Elections

Third Republican Primary Debate: Live Updates

From left: Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, Florida governor Ron DeSantis, former biotech executive Vivek Ramaswamy, and Sen. Tim Scott (R., S.C.) at the third Republican presidential candidates debate in Miami, Fla., November 8, 2023. (Mike Segar/Reuters)
The 2024 Republican presidential candidates meet Wednesday night for their third debate, this time in Miami, hosted by NBC News. The on-stage grouping is smaller this time, with Mike Pence having dropped out since the last debate and other candidates not making the cut. Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Chris Christie, and Vivek Ramaswamy are set to participate, while front-runner Donald Trump once again will counter-program instead. Follow along for live updates and analysis from the NR team:
Rich Lowry

So is there no rule that candidates get to respond to attacks?

Luther Ray Abel

DeSantis knows the military in a way that no one else on that stage does. Talk tough and act tougher.

Jeffrey Blehar

Every time Vivek Ramaswamy speaks I expect him to end by saying “be sure to smash that like button, subscribe, and donate to my Patreon!”

Jeffrey Blehar

DeSantis is the only one who speaks the muscular language of “touch us and you’re a ghost” on this stage, which rhetorically is a must for a GOP candidate. (Trump of course does this too.)

Dominic Pino

Haley easily brushes aside Ramaswamy’s insult and takes the fight to Biden’s foreign policy. Presidential.

Luther Ray Abel

Slayyyyy, Haley.

Jim Geraghty

Is it just me, or does Chris Christie seem a little under-caffeinated tonight? Maybe it’s just that life-and-death issues like Israel and Hamas are so serious, it doesn’t easily fit his pugnacious, often-comic style.

Jeffrey Blehar

Christie’s “the evil foursome” doesn’t have quite the same ring as “the axis of evil.”

Noah Rothman

DeSantis distinguishes himself on Israel by promoting his effort to extract by his count “over 700 people” back to the U.S. while Joe Biden dithered. Haley distinguishes herself by identifying Iran as the author of the region’s instability and creating a link between its provocations and it’s informal alliance with it’s funders and supporters in Moscow and Beijing. Vivek distinguishes himself by alleging that America’s obligations to Ukraine’s defense are a product of a corrupt quid pro quo with the Biden family and by calling Haley “Dick Cheney in three-inch heels.”

Jim Geraghty

I love Tim Scott, but even his answers on foreign policy sound like he’s giving a sermon on Sunday morning. “Got to cut off the head of the snake… you cannot negotiate with evil!”

NR Staff comprises members of the National Review editorial and operational teams.
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