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Republican debate: Trump benefit goes toe to toe with main event – live updates Republican debate: Trump benefit goes toe to toe with main event – live updates
(35 minutes later)
12.23am GMT
00:23
They’re back! The moderator says, ominously, “this is debate number one in what will be a long night here.” He sounds sort of tired already.
12.21am GMT
00:21
First commercial break. Who’s winning? Any Gilmore takers? Let us know in the comments!
12.21am GMT
00:21
Gilmore, who is running for president and is in this debate, says he would not close the US prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Then he rattles off resume highlights, for the few in the audience for whom he may not be a household name. Let’s check in with Google trends...
Google hasn’t published info yet on how many people are searching “Jim Gilmore,” but it appears from the blue spike in the chart below that there was robust search interest when his participation tonight was announced.
Realtime data from the #GOPDebate https://t.co/jDhLsPt7zV pic.twitter.com/pg5ReuMqgH
12.18am GMT
00:18
Huckabee is asked whether it’s foolish to be open to working with Russia in Syria, as the former governor has proposed.
“I don’t trust [Putin],” Huckabee says, but if they’re confronting the enemy in the Middle East, let them.
Huckabee compares Isis to cancer:
And with any kind of cancer, you don’t contain it, you eradicate.
12.16am GMT
00:16
Fiorina’s asked whether Obama is right to say that Isis does not pose an existential threat to the United States.
“News flash president Obama. New flash, Mrs Clinton,” she says. “Climate change is not our most pressing national security threat.”
Hearty applause.
Then Fiorina goes hard on Benghazi. Ding ding, time.
12.14am GMT
00:14
Santorum takes a question about stopping terror attacks around the world.
He says the president needs to get real in confronting “Islamic” terrorism. Then he explains that Isis has “established a caliphate.” Then he explains that a caliph rules a caliphate like a king rules a kingdom.
The answer is we must take their land and make them illegitimate in the eyes of the Muslim world.
He calls for boots on the ground to do so.
12.14am GMT
00:14
Ben Jacobs
While the undercard debate is underway, just a mile and a half away, much of the American media is piling into a room adjacent to a college classical music venue.
Donald Trump is boycotting the main event in order to hold his own rally at the Sheslow Auditorium on the campus of Drake University. The event is supposed to be a benefit for veterans, though the Trump campaign has yet to make clear how the money is being raised and which veterans organizations are benefiting.
The event is a zoo, with long lines both for attendees as well as media, who are watching the event from a conference room lined with folding tables and a single flat screen television. Reporters get to mix with attendees in the crammed concert hall - capacity 783 - before the event, but will banished about 30 minutes before it starts.
The American media gathers for Trump pic.twitter.com/eU1D37rWGM
Updated
at 12.16am GMT
12.13am GMT
00:13
Huckabee is invited to contrast “New York values” with conservative values. He passes on the question, sort of, in favor of a diatribe about big money in politics.
“I’m not going to get into an argument with all those New Yorkers because there’s a lot of them,” he jokes. First joke. Wins laughter in the hall.
Then Huckabee says he wishes New Yorkers had given to his campaign the way they have given to the “corporatist candidates.”
Then Huckabee reverses himself:
When I say I wish they had, I’m glad they didn’t.
Updated
at 12.14am GMT
12.11am GMT
00:11
Here's who you could have won... The undercard debate #GOPDebate pic.twitter.com/5cEJViXc2L
12.11am GMT
00:11
Now, the first question ever for former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore in a GOP presidential debate. He had not visited Iowa at all, as of one week ago.
“I have been in Iowa, but this is not the place where I am beginning my campaign. I am beginning my campaign in New Hampshire,” Gilmore says.
That’s a creative and unique pitch to Iowa voters: I have written you off, voters.
Then Gilmore points out he’s the only veteran in the race and says in his presidency “the veterans are going to be treated with respect.”
12.08am GMT
00:08
Tom McCarthy
Fiorina is now up. “Is your party in crisis?” is the question.
Fiorina says that she started at the back of the field but now “hundreds and hundreds” of Iowans show up at her every event.
