Live Blog: Clash of the Clowns IV
Posted: November 10, 2015 Filed under: Republican politics, U.S. Politics | Tags: 4th GOP primary debate, live blog 130 Comments
Good Evening Politics Junkies!
Are you ready for the Tuesday night fights? The undercard begins at 7PM Eastern and will include Chris Christie, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and Bobby Jindal. The main event at 9PM will include the above eight candidates: John Kasich, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, and Rand Paul.
The moderators, according to the LA Daily News:
The “undercard” debate will be moderated by Fox Business Network anchors Trish Regan and Sandra Smith and Wall Street Journal Washington Bureau Chief Gerald Seib.
The prime-time debate will be moderated by Fox Business Network anchors Maria Bartiromo and Neil Cavuto and Wall Street Journal Editor-in-Chief Gerard Baker.
Where to watch:
The Nov. 10 GOP debates — both the prime-time and “undercard” contests — will be broadcast live from the Milwaukee Theatre in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on the Fox Business Network. They will also be streamed live over the Internet at Foxnews.com and Foxbusiness.com.
No cable subscription is required to watch the live stream.
Fox Business Network says it is working with cable and satellite providers to give access to the channel to as may subscribers as possible for tonight’s debates.
The debates will be broadcast on the Fox News Radio network with a live audio stream over the Internet at radio.foxnews.com.
What the media has been saying in the lead up to tonight’s action:
NBC News: High Stakes, Calm Atmosphere Ahead of GOP Debate.
MILWAUKEE, Wisc. — The fourth GOP primary debate will feature fewer candidates than the first three, but likely just as many — if not more — fireworks.
Fewer candidates means more time to speak — and more opportunity to screw up, as the moderators have telegraphed plans to drill candidates on policy specifics and hold them tightly to time constraints.
And with just over 80 days to go until the first primary contest, in Iowa, candidates will be jockeying for that last burst of momentum
heading into the winter campaign season where voters start to tune in, and more candidates will likely drop out.But at the Milwaukee Theater, where the debate is set to take place, the atmosphere was was largely the calm before the storm. On the chilly but bright day, few reporters were seen outside doing live reports. It was similarly quiet in the sleepy press file, with a few dozen staffers and reporters milling about but most elsewhere.
From NBC News’ Chuck Todd and friends: Bush Vs. Rubio Sets The Stage For Tonight’s Debate.
Another Bush-vs.-Rubio fight sets the stage for tonight’s GOP debate: Tonight’s fourth Republican presidential debate picks up where the last one left off — with Jeb Bush in desperate need of a strong showing, and with his team (this time his Super PAC) picking a fight with Marco Rubio. The Right to Rise Super PAC “has filmed a provocative video casting his rival Marco Rubio as ultimately unelectable because of his hard-line stand against abortion,” the New York Times reported last night. “That group, which has raised more than $100 million, has asked voters in New Hampshire how they feel about Mr. Rubio’s skipping important votes in the Senate. And the group’s chief strategist has boasted of his willingness to spend as much as $20 million to damage Mr. Rubio’s reputation and halt his sudden ascent in the polls, according to three people told of the claim.” In response, the Rubio campaign has released a brand-new online ad in response to the New York Times article, and it’s full of instances where Bush has praised Rubio. “I’m a huge Marco fan,” Bush says at the ad’s end.
Is the Bush Super PAC telegraphing its attack on Rubio? Or is it internal sabotage? Why would the Right to Rise folks leak this story out, especially before tonight’s debate? It was our understanding that — after the last debate — Jeb World acknowledged that they couldn’t take Rubio on again until Bush had improved his poll position. Given that this New York Times story feels more damaging to Jeb than to Rubio, we wonder if there’s some internal sabotage going on. Did someone with knowledge of Right to Rise’s abortion video on Rubio give the story to the Times? Or did it come from pro-Rubio folks who knew about the video? Regardless of the source, that Times article only puts more pressure on Bush tonight.
More speculation and analysis of other possible candidate clashes at the link. A few more stories to check out:
John Feehrey at the Wall Street Journal: 5 Questions for the GOP Debate on the Job of Being President.
Jonathan Martin a the New York Times: What to look for in the Republican debate.
Amber Phillips at the Washington Post: The top 9 issues ahead of Tuesday’s GOP presidential debate.
