No clear winner in New Hampshire debate

Republican presidential candidates went after each other with renewed vengeance in Saturday night’s debate—but no clear winner emerged, leaving billionaire businessman Donald Trump in position to claim a primary victory on Tuesday.

Saturday’s event took place in Manchester, N.H., at Saint Anselm College’s New Hampshire Institute of Politics, three days before New Hampshire voters head to the polls. The debate came at a critical time for all the candidates, but especially Trump, who underperformed in Monday’s Iowa caucuses after skipping the previous GOP debate.

Trump has led 70 straight New Hampshire polls, according to debate host ABC News, and an implosion in the Granite State could prove fatal to his bombastic campaign. That now appears unlikely: With the exception of a skirmish with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Trump took little fire in the two-and-a-half-hour debate.

Bush, who delivered his second straight strong performance, went after Trump on eminent domain, chastising the mogul for using it to oust a widow from her home so he could build a limousine parking lot for his casino. Trump told Bush to be quiet and mocked him for “trying to be tough”—eliciting boos from the crowd.

“How tough is it to take property from an elderly woman?” Bush retorted.

The debate got off to an awkward start, when retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and then Trump didn’t hear their summonses to the stage. The two stood side by side as Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, and Bush glided past them when their names were called.

All three governors still in the race—Bush, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie—performed well after finishing sixth, eighth, and 10th respectively in Iowa. But the debate likely didn’t do enough to break the logjam in New Hampshire polls, which indicate Rubio, Cruz, Kasich, and Bush could all earn double-digit support on Tuesday.

Cruz, fresh off his Iowa win, performed well but didn’t take the attacks one might expect for a front-runner. He navigated his most difficult moment at the start of the debate when he was asked to explain why members of his campaign in Iowa spread the rumor that Carson was dropping out of the race. Cruz apologized to Carson and said the misunderstanding stemmed from a CNN report that Carson would be taking a campaign break following the Iowa caucuses.

During the debate, CNN released a statement disputing Cruz’s version of the story: “What Sen. Cruz said tonight in the debate is categorically false. … The fact that Sen. Cruz continues to knowingly mislead the voters about this is astonishing.”

Shortly before the start of the debate, news broke that North Korea fired a rocket that may have been a covert missile test. Debate moderator Martha Raddatz asked candidates how they would respond if they were president, and most hedged on specifics, although Cruz and Bush delivered solid answers. Trump said he would make China deal with North Korea.

Christie created some of the night’s most memorable moments in mixed efforts to revive his flagging campaign. He damaged Rubio, who had his worst debate, in an early exchange on the senator’s readiness to be president, but he lost a later battle over abortion.

Christie boasted about his pro-life views, noting that New Jersey has defunded Planned Parenthood, but then he passionately advocated for allowing women to abort babies conceived via rape and incest (exceptions Bush also supports).

Rubio pounced: “I would rather lose an election than be wrong on the issue of life.”

Late in the debate, Christie and Rubio were also part of a moment that sparked immediate backlash from social conservatives. When Raddatz asked if women should be required to register with Selective Services along with men, Rubio, Bush, and Christie—the only three who answered the question—all said yes, although Bush emphasized, “We’re not starting a draft.”

Critics pummeled all three candidates on social media.

“Not even a single GOP candidate is going to speak against the draft for women? Seriously?” wrote Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life.

“Men don’t ask women to protect them. Period. This isn’t about politics; this is about the essence of manhood, honor, God,” tweeted Owen Strachan, president of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.

“I have 1 boy and 2 girls. My boy can be drafted to serve his country. No problem. Want to conscript my girls, you better SEND the army,” tweeted Casey Mattox, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom.

Last week, two House GOP lawmakers opposed to opening combat roles to women filed a bill that would require women to register with Selective Services. They said they did so to spark a national debate on the issue.

Republicans will debate next on Feb. 13 in South Carolina.