Fiorina registers at 1.6 points in polling averages in Iowa. She closes with a Santorum-style attack on the moderators.
The candidates have figured out that trashing the media works this primary season.
12.06am GMT
00:06
Tom McCarthy
Good follow-up question: If you’re complaining so much about Trump, why are you going to his event after this? Do you plan to endorse him?
Santorum says he’s being invited to throw mud. “I’m not going to attack Donald Trump,” he says.
Does Santorum consider his prospective endorsement of Trump a kind of attack on Trump?
12.05am GMT
00:05
Santorum: media 'segregates' me
Santorum now: He’s asked whether Monday night in Iowa is his “last stand.”
Santorum scoffs. He complains that the debate now begun was not advertised. He is blaming the network for his failure to register in the polls. He’s a hot potato.
“This is what the media has been doing in the past year, in trying to segregate and take Iowans out of the process.”
The entire talk in advance of this debate, he says, was about whether Donald Trump was going to show up. That’s not a substantive issue, he says.
12.03am GMT
00:03
Tom McCarthy
First question is for Huckabee. He’s asked why his message is not punching through “this time.” Huckabee won Iowa in 2008.
He says his message is not getting out, implying a conspiracy against him. Then: “Let’s get rid of abortion once and for all.” Also he wants a fair tax.
Applause.
12.01am GMT
00:01
Here we go! The undercard debate broadcast has begun. Live from downtown Des Moines. The candidates are onstage and are introduced. They are:
Moderators: Martha MacCallum, Bill Hemmer
12.00am GMT
00:00
Scott Bixby
As part of political media’s never-ending quest to answer the question, “Just who is voting for Donald Trump?”, CNN talked to more than 150 people around the country about why they’re throwing their support behind the billionaire Republican frontrunner.
Of those 150, the three bros featured in “Going to College, Voting for Trump” are undoubtedly the most (unintentionally) hilarious.
Turner Eakins, Brody Buck and Tate Moyer are a trio of 18-year-old first-time voters in Omaha, Nebraska, who told CNN that Trump’s confidence, dismissal of “quote-unquote political correctness” and general badassery have won their hearts and votes.
With the gusto of three models in the pre-scene introduction of a Sean Cody video, Eakins, Buck and Moyer say that Trump, like themselves, is a man of action.
They’re also big on wearing incredibly tight shirts.
Moyer isn’t totally sure about Trump...
...but as my father once said, “If you don’t want to go to Minneapolis, then don’t get on the train.”
The Nebraska caucuses are scheduled for March 5, 2016.
11.54pm GMT
23:54
Losing the frontman
What will it be like to watch the Republican presidential candidates take the stage without frontman Donald Trump? Will the act be as good? Will they deliver the same boost that fans have come to expect and love?
Or will the thrill not quite be the same? The pixie dust gone? The old hits tinged with loss?
There’s a long trail of uneven precedent to point to here. AC/DC continued to tour after the death of Bon Scott; Pink Floyd forged on without Roger Waters; Van Halen persevered after losing David Lee Roth. The list extends: Queen without Mercury, Fleetwood Mac without Christine McVie, Lynyrd Skynyrd without everyone...some succeeded, and some crashed and burned.
But the Republican field is not a band. (Yet.) They’re closer, perhaps, to a beloved situation comedy.
So perhaps it is more apt to contemplate (and here a big h/t @rayajalabi) Laverne and Shirley without Cindy Williams (Shirley); American Office without Steve Carrell; House without Lisa Edelstein; Downton without Dan Stevens; The OC without Marisa (RIP Mischa Barton); Two and a Half Men without Charlie Sheen; ER without Anthony Edwards (!); Law & Order SVU without Stabler, Buffy the Vampire Slayer without David Boreanaz (!!); or That 70s Show without Topher Grace.
Also to be carefully considered, however, is the flip side: that the comparison to be made here is not to the act that continues after losing its lead – but to the lead who soars after going solo.
