Who won the 4th GOP presidential primary debate? Many “experts” seem to believe it was former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, while many among the GOP base strongly believe otherwise.
“Haley was head and shoulders above the boys. She came under withering attack from [Ron] DeSantis and [Vivek] Ramaswamy and proved herself unflappable. Haley was meticulously prepared and her answers were considered and substantive. Her momentum should continue,” GOP consultant Bill O’Riley told the New York Post.
O’Brien Murray, a campaign strategist for Republicans and conservative Democrats, concurred.
“Haley was the leader on stage from beginning to end. She stayed in front of the pack and showed she is the biggest threat to Donald Trump, who will still be far in the lead for the GOP nomination,” he said.
Presidential candidate Nikki Haley: “For every 30 minutes that someone watches TikTok every day, they become 17% more antisemitic, more pro-Hamas.”pic.twitter.com/AWdl56QPjG — Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) December 7, 2023
Democrat consultant Hank Sheinkopf meanwhile accused the other debate participants — all of them men — of being “jealous” of her.
“It was pin-the-tail-on-Haley. Did it work? I don’t think so. She did a good job at defending herself … If there were an election going on, she would be the one to beat,” he said.
Even body language “expert” Greg Hartley believes Haley won as per her calm and cool demeanor.
“She did better across the board than the other folks. But it’s not because she was brilliant. It’s because she was contained,” he told the Post.
However, these “expert” views don’t appear to be shared among the GOP base, for whom the real winner was either Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, political outsider Vivek Ramaswamy, or (in very rare cases) former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie:
Christie won this debate. — David Marcus (@BlueBoxDave) December 7, 2023
Vivek won the debate and it wasnt even close. — Cassandra MacDonald (@CassandraRules) December 7, 2023
DeSantis has won two debates two weeks in a row now. His biggest asset is his record. — Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) December 7, 2023
DeSantis is running this campaign in a growing crescendo. He won hands down, tonight. — Justin Hart (@justin_hart) December 7, 2023
It’s super simple: DeSantis won the night and Haley got crushed. pic.twitter.com/zVaztoIXKo — Pedro L. Gonzalez (@emeriticus) December 7, 2023
Ramaswamy in particular received raving reviews for his obliterating attacks on Haley.
“Ramaswamy attacked Haley in the opening minutes of the debate, criticizing her for accepting donations from wealthy donors, including some who have supported President Joe Biden, and for her support of the US providing aid to Ukraine,” according to CNN.
“Ramaswamy reiterated his attacks on Haley’s ties to donors throughout the debate, culminating in him holding up a handwritten sign on his notepad that read ‘Nikki = Corrupt’ as he defended himself from claims that his attacks against her were sexist,” CNN reported after the debate.
He said, “After the third debate, when I criticized Ronna McDaniel after five failed years of leadership of this party and criticized Nikki for her corrupt foreign dealings as a military contractor, she said that I have a woman problem.”
“Nikki, I don’t have a woman problem,” he continued. “You have a corruption problem. And I think that that’s what people need to know. Nikki is corrupt.”
Watch:
Interestingly, at one point DeSantis joined Ramaswamy in his attacks, earning him a tremendous amount of praise on social media as well.
“DeSantis and Ramaswamy spent most of their time taking shots at Haley, who has risen in polls and drawn increased interest from donors on the strength of her previous debate performances,” according to Reuters.
“She caves anytime the left comes after her, anytime the media comes after her,” the Florida governor said at one point.
He went on to boast about his state’s ban on transgender surgery for kids and slammed Haley for reportedly opposing the law.
Another example of DeSantis and Vivek teaming up and going after Nikki here. As previously reported Vivek and DeSantis appeared very friendly with each other during commercial breaks. pic.twitter.com/Bbt90k4cXu — Noah Griffith (@Noah_Griffith_) December 7, 2023
There’s one final contingent of debate watchers and, in fact, non-watchers — those who support former President Donald Trump.
According to them, his overwhelming polling numbers made him the default winner of the debate, even though he didn’t even show up for it.
Look:
Who won the debate last night? I vote Trump! — Keri (@nunyabiznichky1) December 7, 2023
BREAKING: I just received word that Donald J. Trump has won the fourth GOP debate. — Suburban Black Man (@niceblackdude) December 7, 2023
Good morning to everyone who knows President Donald J. Trump won the fourth debate last night. — Real Phil Jones ™ (@RealPJones) December 7, 2023
President Donald J Trump won the 4th GOP debate tonight without ever showing up! #Trump2024 pic.twitter.com/XX23pErv6O — ⚜️ Queen Katerina⚜️ (@QueenDarbyy) December 7, 2023
President Trump won the GOP Debate. No Republican on the debate stage has Trump’s economic record. Polls show the majority of American voters believe Trump is the best candidate to fix Biden’s awful economy. The GOP debate will not change the polls. pic.twitter.com/pJ6omtVla8 — Charles R Downs (@TheCharlesDowns) December 7, 2023
That being said, who do YOU, dear reader, think won the debate? Leave a comment below and let us know.