The four low-polling Republican presidential candidates in Tuesday night’s undercard debate aren’t long for the 2016 race, but some of the arguments that came up will endure.
All four disagreed with Donald Trump’s Muslim exclusion proposal, but with important qualifications. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum argued that Islam is not just a religion but also a political ideology, including strictures of sharia law not covered by the First Amendment.
“Not all Muslims are radical jihadists,” he said, adding he doubted that Trump disagreed. “But all radical jihadists are Muslims.”
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, generally the most hawkish candidate on the stage and the only incumbent officeholder, argued Trump’s proposal was counterproductive. He apologized to the Muslim world on Trump’s behalf. “If you want to be commander-in-chief, up your game,” he exhorted the Republican front-runner. Graham argued alliances with moderate Muslims who don’t want to live under ISIS are key to winning the war on terror.
Graham repeatedly hit not only Rand Paul but also Ted Cruz as examples of a once-revived Republican isolationism that is now “in retreat.” Paul has frequently been criticized along these lines, but Cruz has only recently been the target of such jibes. It will be interesting to see whether that continues in the main debate, when competitors like Marco Rubio try to contrast themselves with the Texas senator on foreign policy.
Not even George Pataki expressed any confidence in the federal government’s ability to effectively screen Syrian refugees. Huckabee suggested that if the Obama administration is confident, it should set up camps in Martha’s Vineyard, the Upper East Side of Manhattan and the White House lawn.
Pataki and Graham were the most frequent Trump critics, reflecting both genuine disagreement and a desire to generate some headlines coming out of the debate.
