The GOP Debate: What You Should Know

Fox News partnered with Facebook for their two GOP Presidential debates this Thursday. Fox had to divide their broadcast into a 5:00 PM “hopefuls” session and a 9:00 PM main session due to the sheer number of major GOP presidential candidates. They picked 10 candidates to be in the main session based on their ability to provide higher ratings, and they placed the leftover candidates in the “hopefuls” debate.

The candidates in the 9:00 PM main GOP debate (in no particular order) were:
1) Florida Senator Marco Rubio
2) Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker
3) New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
4) Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee
5) Kentucky Senator Rand Paul
6) Texas Senator Ted Cruz
7) Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush
8) Ohio Governor John Kasich
9) Neurosurgeon Ben Carson
10) Businessman Donald Trump

The candidates in the 5:00 PM “hopefuls” GOP debate (in no particular order) were:
1)Texas Governor Rick Perry
2) South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham
3) Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal
4) Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum
5) Former CEO Carly Fiorina
6) Former New York Governor George Pataki
7) Former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: Planned Parenthood & Abortion

Note: While a very small percentage of Planned Parenthood’s funds and efforts go to abortions, these topics were often grouped together in the debate. In attempt to bring you information most authentic to the debate, we will include these as a group.

Huckabee: Is actively Pro-Life, declared he wants to remind the government that the Supreme Court is not the “ultimate being” and to make Pro-Life the law since abortions violate the 5th and 14th amendment for unborn individuals. He stated Planned Parenthood needs to stop selling “baby’s body parts like the parts of a Buick”.

Bush: Is actively Pro-Life, because the issue goes beyond politics for him.

Rubio: Is actively Pro-Life. When asked about his past support for rape and incest abortion exceptions, since he co-sponsored a bill with these exceptions, he denied having ever supported any exceptions.

Trump: Is actively Pro-Life, though he implied having a less concrete view on the issue in the past.

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: Immigration

Note: Amnesty is the pardoning of an immigrant’s (and their family’s) illegal status(es) once they are active members of the United States. After a certain amount of time, they can become citizens.

Bush: Is an active supporter of earned legal status, but notes that this is very different from amnesty. He emphasized the importance of earning one’s citizenship through their time and actions.

Trump: Is an extremely active supporter of building a wall, but he added that this wall should have a door solely for legal immigrants. Again, he stated that illegal immigrants are bringing drugs into the country and are the perpetrators of many killings in the country. These claims were back up with virtually no facts, so the moderator offered Trump 30 seconds to offer evidence on this point. Without statistics or official statements, Trump stated that Mexico’s officials purposely send over drugs so that American officials can pay and deal with the individuals and the aftermath.

Kasich: Noted that Trump’s no-mercy attitude hits a (positive) “nerve” for Americans that are “fed-up” with illegal immigrants, and ignoring his presence would be a mistake.

Rubio: Agrees that a wall should be built, but advocates for e-verification systems since immigrants could use “tunnels” or less publicized manners of entry. He emphasized the outdated approaches to fighting illegal immigration, since the majority of illegal immigrants today are not coming from Mexico, but from Guatemala and other countries.

Cruz: Actively advocates against amnesty. He emphasized that nobody wants to enforce immigration laws. He stated that he helped write and bring Kate Steinle’s Law to the Senate floor, where it was struck down by the Majority Leader.

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: ISIS and the Privacy of American’s Phone Records

There was a notable spat between New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul on the issue of the privacy of Americans’ phone records. Here is how it went down:

Christie: Cited his direct involvement in searching for terrorists’ phone records as incentive for making sure the filtration of non-terrorist phone records is effective and efficient.

Paul: Pointedly rebutted saying we should collect “more records from terrorists and less records from innocent Americans”.

Christie: Remarked that Paul’s statement was ridiculous and that it is easier for him to “blow hot air” in his sub-committees about the issue because he is not directly dealing with the problem.

Paul: Replied saying he does not trust Obama with Americans’ records, but “I know you (Christie) gave him a big hug” and even went on to say that if Christie wants to do it again, he should go right ahead.

OH yeah. It got heated. But other candidates weighed in on the issue as well, in a less accusatory manner.

Cruz: Emphasized that the president needs to be able to say the phrase “Radical Islamic Terrorism”  before they can beat terrorism. He noted that the discussion around changing conditions on the ground to avoid having poor young people susceptible to ISIS is “ridiculous”.

Bush: Actively stated he would not have sent in the troops to Iraq that started the war. He strongly feels that ISIS and other militant groups were the direct result of Obama bringing home the troops.

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: Political Correctness

Carson (in regard to using ethically concerning interrogation techniques): Feels our mindset of fighting politically correct wars needs to be put aside so we can use the amazing intellect we have to fight useful wars. He noted that he has be accused of not believing in the Geneva Convention, when he really does not believe in fighting a “stupid war”.

Trump: Emphasized our country’s biggest problem is political correctness, and he does not have time for “total political correctness”.

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: LGBTQ+ Issues

Kasich (on the topic of what he would do if his daughter was gay): Stated his personal belief in traditional marriage, but emphasizes that he loves his daughter unconditionally. He noted that the Supreme Court recognizes gay marriage, so he accepts it as well.

Paul: Advocates fighting against the Supreme Court ruling for same-sex marriage when it imposes its opinions of marriage onto the church.

Huckabee (on transgender members of the Armed Forces): Advocates against allowing transgender people to join the Armed Forces. He stated that the military is not a “social experiment” and its purpose is to protect America. He pointedly stated that he’s not sure how paying for sex reassignment surgeries for transgender members of the Armed Forces helps protect America. 

Hottest Topics in GOP Debate: Other Memorable Statements

Walker on Police Brutality: Advocates stronger training for law enforcement regarding use of force. He noted the importance of protecting the positive men and women in law enforcement and enforcing consequences for men and women in law enforcement who are abusing their power.

Rubio on aiding entrepreneurs and small businesses: Advocates for an evened out tax code for small businesses, a regulatory budget, repealing restraints of Obamacare and the Dodd-Frank Act, and providing higher education for everyday people so they can pursue their dream of having a small business.

Carson on race: Advocates moving past the discussion about race relations in America because they inspire a division in our nation.

That’s all HipDaily has for you now on the Presidential Race, but look forward to more interesting articles about what both sides have to say about our country for 2016.