Republican Candidates Spar In Third Presidential Primary Debate

Five Republican presidential candidates faced off in the third primary debate on Wednesday (November 8) in Miami. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley tried to paint themselves as alternatives to former President Donald Trump, who skipped the debate and held a rally in nearby Hialeah.

Meanwhile, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, and Vivek Ramaswamy tried to gain momentum as they struggled to gain traction in the polls.

Moderator Lester Holt started off the debate by asking the candidates why they should be the Republican nominee for president instead of Trump.

DeSantis attacked Trump and asked why he didn't show up at the debate to answer for his failed campaign promises.

"He owes it to you to be on this stage and explain why he should get another chance," DeSantis said. "He should explain why he didn't have Mexico pay for the border wall. He should explain why he racked up so much debt. He should explain why we didn't drain the swamp. He said Republicans were going to get tired of winning. What we saw last night, I'm sick of Republicans losing. In Florida, I showed how it's done."

Haley also noted that the world has changed since 2016 and that Trump has also changed, saying that he is "getting weak in the knees" on foreign policy issues.

"I can tell you that I think he was the right president at the right time. I don't think he's the right president now," Haley said.

Ramaswamy came out firing, with attacks against Haley and Desantis over their stances on foreign policy. At one point, he referred to Haley as "Dick Cheney in 3-inch heels."

Haley fired back, saying: "They're five-inch heels, and I don't wear them unless you can run in them."

"The second thing that I will say is: I wear heels -- they're not for a fashion statement, they're for ammunition," she added.

When asked about Israel, all the candidates agreed that they would advise Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to do whatever is necessary to take out Hamas.

Ramaswamy also used the question to show his support for securing the southern border, saying that he would tell Netanyahu to "smoke those terrorists on his southern border, and I'll tell him as president of the United States, I'll be smoking the terrorists on our southern border."

When it comes to funding Ukraine's ongoing war against Russia, the candidates split on the issue. Haley, Christie, and Scott were steadfast in their support of helping Ukraine, while Ramaswamy and DeSantis were skeptical about how much support we should provide.

Scott said that our support has helped weaken the Russian military but cautioned we must be vigilant on how the money we send to Ukraine is spent.

"We have been very effective using our resources and our weaponry and the very high price of Ukrainian blood to achieving that objective," Scott said. "The American people are frustrated that they do not have a president who reminds us and tells us where's the accountability -- how are those dollars being spent? We need those answers for us to continue to see the support for Ukraine."

Meanwhile, Ramaswamy attacked Urkaine as corrupt.

"To frame this as some kind of battle between good and evil, don't buy it," he said. "Ukraine is not a paragon of democracy," he added.

Haley slammed Ramaswamy's comment.

"I'm telling you [Vladimir Putin] and President [Xi Jinping] are salivating at the thought that someone like that could become president. They would love to see that," she said.

"Here is a freedom-loving, pro-American country that is fighting for its survival and its democracy. No, I don't think we should give them cash; I think we should give them the equipment and the ammunition to win."

Things got personal between Haley and Ramaswamy as the candidates debated China and its influence over TikTok.

"In the last debate, [Haley] made fun of me for actually joining TikTok while her own daughter was actually using the app for a long time. So you might want to take care of your family first," Ramaswamy said to a smattering of boos from the crowd.

While Ramaswamy continued to speak, Haley said, "Leave my family out of your voice."

"You're just scum," she added.

When asked about the issue of abortion, the candidates took a cautious stance after several states codified the right to abortion since Roe v. Wade was overturned.

The candidates all touted their pro-life credentials but admitted that the issue should be left up to individual states to decide.