DeSantis and Haley face off on Iowa debate stage

For the first several minutes of the debate Wednesday night, former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis traded barbs. The two eventually waded into discussions of U.S. policies toward China, how the United States should respond to the war in Gaza, and Russia’s war in Ukraine. Haley criticized President Joe Biden for not realizing that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was unavailable during a hospitalization last week while two wars were taking place: one in Europe and another in the Middle East. DeSantis said Biden had left U.S. troops “out to dry” in the Middle East and criticized his lack of response to Iranian drone strikes against American forces.

What did they disagree on? DeSantis accused Haley of supporting an “open-ended commitment” to Ukraine. Haley accused DeSantis of working with “the most anti-Israel Republican”—Rep. Thomas Massie, who has campaigned for DeSantis in Iowa. Haley blasted DeSantis for only entering a legal battle with Disney after the company criticized his policies, saying he wasn’t responding to Disney’s left-leaning social activism. Both repeatedly accused each other of lying.

Dig deeper: Listen to Paul Butler and Nick Eicher’s discussion with Mark Caleb Smith about the difference between the Iowa caucuses and presidential primaries.