GOP debate: Candidates attack elephant not in the room ... Donald Trump

Who won Wednesday night's Republican presidential primary debate? A former president, but not the one you may be guessing.

Donald Trump skipped the encounter, the second installment in the series, but his name was invoked and mentioned plenty nonetheless. In fact, there were few issues in which the former president's record wasn't dragged into the sparring among the candidates.

The first name-drop came about 15 minutes into the two-hour debate co-moderated by Fox Business and Univision. The issue that first drew Trump's name into the fray was the national debt. Then came immigration, the border, abortion and China.

Ironically, the winner of the debate may well have been the legacy of Ronald Reagan.

In the Trump era, Reagan's standard, once the north star for the GOP, has faded. But on Wednesday night, several of the candidates quoted Reagan, and Fox Business played short clips of his speeches.

Read on.

Donald Trump and the national debt

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie noted that the Trump administration added almost $8 billion to the country's debt during his single term, and President Joe Biden's policies have added another $5 trillion. Christie then offered up a line that other candidates would pounce on — that Trump is "hiding" rather than defending his record by not appearing on the debate stage.

"He put $7 billion and he should be in this room to answer those questions," Christie said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis added that it was Trump "who is missing in action" rather than showing up to explain his fiscal policies while he was at the helm of the "reckless" decision-making in Washington. DeSantis omitted saying that he was in the U.S. House GOP majority for the first two years of Trump's term.

"You know who else is missing in action? Donald Trump is missing in action. He should be on this stage tonight," the governor said. "He owes it to you to defend his record where they added $7.8 billion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation we have now."

GOP debate: Republican debate at Reagan library contrasts how 'Gipper,' Trump have spoken to Americans

Donald Trump, immigration and border security

Generally speaking, Republican voters applauded Trump for shoring up border security, but on Wednesday his rivals were loathe to give him credit.

Christie scoffed at Trump's border wall, saying the former president "failed on this as well" by building only 52 miles of new barrier. He then ridiculed Trump's 2016 claim that the Mexican government would foot the bill for the wall.

"I think if Mexico knew he was only going to build 52 miles, they might have paid for the 52 miles," Christie said.

Former Vice President Mike Pence took credit for the Trump administration's border security wins saying he was the one who negotiated the so-called "remain in Mexico policy" and reduced "immigration and asylum abuse by 90%."

Former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley didn't mention Trump when she addressed immigration but lauded the Trump "remain in Mexico policy" and called for its reinstatement.

DeSantis sounded almost dismissive of the Trump policies on the border as he again advocated using the military to attack the drug cartels.

"Yes, we'll build the wall," he said, adding later that "those Mexican drug cartels are going to be treated like the foreign terrorist organizations that they are."

What about the next debate? Would Trump attend a GOP presidential debate in Miami or hold his own split-screen event?

Donald Trump, law-and-order, urban violence and crime rates

The discussion on law and order in America, a key catchphrase for GOP voters, did not mention any of the four different sets of felony charges against Trump.

The exception was Christie, who used the topic to lob his most blatant taunt to the former president.

"Donald, I know you are watching. You can't help yourself. I know you're watching," he said looking at the camera as if talking directly to Trump. "And you're not here tonight not because of polls, not because of your indictments. You're not here tonight because you are afraid of being on this stage and defending your record. You're ducking these things. Let me tell you what's going to happen. You keep doing that, no one up here is going to call you Donald Trump. They're going to call you Donald Duck."

Donald Trump and China

Haley, who occupied a Cabinet-rank diplomatic post in the Trump administration, said the former president failed in his China policy by overly emphasizing trade at the expense of other threats posed by Beijing. Haley said Trump overlooked Chinese purchases of U.S. farmland, their stealing of $600 billion worth of intellectual property rights, a spy base in Cuba and the fact that American law enforcement drones are Chinese-made.

Donald Trump and energy

Pence again took credit for Trump administration policies without crediting his former boss. The ex-veep said a "signature accomplishment" of their tenure was energy independence, as the United States became a net exporter of energy for the "first time in 75 years."

Donald Trump and Obamacare

Pence was asked to explain why the Trump administration failed to repeal Obamacare, which has been a decade-long talking point and promise by GOP candidates across the United States.

Pence ducked the question but took a shot at Trump.

"My former running mate, Donald Trump, actually has a plan to start to consolidate more power in Washington, D.C., to consolidate more power in the executive branch," he said, and then added that he would reduce the federal government by returning housing, Obamacare and overall health care responsibilities to the states.

Donald Trump and abortion

DeSantis took Trump to task for his recent statements that abortion bans, like Florida's six-week prohibition, cost Republican candidates in 2022 and would penalize them in 2024.

"The former president, he's missing in action tonight. He's had a lot to say about that," DeSantis said. "He should be here explaining his comments to try to say that pro-life protesters are somehow a terrible thing. I want him to look into the eyes and tell it to people who've been fighting this fight for a long time."

Donald Trump and the polls

Fox debate moderator Dana Perino, who was White House spokeswoman under George W. Bush, sought to close out the debate with a question about Trump's lead in the polls. Perino surmised that the only way for someone other than Trump to win the nomination would be for current candidates to drop out and back someone other than the former president.

So, Perino asked the candidates to say who they believe "should be voted off the island" now to boost a non-Trump candidate.

DeSantis immediately rejected the question, but co-moderator Stuart Varney noticed Christie writing a name. Christie revealed it should be Trump.

"I vote Donald Trump off the island right now," Christie said, insisting that Trump is disrespecting voters by not debating and is a polarizing influence. "This guy has not only divided our party. He's divided families all over this country. He's divided friends all over this country. I've spoken to people — and I know everyone else has — who have sat at Thanksgiving dinner or a birthday party and can't have a conversation anymore if they disagree with Donald Trump."

But entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy said he thinks "Trump was an excellent president."

"But the America First agenda does not belong to one man," Ramaswamy added, noting it is time for a leadership change. "It does not belong to Donald Trump. It doesn't belong to me. It belongs to you, the people of this country."

Who won the debate? Reagan's legacy as Donald Trump wasn't praised, but the 40th president was frequently lauded

The debate was held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library & Museum in Simi Valley, California, and references to "The Gipper" abounded, from clips of his speeches to references to the 40th president as the gold standard of the modern American conservative movement.

South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott invoked Reagan's "city on a hill" mantra in a soliloquy on racism and equality in America in which Scott condemned Democratic President Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society" programs.

"Frankly, the city on the hill needs a new leader," Scott said. "And I am asking for your vote."

Pence and Haley invoked Reagan's "peace through strength" axiom in chiding DeSantis and Ramaswamy for not being fully committed to the defense of Ukraine in the face of the Russian invasion.

Pence invoked Reagan's advocacy of limited federal government and a strong national defense in calling on GOP voters to reject the "siren song of populism," a code for Trump's isolationist foreign policy and protectionism.

DeSantis quoted a marker by Reagan's grave that every person has a purpose and worth and that we are better off when everybody counts.

Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Republican debate: Trump takes broadsides while Reagan lauded on stage