Please add any good stories you’ve read in the comment thread and document the atrocities as you watch.
peej
Carissa
bostonboomer
ecocatwoman
mablue2
Mama Lopez
peggysue22
quixote
skydancingguestblogger
Mona (aka Wonk the Vote)
Sky Dancing 
I turned it on just in time to see Santorum wrapping up an answer. Now a moderator is asking Mike Huckabee about entitlements and welfare. He says Social Security and Medicare are earned benefits, not entitlements. Claims that welfare and other social programs don’t work, the system pushes them down.
Question for Jindal:
Why aren’t Republicans doing well in national elections like they are in the states? Jindal says there isn’t much difference between the parties.
We have to cut government spending, like he did in LA. He doesn’t explain why his policies were so destructive.
Huckabee said lots of “us” have cut things. He cut 11% out of the Ark. budget when he was governor. Says Christie probably has too.
Jindal says spending in Ark. went up as did state workers.
Moderator asks Christie what he’ll do about the national debt. He says the real adversary is Hillary Clinton, and the Repubs will all cut spending.
What………she’s coming after whut?
I have to take care of something, back soon.
Are they allowed notes? Bobby Jindal seems well informed on his opponents. He’s throwing out numbers left and right about Christie and Huckabee’s state budgets. Fairly impressive if they are in fact facts.
Jindal is full of sh$t. He’s totally lying about his own record anyway.
Jindal has total recall. It’s the only form of smarts he has.
This undercard is pretty deadly. The moderators are asking questions and the candidates are refusing to answer. When he was asked what Democrat he could work with to solve problems, he said that he was going to fire everyone in Washington. Including Congress? I guess Jindal plans on being a dictator.
I found the last part of the first debate on the Internet. It isn’t on the local Fox channel.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/live-coverage/fox-business-network-wall-street-journal-gop-debates
No, it’s on Fox Business. The link is in my post.
I don’t have Fox Business on my old tv. The one with Fox business was killed by the power surge.
You can watch it online either at the Fox business link or the WSJ.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/live-coverage/fox-business-network-wall-street-journal-gop-debates
Ok thx.
yw. The Fox Business live stream has been pretty reliable.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/live-coverage/fox-business-network-wall-street-journal-gop-debates
Sorry, I missed it.
No problem. I put it in the morning post too.
I would agree with Krauthhammer that it appeared to be a real debate in form, though I personally didn’t see substance, just dog whistles.
None of the candidates want to raise the minimum wage, because they claim it would cause more unemployment. Carson says more low paid jobs would help black teenagers.
You mean the ones us retired folk and single mom are using to live on?
Tough. That can’t be helped, because we have to cut taxes for the wealthy and giant corporations.
I can’t believe it, Americans are making too much money. Whut, how much they making?
No, but they claim if you keep the minimum wage low, more people will have jobs. They won’t be able to live on their wages, but wtf? They can get food stamps….
Yes, I heard Carson those low wages made him a better man.
It’s really hard to watch this, because the moderators basically agree with the GOP candidates. They’re just throwing softballs, no challenging questions.
Ted Cruz praises Calvin Coolidge.
Yep.
Moderator asks Jeb about 40% of Americans not having jobs. Of course lots of those people are children, old people, disabled people and stay-at-home parents. But whatever….
Jeb says we should repeal all the regulations in order to help small businesses.
Republicans would find jobs for them. They just wouldn’t pay them anything. But at least they would have work.
Maybe they could give them a pittance and then make them spend it in the company store.
Wage slaves.
If we got rid of all wages, then corporations would make even more profits, which would perhaps trickle down in some fashion.
LOL!
Carly Fiorina makes me sick.
She wants a line-item veto, I guess. Good luck with that. She also wants to repeal all regulations and put Congress in charge of regulation instead of “nameless, faceless bureaucrats.”
“If we could only get back to the Gilded Age, that was a time. Nobody regulated anything back then. Damn Dickens, trying to spoil it all.”
We’re almost there already, I think.
Power of the purse lies with Congress … She should read her Constitution.
Yeah, what was that about leading with the worried mom thing? It doesn’t fit her.
Ding Bat…………..first let me ding, ding Hillary Clinton.
I can’t stand her either, and the reason we have 73,000 pages of tax codes is to protect her (and not the average tax payer), she gets to write off her private jet, her yacht, her villa, and every damn thing she wants to.
Question about income inequality. Rand Paul says it’s the worst in cities run by Dems, states run by Dems, and countries run by Dems (??). Then he starts in on his pet obsession, the Fed.
