difficult for Trump’s rivals to compete. As the saying goes, attacking the king will kill you. On Wednesday, Trump’s rivals didn’t even shed blood.
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