Tuesday night’s fourth Republican debate highlighted which GOP candidates are serious about addressing business and economic issues and which are “in over their heads,” according to one influential group in Republican circles.
David McIntosh, president of the conservative Club for Growth, said the debate, hosted by Fox Business Network and the Wall Street Journal, “went a long way toward weeding out the pretenders in the GOP field.”
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“As the debate delved into tax reform specifics, real entitlement reform, and proposals for cutting federal spending by abolishing federal agencies, it became clear that Donald Trump and Dr. Ben Carson are in over their heads,” McIntosh said in a statement released shortly after the debate.
“[Trump and Carson’s] talking points don’t measure up to the detailed plans — backed by credible records — put forth by Senators Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and Rand Paul,” he added.
The group has repeatedly targeted both Trump and Carson, the two outsider candidates currently leading the Republican field, for their tax plans and positions on healthcare. In late October, the group accused Carson of being “anti-capitalist” for wanting to establish government-subsidized health savings accounts for Americans.
The “white papers” released by the Club on Carson and Trump also claim neither candidate would be a “pro-growth” president.
Despite the Club’s reaction, Carson told FBN’s Neil Cavuto in a post-debate interview, “I feel good about the answers I gave.”
“There wasn’t anything that was said tonight that I’m not 100 percent familiar with and ready to discuss,” the retired neurosurgeon said.