Really, what about Ms?
Good question,
Boston Boomer, thank you very much for being wiling to watch and live blog this debate. I could not bear to watch it firsthand, but in digest form, it is fairly amusing. These people couldn’t get past a high school debate coach, with their incredible lack of knowledge about everything.
You’re welcome.
So if we all moved from those blue coast cities, and went back to subsistence farming, we could meet at the Grange and fight railroads and silo operators. Once we are back on the gold standard And under Cleveland, we could all re-participate in the Great Panic of 1893
lol
Ding Ding – Paul Rand what was the interest rate under Reagan?
Ding Ding, Carson says I am a honest person, Hillary Clinton isn’t.
Trump, yeah we see on tv everyday how the war in Israel is going. Ding Ding.
Hahaha……Trump and Kasich going at it, that’s the way we let it. Hey, Hey, I don’t have to listen to THAT man.
Trump is such an asshole. He got some boos for that one.
Marco Rubio says there are billions of new regulations put in effect every week. WTF?! Maybe he said year, but that’s still unbelievable.
Cruz’s voice is so grating, I can’t stand to listen to him.
I have to say he is cursed with a range of difficult physical attributes
I notice Cruz didn’t get much from the audience when he said if they become the party of amnesty we will lose…………ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.
Cruz is incredibly tone deaf on immigration to talk about other countries not allowing illegal immigration against the wave of human misery in Europe.
They should ask him about that anti-gay conference he went to over the weekend.
Yes, I’d like to hear that question.
Let me just say, let me just say the truth is that the ACA went from 3,000 pages to 10,000 pages, and I’m going to crush it down to 3 pages, crush, ding that, ok, shut the hell up.
lol
She won’t let us read the three pages either.
What the hell, Obama Care is not helping anyone! She’s the biggest ding bat evah.
Two people I can’t stand to listen to anymore: Ted Cruz, and Carly.
Once upon a time over the rainbow I thought a 10% tax was fair too. Clearly I had a lot to learn.
Yes, it’s one of those things that sounds easy; but clearly we have to have a progressive tax system; because 10% of someone’s $20,000 wage takes away necessities of life, while 10% of someone’s $4 million income is a pittance. And the government would quickly go bankrupt with a flat tax, even if the Republicans cut out every single form of government spending except defense, which is their goal.
Yep,
I remember Jerry Brown advocating a flat tax when he was running in the Democratic primary against Bill Clinton. It was considered a radical “Governor Moonbeam” idea back then. How times have changed.
I don’t get Fox Business, so I am following the debate on the Internet. Sounds like the usual wingnutjobbery.
I think it’s worse than usual, frankly.
I’m trying to imagine no IRS, Commerce Dept., etc. How is Cruz going to get his pittance taxes processed?
He also said he’d abolish the payroll tax. I guess that would mean everyone is on the honor system and Social Security and Medicare would be dead as a doornail.
Sounds like Cruz will have a hell of a load of unemployed with his so called plan. Ding Dong.
Here we go: Rubio, pro family republicans. Bull.
According to the republicans, their tax plans are going to solve everything. You don’t need to go to the doctor or anything. It’s all right there in there tax solution.
lol.
Rubio is not an isolationist, lalala. Rubio is using is using this interchange with Paul well.
Rubio going for WAR WAR WAR……………Rand Paul is right, war isn’t going to make us safe.
There she goes again.
Oh, but we are going to upgrade our nuclear missiles…surely that will take care of everything. We NEED 55% of our budget for the military.
Why not 100%? Then we can eliminate all the government jobs and send everyone to fight in wars in the Middle East. You’re old? You’re a little kid? Sorry, go fight and don’t expect any health care or wages either.
Yikes.
They are horrible!
I just don’t think all those numbers Trump is throwing around, some how they don’t work when you put them together…….
Hey, how about asking Carson to answer the question. Ding Dong.
I haven’t read the revealed proposed trade agreement yet, has anyone?
Trump said there was 56,000 pages………on and on he went, it took Rand Paul to tell him China isn’t involved.
Here it is:
https://ustr.gov/trade-agreements/free-trade-agreements/trans-pacific-partnership/tpp-full-text
Thank you roofingbird, I’ll read that later on.
Carson has only answered two little questions, he getting a pass tonight.
The person who is winning is Hillary Clinton, not any of these clowns.