Will Donald Trump emerge as Beyonce sans Destiny’s Child? Phil Collins without Genesis? Lauren Hill post-Fugees, Lou Reed post-Velvet Underground, Joan Jett post-Runaways, Iggy Pop post-Stooges, Robbie Williams post-Take That, Lionel Richie post-Commodores... or ... or ..
Will Donald Trump emerge as Justin Timberlake, post-*NSync? Seems right.
Needless to say, it would here be your civic duty to Let Us Know in the Comments.
Updated
at 11.55pm GMT
11.50pm GMT
23:50
The Guardian’s Ben Jacobs has confirmed that Donald Trump will not be making a last-minute change to his schedule and will not be attending tonight’s Republican primary debate in Des Moines - sorry, Jeb Bush.
Trump campaign just confirmed to me that he WILL NOT participate in Fox News debate tonight
11.25pm GMT11.25pm GMT
23:2523:25
Tom McCarthyTom McCarthy
While we wait for the undercard debate, scheduled to begin in about half an hour, you can get caught up on the day in politics news by scrolling through Alan Yuhas’ live blog:While we wait for the undercard debate, scheduled to begin in about half an hour, you can get caught up on the day in politics news by scrolling through Alan Yuhas’ live blog:
Related: Huckabee and Santorum join Trump's debate alternative – as it happenedRelated: Huckabee and Santorum join Trump's debate alternative – as it happened
And here are other selections from our politics coverage today:And here are other selections from our politics coverage today:
Related: Unorthodox Trump smashes Fox News influence over rightwing mediaRelated: Unorthodox Trump smashes Fox News influence over rightwing media
Related: Marco Rubio's Iowa closing argument: forget Trump – I'm 'Defeating Hillary'Related: Marco Rubio's Iowa closing argument: forget Trump – I'm 'Defeating Hillary'
Related: Marco Rubio: from 'Republican savior' to prophet of gloom … and back againRelated: Marco Rubio: from 'Republican savior' to prophet of gloom … and back again
Related: I worked on Wall Street. I am skeptical Hillary Clinton will rein it in | Chris ArnadeRelated: I worked on Wall Street. I am skeptical Hillary Clinton will rein it in | Chris Arnade
11.13pm GMT11.13pm GMT
23:1323:13
Scott BixbyScott Bixby
Once again, after political analysts and media experts declared for months that there was no possible way that Donald Trump was going to do the thing that he was threatening to do, Donald Trump did the thing that he was threatening to do. You’d think we’d have learned by now.Once again, after political analysts and media experts declared for months that there was no possible way that Donald Trump was going to do the thing that he was threatening to do, Donald Trump did the thing that he was threatening to do. You’d think we’d have learned by now.
Here’s what you need to know about Donald Trump’s debate counter-programming:Here’s what you need to know about Donald Trump’s debate counter-programming:
What is it?What is it?
The candidate is billing the event as the “Donald J. Trump Special Event to Benefit Veterans Organizations,” with proceeds from tonight’s event apparently being directed towards the the Donald J. Trump Foundation’s work on veterans services. (Given that tickets to the event, held at the 775-seat Sheslow Auditorium at Drake University, are being given away for free, it’s unclear where the proceeds will come from.)The candidate is billing the event as the “Donald J. Trump Special Event to Benefit Veterans Organizations,” with proceeds from tonight’s event apparently being directed towards the the Donald J. Trump Foundation’s work on veterans services. (Given that tickets to the event, held at the 775-seat Sheslow Auditorium at Drake University, are being given away for free, it’s unclear where the proceeds will come from.)
The Donald J. Trump Foundation traditionally gives only a tiny fraction of its total donations to veterans organizations. Between 2009 and 2013, it gave $57,000 of $5.5m to veterans groups; the rest went to 291 other organizations. (Trump himself has made no charitable contributions to his own foundation since 2008, as of last August.)The Donald J. Trump Foundation traditionally gives only a tiny fraction of its total donations to veterans organizations. Between 2009 and 2013, it gave $57,000 of $5.5m to veterans groups; the rest went to 291 other organizations. (Trump himself has made no charitable contributions to his own foundation since 2008, as of last August.)
