Republican frontrunner Donald Trump came under heavy attack from his rivals in a contentious US presidential debate, and former Hewlett-Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina emerged from the back of the pack to lead the charge.
Fiorina‚ a late addition to the second prime-time debate of the 2016 Republican White House race‚ made her presence felt as one of Trump’s strongest challengers in a crowded field anxious to pile on the real estate mogul and former reality-TV star.
Former Florida governor Jeb Bush also frequently confronted Trump and grew stronger as Wednesday’s debate wore on‚ sharply defending his brother‚ former president George W Bush‚ when Trump criticised the war in Iraq.
With Trump shooting to a big lead in opinion polls‚ the other 10 candidates struggled at times to get attention on the crowded stage barely four months before the first nominating contest for the November 2016 election.
Unlike August’s first debate‚ when most of the contenders shied away from directly challenging Trump‚ several of them engaged him in sometimes fierce personal exchanges.
Revelling in the spotlight‚ Trump touted his business experience and fired off insults‚ making a crack about US Senator Rand Paul’s looks and declaring that former New York governor George Pataki “couldn’t get elected dogcatcher”.
But Trump drew a sharp rebuke from Fiorina for his recent comment in an interview that voters might not back her because of her face. “I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr Trump said‚” Fiorina said‚ drawing applause.
Trump leaned towards her and replied‚ “I think she’s got a beautiful face‚ and I think she’s a beautiful woman.”
Twitter later reported that Fiorina’s response to Trump on her looks was the most tweeted moment of the debate.
Facebook also registered the exchange as its top social moment‚ and said Trump and Fiorina were the top candidates discussed on Facebook during the debate.
Fiorina has been rising in the polls and was sharing the stage with the leading candidates for the first time after a strong performance in the first “undercard” debate for low-polling candidates in August.
At one point‚ she noted Trump’s companies had filed for bankruptcy four times and asked‚ “Why should we trust you?”
Bush‚ a frequent target of Trump’s jibes for his “low-energy” campaign‚ criticised the billionaire for his past friendliness with Democrats and for trying to get involved in casino gambling in Florida. “He asked Florida to have casino gambling and we said no‚” Bush said.
Trump shrugged his shoulders dismissively and denied trying to get into the casino industry in Florida.
“Wrong...Jeb‚ come on,” Trump added‚ “More energy tonight? I like that.”
Bush‚ an establishment Republican‚ has been overshadowed by Trump’s bomb-throwing rhetoric but had promised to be more aggressive in the debate.
When Trump noted he was the only person on the stage who had disagreed with the decision to go to war in Iraq‚ Bush leapt to the defence of his brother‚ who ordered the invasion.
“He kept us safe‚” Bush said. Trump responded‚ “Do you feel safer now? I don’t feel so safe.”
Trump also took aim at Paul‚ saying he did not even belong on the stage because of his low standing in the polls. Paul‚ a senator from Kentucky‚ criticised Trump for his “sophomoric” criticisms of people’s appearance.
“I never attacked him on his looks‚ and believe me there’s plenty of material there‚” Trump said.
A Reuters breakdown of speaking times in the debate showed Trump led the way with more than 19 minutes.
Reuters-Ipsos opinion polling before the debate showed Trump leading the 2016 race among Republicans with 32%. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson was second at 15%. Bush was in third place at 9% as his campaign struggled to take off.
Also debating in the main event at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley were Ted Cruz‚ Marco Rubio‚ Mike Huckabee and John Kasich.
The Republicans disagreed on whether the government should be shut down in order to cut funds for the women’s health group Planned Parenthood and condemned President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran.
Trump and Bush shared a moment of comity near the end of the debate when each of the candidates was asked what code name he or she would suggest the Secret Service use for them if they were elected president.
“Eveready”, Bush said‚ using the name of an American battery maker. Looking at Trump standing next to him‚ Bush added‚ “It’s high-energy‚ Donald.”
As the audience laughed and applauded‚ Bush and Trump‚ both smiling‚ slapped hands together.
