Third Republican Debate: Key moments and highlights

Live from Miami, five Republicans took to the stage to make their case to voters during the last GOP debate before the primaries get underway. Donald Trump did not attend, and his absence was mentioned by those challenging him for the nomination. And what a night it was... attacks, prepared remarks, and low blows... only time will tell if anyone’s performance was strong enough to pull support away from Trump, who currently enjoys more support than all of the other candidates combined.

Starting at the top

Of all the opening statements, Vivek Ramaswamy’s was by far the most memorable. In a very short time, he levied attacks against the Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDonald and the NBC moderators, arguing that the job should have been given to Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan, and Elon Musk instead.

Ron DeSantis also spoke about the tough election night Republicans experienced on Tuesday and affirmed he was tired of seeing his party lose. Touting his electoral record in Florida, he hopes voters see him as capable of taking that strategy to the national level.

World events and US involvement

When the candidates were asked their opinions on how they would approach relations with Israel, all made their support for Prime Minister Netanyahu crystal clear.

Ron DeSantis said he would tell the Israeli Prime Minister to “Finish the job once and for all,” and Nikki Haley made similar comments: “Finish them.”

Ramaswamy was quick to defend the right of the Israeli state to defend itself but sang a different tune than many others on the stage. He warned that the US should “avoid making the mistakes of the neo-cons of the past.” The businessman also made a dig at Haley, which some online believe could have also been directed at DeSantis, that the voters should avoid electing “Dick Cheney in three inch heals.” DeSantis has been accused of wearing healed boots on social media.

The neo-con foreign policy worldview that Ramaswamy argued against was on full display by Tim Scott, who said that it was necessary to strike Iran to avoid the attacks on US military personnel in the Middle East.

When it comes to pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, many of the candidates labeled them as pro-Hamas actions. DeSantis and several other candidates said they would revoke the visas of international students who participated in any such events.

As it relates to China, one of the biggest takeaways from the discussion was that many candidates would be willing to ban TikTok, blaming the app for filling the minds of young people with progressive ideas.

During the last debate, Haley had attacked Ramaswamy for his use of TikTok, and Wednesday’s event, he shot back, calling to her attention that her daughter is a user of the app. Haley responded by calling her opponent “scum.”

The economy and US energy production

To bring down costs for families, various candidates spoke to increasing energy production to bring down prices. Any possible environmental effects that increasing fossil fuel production could have were not discussed, and the moderators did not ask any questions about climate change.

Aside from increasing fossil fuel production, DeSantis said he would destroy Bidenomincs.

When asked what actions could be taken to protect Social Secuirty for current and future retirees, Christie and Haley said they would support increasing the retirement age for younger workers, but neither was willing to provide a number.

The opioid epidemic

During the discussion, the candidates displayed a great deal of compassion towards the impact that the opioid epidemic has had on families and communities in the United States. Christie expressed the need to recognize addiction as a disease and allocate more resources toward mental health services to assist individuals dealing with drug addiction.

A federal abortion ban...

There was so much backtracking when it came to the issue of abortion during the debate. Across the country, voters have shown that they support the right to abortion. For decades, the GOP has been vocally pro-life, and while those arguments remain a part of the platform, the intensity has been turned down.