How to watch:How to watch:
Corey Lewandoski, Trump’s campaign manager, has invited the press to cover the fundraiser as closely as they wish. “It’s open the media and obviously as all of Mr. Trump’s speeches are if the networks choose to come and cover that we obviously would welcome that opportunity,” Lewandowski told Breitbart News. “If they want to live feed or live stream that, they’re welcome to do that as they do many of his speeches.”Corey Lewandoski, Trump’s campaign manager, has invited the press to cover the fundraiser as closely as they wish. “It’s open the media and obviously as all of Mr. Trump’s speeches are if the networks choose to come and cover that we obviously would welcome that opportunity,” Lewandowski told Breitbart News. “If they want to live feed or live stream that, they’re welcome to do that as they do many of his speeches.”
The two non-Fox News cable news networks have both intimated that they plan to cover Trump’s event - at least in part - although neither network will pre-empt regularly scheduled programming. If you want wall-to-wall coverage, however, C-SPAN will be streaming the rally live at 9pm Eastern, with a “pre-program” at 8pm Eastern.The two non-Fox News cable news networks have both intimated that they plan to cover Trump’s event - at least in part - although neither network will pre-empt regularly scheduled programming. If you want wall-to-wall coverage, however, C-SPAN will be streaming the rally live at 9pm Eastern, with a “pre-program” at 8pm Eastern.
Donald Trump Campaign Rally in Des Moines, IA – LIVE at 9pm ET on C-SPAN https://t.co/f5BE5lmLKz #iacaucus pic.twitter.com/SdqPRLBEcvDonald Trump Campaign Rally in Des Moines, IA – LIVE at 9pm ET on C-SPAN https://t.co/f5BE5lmLKz #iacaucus pic.twitter.com/SdqPRLBEcv
Who will be there?Who will be there?
The Donald himself, obviously, but the Republican frontrunner will be joined by two other presidential candidates. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and former senator Rick Santorum - winners of the 2008 and 2012 Iowa caucuses, respectively - will attend the event after participating in tonight’s undercard debate on Fox News. Representatives for both campaigns told the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman that they’re attending purely to support US veterans, the putative beneficiaries of Trump’s event. Huckabee clarified that his attendance is “not an endorsement of Trump’s candidacy,” telling CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that he’s “still running for president.” (Our analysis: If you have to say it...)The Donald himself, obviously, but the Republican frontrunner will be joined by two other presidential candidates. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee and former senator Rick Santorum - winners of the 2008 and 2012 Iowa caucuses, respectively - will attend the event after participating in tonight’s undercard debate on Fox News. Representatives for both campaigns told the New York Times’ Maggie Haberman that they’re attending purely to support US veterans, the putative beneficiaries of Trump’s event. Huckabee clarified that his attendance is “not an endorsement of Trump’s candidacy,” telling CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that he’s “still running for president.” (Our analysis: If you have to say it...)
Why is this happening, again?Why is this happening, again?
Why isn’t it happening?Why isn’t it happening?
Basically, Trump is still sore about Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly’s introductory line of questioning at the Republican presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio, in August, wherein the anchor grilled Trump on his history of offensive statements about women. The two have been engaged in a highly public feud ever since, with Trump insinuating that Kelly was menstruating during the debate and Kelly’s attempts to take the high road thwarted by Fox News boss Roger Ailes’ snarky press release dismissing Trump’s threats to ditch the debate.Basically, Trump is still sore about Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly’s introductory line of questioning at the Republican presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio, in August, wherein the anchor grilled Trump on his history of offensive statements about women. The two have been engaged in a highly public feud ever since, with Trump insinuating that Kelly was menstruating during the debate and Kelly’s attempts to take the high road thwarted by Fox News boss Roger Ailes’ snarky press release dismissing Trump’s threats to ditch the debate.
Trump, after conducting an informal Twitter poll, decided not to attend the debate unless Kelly was replaced as moderator, which Fox News has refused to do.Trump, after conducting an informal Twitter poll, decided not to attend the debate unless Kelly was replaced as moderator, which Fox News has refused to do.
And now we’re here.And now we’re here.