Asked what his code name should be‚ Trump said “Humble” to further laughter from the audience.
Contenders take aim at Trump
Fiorina‚ a late addition to the second prime-time debate of the 2016 Republican White House race‚ made her presence felt as one of Trump’s strongest challengers in a crowded field anxious to pile on the real estate mogul and former reality-TV star.
Former Florida governor Jeb Bush also frequently confronted Trump and grew stronger as Wednesday’s debate wore on‚ sharply defending his brother‚ former president George W Bush‚ when Trump criticised the war in Iraq.
With Trump shooting to a big lead in opinion polls‚ the other 10 candidates struggled at times to get attention on the crowded stage barely four months before the first nominating contest for the November 2016 election.
Unlike August’s first debate‚ when most of the contenders shied away from directly challenging Trump‚ several of them engaged him in sometimes fierce personal exchanges.
Revelling in the spotlight‚ Trump touted his business experience and fired off insults‚ making a crack about US Senator Rand Paul’s looks and declaring that former New York governor George Pataki “couldn’t get elected dogcatcher”.
But Trump drew a sharp rebuke from Fiorina for his recent comment in an interview that voters might not back her because of her face. “I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr Trump said‚” Fiorina said‚ drawing applause.
Trump leaned towards her and replied‚ “I think she’s got a beautiful face‚ and I think she’s a beautiful woman.”
Twitter later reported that Fiorina’s response to Trump on her looks was the most tweeted moment of the debate.
Facebook also registered the exchange as its top social moment‚ and said Trump and Fiorina were the top candidates discussed on Facebook during the debate.
Fiorina has been rising in the polls and was sharing the stage with the leading candidates for the first time after a strong performance in the first “undercard” debate for low-polling candidates in August.
At one point‚ she noted Trump’s companies had filed for bankruptcy four times and asked‚ “Why should we trust you?”
Bush‚ a frequent target of Trump’s jibes for his “low-energy” campaign‚ criticised the billionaire for his past friendliness with Democrats and for trying to get involved in casino gambling in Florida. “He asked Florida to have casino gambling and we said no‚” Bush said.
Trump shrugged his shoulders dismissively and denied trying to get into the casino industry in Florida.
“Wrong...Jeb‚ come on,” Trump added‚ “More energy tonight? I like that.”
Bush‚ an establishment Republican‚ has been overshadowed by Trump’s bomb-throwing rhetoric but had promised to be more aggressive in the debate.
When Trump noted he was the only person on the stage who had disagreed with the decision to go to war in Iraq‚ Bush leapt to the defence of his brother‚ who ordered the invasion.
“He kept us safe‚” Bush said. Trump responded‚ “Do you feel safer now? I don’t feel so safe.”
Trump also took aim at Paul‚ saying he did not even belong on the stage because of his low standing in the polls. Paul‚ a senator from Kentucky‚ criticised Trump for his “sophomoric” criticisms of people’s appearance.
“I never attacked him on his looks‚ and believe me there’s plenty of material there‚” Trump said.
A Reuters breakdown of speaking times in the debate showed Trump led the way with more than 19 minutes.
Reuters-Ipsos opinion polling before the debate showed Trump leading the 2016 race among Republicans with 32%. Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson was second at 15%. Bush was in third place at 9% as his campaign struggled to take off.
Also debating in the main event at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley were Ted Cruz‚ Marco Rubio‚ Mike Huckabee and John Kasich.
The Republicans disagreed on whether the government should be shut down in order to cut funds for the women’s health group Planned Parenthood and condemned President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran.
Trump and Bush shared a moment of comity near the end of the debate when each of the candidates was asked what code name he or she would suggest the Secret Service use for them if they were elected president.
“Eveready”, Bush said‚ using the name of an American battery maker. Looking at Trump standing next to him‚ Bush added‚ “It’s high-energy‚ Donald.”
As the audience laughed and applauded‚ Bush and Trump‚ both smiling‚ slapped hands together.
Asked what his code name should be‚ Trump said “Humble” to further laughter from the audience.
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