Photo: Win McNamee / Getty Images News / Getty Images
Eight Republican candidates took the stage at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday (August 23) night for the first Republican presidential debate of the primary season.
While former President Donald Trump and frontrunner in the primary election skipped the debate, his rivals tried to stand out as they worked to claw away at his lead in the polls.
Despite not being on stage, Trump was a topic of conversation as his rivals walked a tightrope trying to court some of his voters. Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, who is polling 3rd behind DeSantis, defended Trump against the indictments he has faced since leaving office and vowed to pardon him if he's elected. Former Vice President Mike Pence made a similar promise.
Ron DeSantis didn't really defend Trump, but he also didn't go on the attack, as he seeks to court Trump supporters.
Meanwhile, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson didn't pull any punches as they attacked Trump throughout the night.
Hutchinson said that Trump was "morally disqualified from being president again as a result of what happened on January 6."
Christie said that Trump's "conduct is beneath the office of president of the United States" and blasted the former president for suggesting he could suspend the Constitution.
"We have to dispense with the person who said we have to suspend the Constitution to put forward his political career," Christie said as he faced boos from the audience.
Former U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley warned that if Trump wins the primary, he would not be able to beat Biden in the general election.
Many of the candidates used the debate to take shots at Ramaswamy, whom Christie called an "amateur." Mike Pence also called out Ramaswamy's lack of experience in the political ring.
"Now is not the time for on-the-job training. We don't need to bring in a rookie," Pence told the debate crowd.
Haley blasted Ramaswamy for his stance on Ukraine and his lack of foreign policy experience.
"You are choosing a murderer over a pro-American country," she said. "You have no foreign policy experience, and it shows. It shows!"
Ramaswamy did his best to defend himself and tried to keep his answers short and to the point.
The next Republican debate will be held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library on September 27 in Simi Valley, California.