By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
On Thursday, January 28, the highest polling Republican Presidential Candidates gathered on the main stage at the Fox News televised debate, without GOP frontrunner Donald Trump who held his own nationally televised event down the street with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former US Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pennsylvania). Huckabee and Santorum (despite winning the Iowa Caucus in 2008 and 2012) were relegated to the Fox News undercard debate along with former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore and former HP CEO Carly Fiorina. The Alabama Minority GOP and Alabama Constitutional Conservatives held a debate watch party at John’s Diner in downtown Birmingham.
US Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) expressed confidence in his campaign saying that he has teams caucusing in all 99 Iowa counties. “If I am elected President keep an eye on the tarmac because I will be back.” Iowa will no longer be flyover country it will be fly too country.”
Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush (R) said that he was considered in the establishment because his father and his brother were both President. Bush said, “This is an election about people who are really hurting.”
US Senator Marco Rubio (R) said, “Hillary does not run want to run against me, but I can not wait to run against Hillary Clinton.” When asked if he considered himself the Republican savior, Rubio said, “There is only one savior and it is not me. It is Jesus Christ who came down to earth and died for our sins.”
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) said, “People are frustrated about Washington DC which they see as a government that doesn’t work for them.” “As Governor of New Jersey I have gotten conservative things done and this is what I will do if elected to be President.”
Ohio Governor John Kasich (R) said that he instituted big reforms in Ohio and passed balanced budgets when he was in Congress. “We have to come together as a country.” Kasich said that he has been endorsed by 7 of 8 newspapers in New Hampshire and was optimistic about his chances in Iowa. “We work for the people. The people don’t work for us.” A President needs an attitude of servanthood.
Dr. Ben Carson said, “We are a nation of immigrants, but we have got to be smart.” “We need to stop allowing political correctness to dictate our policies, because it’s going to kill us if we don’t. In the Holy Land foundation trial in 2006 in Texas, they had a memorandum, an explanatory memorandum that talked about the fact that Americans would be easy to overcome. And to commit civilization jihad because they were going to be trying to protect the rights of the very people who were trying to subvert them.”
US Senator Rand Paul (R from Kentucky) said, “Macho rhetoric, fear mongering, and perpetual war. Is this what you want? It’s what my opponents are offering!”
New York City Billionaire and reality TV star Donald Trump said that he loved Iowa and he loved the big enthusiastic crowds who come to see him. “We have thousands of people outside trying to get in.” “Nobody is covering them.” “In Mobile Alabama we had 35000 people. That is bigger than Bernie (Sanders). I give it to him he is second.”
Rubio said that there has never been a jihadist group like ISIS. “We must keep American safe from this threat.” Rubio vowed to fight them on the battlefield and if we capture them alive they will go to Guantanamo.
Christie said that Hillary Clinton put America’s secrets at risk for her convenience. “She is not qualified to be President of the United States.”
Cruz warned that Barack Obama has dramatically deteriorated our military.
Bush said that he has prepared a comprehensive plan to destroy ISIS that has been endorsed by 12 Medal of Honor recipients. “The caliphate of ISIS has to be destroyed.” Bush promised to, “Get the lawyers off the back of the military once and for all.”
Rand Paul said, “I have always had great respect for my father” and predicted that his father’s liberty voters are not going to Ted Cruz who he said didn’t show up for the audit the Federal Reserve vote. “We think we are going to do very well in Iowa with the liberty vote.”
Dr. Carson said, “You don’t have to be a politician to tell the truth,” and that he had more experience making life and death decisions than anyone on the stage.
Kasich said that Donald Trump’s rhetoric about barring Muslims from coming to America hurt us with our friends in the Arab world.
Christie said, “The problem is that Barack Obama has made law enforcement the enemy. As President I will support law enforcement.”
Rubio said, “We don’t want to be like the rest of the world. We want to be America.” Rubio said that putting Barack Obama on the U.S. Supreme Court was a bad idea.
Bush said that he has released 34 years of his tax records, “To get records out of Hillary Clinton you need a subpoena.”
Paul said that listening to your phone calls did not prevent one terrorist attack.
Carson said that we are in a situation we have never been before. “The American people are terrified. We don’t need more of the same solutions we need different solutions.”
Cruz said that when we went into Desert Storm we had over 8000 aircraft and 529 ships, today we have just 4000 military aircraft and only 272 ships.
Rubio said that ISIS is a group that wants to trigger an apocalyptic conflict. We have the smallest Air Force in our history and the smallest navy in a 100 years.
Cruz said that his economic plan would lead to booming economic growth.
Paul said that bombing both sides of a civil war is a mistake. If we bomb Assad then ISIS may take over all of Syria.
Christie said that as President he would get rid of Planned Parenthood funding. 50 million children murdered in the womb. I can’t think of anything bigger than that
Cruz said, “f I am elected as President we will repeal every word of Obamacare.”
The Iowa Caucus is tonight at 7:00 pm
The Alabama Presidential Primary is Tuesday, March 1.
