The GOP Debate Got Heated Over Trump’s Indictments

When debate moderator Bret Baier asked a stage of 2024 Republican presidential hopefuls to raise their hands if they would support their absent rival Donald Trump’s nomination even if he was convicted in one of the many court cases he’s currently facing, all but two of the eight candidates present raised their hands.

What followed was a bashing fest between the candidates outwardly opposed to Trump’s reelection, and those tripping over themselves to prove their loyalty to the former president — with heavy audience participation and dose of moderation chaos.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was direct in his refusal to support the former president, shaking his finger “no” in response to Baier’s question.

“Here’s the bottom line, someone’s got to stop normalizing this conduct, ” Christie said. “Whether or not you believe that the criminal charges are right or wrong, the conduct is beneath the office of the president of the United States.”

The statement drew a mix of applause and boos from the crowd — and prompted fellow candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to pounce.

“Let’s just speak the truth, Trump was the best president of the 21st century,” Ramaswamy responded. “I am not running for president of MSNBC. I am running for president of the United States. We cannot set a precedent where the party in power uses political force to indict political opponents. It is wrong.”

At this point, Baier had to turn around and address the screaming audience, whose mingled jeers and applause had drowned out the candidates. “The more time we spend doing this, the less time they can talk about issues you want to talk about,” Baier said.

The conversation turned to Trump’s repeated bashing of former Vice President Mike Pence, a current candidate, over his refusal to participate in a scheme to usurp the Electoral College certification in favor of Trump on Jan. 6. Pence was one of the candidates who raised his hand when asked if he’d still support Trump if he were convicted.

“Do you believe that Mike Pence did the right thing?” moderator Martha MacCallum asked the candidates.

“We need to end the weaponization of these federal agencies,” Ron DeSantis said, before being reminded by moderators that that was not the question.

“The American people deserve to know whether everyone on the stage agrees that I kept my oath to the constitution that day,” Pence added.

“Mike did his duty, I’ve got no beef with him,” DeSantis replied. “Is this what we’re gonna be focused on going forward? The rehashing of this? I’ll tell you, the democrats would love that.”

After former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson reaffirmed his opposition to Trump, adding that he believed his conduct disqualified him under the rules of the RNC, moderators attempted to move on — but it was not to be.

Ambassador Nikki Haley attempted to play the middle, stating that while she trusts the American people to make up their own mind, “three quarters of Americans don’t want a rematch between Trump and Biden. We have to face the fact that Trump is the most disliked politician in America. We cannot win a general election that way.”

Ramaswamy jumped back in, demanding that Pence join him in making a commitment to pardoning Trump should one of them win the presidency, and the former president be convicted. “I don’t know why you assume Donald Trump will be convicted of these crimes. That is the difference between you and me,” Pence responded before emphasizing that he “had no right to overturn the election.”

Trump did not attend the debate himself, of course, instead opting to sit down for an interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, which aired at the same time as the debate.

It does seem like he watched it, though. “I never asked Mike Pence to put me above the Constitution. Who would say such a thing? A FAKE STORY!” he wrote on Truth Social following the end of the broadcast.

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