Jindal Turns To Bizarre ‘Toilet’ Metaphor To Bash GOP Rivals (VIDEO)
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/bobby-jindal-toilet-metaphor-debate
Jindal is such a fast talker, I missed that.
Carson just got his third question, and he says we need to take their land, and contain them. I think last week Iraq said “We don’t want any more Americans on their soil”. Russia, has been influencing the middle east since the end of WWII. Carson doesn’t know that history.
It is a real question as to who is literally crazier, Jindal, Carson, Cruz, or Paul. Rubio is just stupid, and wrong about everything; Trump just a blowhard showman; Fiorina an angry elitist; Kasich a sane but drearily conservative ’90’s Republican. But the first four are truly weird.
Trump has a potential point about the Russian airplane, assuming it was ISIS.
Hahaha………wonder what Carly was drinking on that last break, well, maybe she was hitting the pipe.
Why, oh hell, why does she keep interrupting everybody? Hahahaha.
That 2 minute history trip around the world, well it was pretty good. I just didn’t know what he was saying about Hillary, and his two 16 year old daughters? Did you catch that?
Jeb will not answer the question about Hillary and her stance on not bailing out the banks……He simply refuses to answer the question.
What the hell, Carson will not answer the question either. Good Lord.
Part of being a Republican is not having to answer anything you don’t want to. That is only for Democrats. Republicans take the Fifth, or claim immunity, or simply disdain the questions. Or somebody pardons them.
You nailed it William.
Carson: There will be many chariots filled with grain. The people in the land will prosper. I can see angels through my eyelids. My hands are full of magic. Can you repeat the question?
HAHA
LOL
All I’m getting is a black screen?
Ok, in time for Cruz and a return to the gold standard.
Okay, so Cruz says no he will not bail out Bank of America. Instead he will let the FED bail out Bank of America. The question wasn’t about the Fed Ted.
Here she comes, taking back something. Four minutes to go.
Listening to these candidates tonight, I cannot understand how a sane person could vote for any one of them. They’re truly awful.
HRC is old, Rubio is not, vote for him.
Trump let me sell that Irish golf course and put the money into a great new one in the middle of Yosemite.
Hahahha.
Holy hell, Carly had 7 ding dongs, and all the others went over on their ding dings, and now we have another 10 minutes till this is over.
J.E.B…lots of growth will cure every little thing!
You can’t grow your way out of a finite planet. You can only kill it.
Carly…… geez
The sad part is that Cruz and Rubio might still be around for next time.
I think that Rubio is actually the favorite among bookmakers to get the nominaton. I guess they figure that if it’s not Trump or Carson, it has to be someone; and Rubio is probably getting all the Walker money.
Agreed, That’s what I heard too, but if he runs and loses he will run again.
Interesting that Rubio is the bookies’ favorite. Rubio is the son of a Vegas casino bartender and a maid who also worked in a Vegas casino/hotel. Marco spent part of his childhood in Vegas. Now Rubio is the apparent cho$en one of Vegas casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson. Rubio recently co-sponsored the anti-Internet gambling bill that Adelson backs. Coincidence? I think not. Internet gambling hurts Shelly’s business. Lots of questionable money being laundered through Rubio’s campaign. Adelson is just a part of it.
“Marco Rubio’s Illegal Presidential Campaign”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/miles-mogulescu/marco-rubios-illegal-pres_b_8518884.html
“Nonprofit Masks Source of Ads Backing Rubio”
Hopefully, Carson will implode into a hundred red balloon fragments.
I swear, I don’t know what he was talking about in his closing statement…….Drugs/Abortion by the millions? They are all the same, and I am with Riverbird, they are all insane, and who in their right mind would vote for any one of them.
Yep.
Trump. Still.
Is it just me, or was this debate really that terrible.
It was execrable.
I’m still in denial over it. It disturbs me to think that there is such a large block of USAn’s who think these ideas are good and right.
Thanks for all the commentary; I got some good laughs! As long as I don’t think about how scary these wingnuts are, and the voters who put (some of) them into office. And the media being inane.
I’m still in denial that people who are often the most ignorant have the most power and ability to influence the population. I fear the future of the Republican party but most importantly how impressionable minds are actually following this crap.
Republicans got the nicer debate questions they asked for. The result was pretty boring.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/11/11/republicans-got-the-nicer-debate-questions-they-asked-for/