Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley debate in dog fight for second place, while Trump gets free pass

On Wednesday night, while Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley attacked each other, accused each other of lying and fought heatedly in a debate on CNN, Donald Trump was laughing on Fox. He was the guest of a town hall event, in which most of those who questioned him competed to show who admired him the most. The former president gave long monologues, joked around, and from time to time spouted a false allegation or insult without anyone challenging him. Trump also said that he has decided who he would choose as his vice president. The two-handed primary debate comes less than five days before the start of the Iowa caucuses, the first stage of the primary race for the Republican nomination for the White House.

Trump is leading the polls among likely Republican Party primary voters, with more than 60% voting intention, while Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor and U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, are each polling around 12%. The two are in a dog fight to convince voters to see them as the Republican Party’s alternative to Donald Trump and secure second place.

The battle between the Haley and DeSantis has become more heated as the field of contenders has narrowed. Former vice president Mike Pence, senator Tim Scott and Governor Doug Burgum have dropped out of the race, and on Wednesday, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie also threw in the towel. Christie said he does not believe he has any chance of winning the nomination, and that stopping Trump from becoming president again was more important than his personal ambitions. He hopes that by withdrawing from the race, he will help alternative candidates to Trump, particularly Haley in New Hampshire, the second stop of the primaries, on January 23.

While heavy snowfall and extreme cold threaten turnout in the Iowa caucuses, in which voters gather to debate and vote for their favorites, the candidates are trying to attract as much support as possible and Wednesday’s debate was the highlight of the caucus countdown.

With just two candidates, the debate was more orderly, but also more boring. Haley and DeSantis stood very close together on a large stage, but both looked straight ahead — not at each other — which made it difficult for the exchanges to seem natural. There were few interruptions and Haley seemed a little ridiculous when she raised her hand almost every time DeSantis spoke to ask for her turn, when the next turn was hers by default. In DeSantis’ case, his awkward gestures while listening were more evident given that there were just two people on stage. The two have debated so much and given so many speeches that almost everything they said sounded familiar, as if they were on autopilot.

During almost the entire debate, DeSantis was on the offensive, attacking Haley again and again. The former U.N. ambassador defended herself by repeatedly accusing the Florida governor of lying and encouraging the audience to visit the website DeSantisLies.com. Both attacked each other much more than they attacked Trump, even though he is the one who is likely to win the nomination. They insisted that it is time to turn the political, judicial and generational page, but they did not dare to say that Trump does not respect the Constitution.

In terms of content, both returned to their usual themes. In essence, DeSantis accused Haley of not being conservative enough and of caring too much about international politics. Haley accused DeSantis of lying and falling in the polls. DeSantis alleged that Haley would cut Social Security in order to “pay the pensions of Ukrainian bureaucrats” — a claim that summed up well the general tone of the debate. Haley, in response, said DeSantis was lying, adding: “You’re so desperate. You’re just so desperate.” At another point in the debate, DeSantis accused his rival of “ballistic podiatry,” in other words, of shooting herself in the foot.

Haley also criticized U.S. President Joe Biden over the controversy over Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s secret hospitalization. “How does Biden not talk to his secretary of defense every single day?” she asked. “We have a war in Europe, we have a war in the Middle East [...] The idea that the secretary of defense would not even be in contact with the president — much less in contact with his staff — is unforgivable.”

Haley also described the immunity thesis that Trump’s lawyers defended before a Washington court on Tuesday as “absolutely ridiculous.” The former president’s legal team argues that a president should have immunity for any conduct, including ordering the assassination of a political rival, unless they are impeached and convicted by the Senate. She also said that January 6, 2021 was not, as Trump calls it, “a beautiful day,” but “a terrible day.” “That election, Trump lost it. Biden won the election,” she said.

DeSantis, meanwhile, argued that Trump is being unfairly persecuted by the justice system. But he said that, however unfair, that persecution was going to weigh him down as a presidential candidate. “If Donald Trump is the nominee, the election is going to be about legal issues, criminal trials, Jan. 6. It’ll be a referendum on him.” he said.

During the town hall event aired on Fox News, Trump answered questions that were far from challenging and pushed the messages best suited to his campaign.

The former president claimed to have already decided who would be his running mate, although he did not want to reveal who he had chosen. “I can’t tell you that really, I mean, I know who it’s going to be,” he said.

When asked if he would consider any of his primary rivals, he responded with a joke — a tone that marked much of the town hall meeting. “Oh sure, I will, I will. I’ve already started to like Christie better,” he quipped, in reference to the fact that Christie was caught on a hot mic saying he thinks Haley has no chance of winning the Republican nomination. At the moment, she is fighting for second place.

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