UpdatedUpdated
at 11.24pm GMTat 11.24pm GMT
10.29pm GMT10.29pm GMT
22:2922:29
Hello! And welcome to our live-wire coverage of the seventh Republican debate in the 2016 race to the White House. Tonight we’re in Des Moines, Iowa, where voters will set the wheel of history in motion when they gather to caucus in just four days.Hello! And welcome to our live-wire coverage of the seventh Republican debate in the 2016 race to the White House. Tonight we’re in Des Moines, Iowa, where voters will set the wheel of history in motion when they gather to caucus in just four days.
Donald Trump, the free-floating GOP frontrunner, has ostentatiously ditched tonight’s debate as a demonstration of his disgust with host network Fox News and one of its moderators, Megyn Kelly.Donald Trump, the free-floating GOP frontrunner, has ostentatiously ditched tonight’s debate as a demonstration of his disgust with host network Fox News and one of its moderators, Megyn Kelly.
The Donald has scheduled a simultaneous event in Des Moines, billed as a benefit for military veterans – which means it’s Republican fight night on the plains of Iowa and in the streets of Des Moines. His fellow candidates Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum have promised to join him – but only after they have competed in the consolation-prize undercard debate for Fox.The Donald has scheduled a simultaneous event in Des Moines, billed as a benefit for military veterans – which means it’s Republican fight night on the plains of Iowa and in the streets of Des Moines. His fellow candidates Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum have promised to join him – but only after they have competed in the consolation-prize undercard debate for Fox.
So tonight, for our readers, it’s two blogs for the price of one. While I (Tom McCarthy) bring you play-by-play of the debate, my colleague Scott Bixby will bring you coverage of the Trump event. It’ll be like channel surfing, without all the taxing effort of diddling the remote control.So tonight, for our readers, it’s two blogs for the price of one. While I (Tom McCarthy) bring you play-by-play of the debate, my colleague Scott Bixby will bring you coverage of the Trump event. It’ll be like channel surfing, without all the taxing effort of diddling the remote control.
Here’s Scott:Here’s Scott:
It’s going to be a huge (yooge!) night in Des Moines, where only three miles from Fox News’ prime-time Republican presidential debate, Trump will be hosting a concurrent “special event”. Like a journalistic Katniss Everdeen, I have volunteered as tribute to bring you analysis and insight into the real estate tycoon’s every utterance, eye roll and insult from a rally every bit as unmissable as the Hunger Games.It’s going to be a huge (yooge!) night in Des Moines, where only three miles from Fox News’ prime-time Republican presidential debate, Trump will be hosting a concurrent “special event”. Like a journalistic Katniss Everdeen, I have volunteered as tribute to bring you analysis and insight into the real estate tycoon’s every utterance, eye roll and insult from a rally every bit as unmissable as the Hunger Games.
… interlacing with which I, Tom, will ensure that you miss not a moment as the rest of the Republican field attempts to fill Trump’s shoes.… interlacing with which I, Tom, will ensure that you miss not a moment as the rest of the Republican field attempts to fill Trump’s shoes.
Boring detailsBoring details
When: The undercard debate begins at 7pm ET, and the main event starts at 9pm ET.When: The undercard debate begins at 7pm ET, and the main event starts at 9pm ET.
Where: The Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa. Fox News will broadcast the event and stream it live on their website here.Where: The Iowa Events Center in Des Moines, Iowa. Fox News will broadcast the event and stream it live on their website here.
Who: The main event features:Who: The main event features:
Moderators: Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly, Chris WallaceModerators: Bret Baier, Megyn Kelly, Chris Wallace
The undercard features:The undercard features:
Moderators: Martha MacCallum, Bill HemmerModerators: Martha MacCallum, Bill Hemmer
Why: Indeed.Why: Indeed.
Please jump into the comments section and let us know who you expect to emerge on top when all the smoke has cleared. Thanks for joining us!Please jump into the comments section and let us know who you expect to emerge on top when all the smoke has cleared. Thanks for joining us!
UpdatedUpdated
at 10.48pm GMTat 10.48pm GMT