As the first Republican presidential debate approaches, many may wonder how the various hopefuls are getting ready—and how the American people will receive their pitches against the backdrop of the absence of former president Donald J. Trump.
In a series of interviews, campaign representatives and knowledgeable analysts shared insights on the coming spectacle.
DeSantis, Ramaswamy, and ‘Trump in Absentia’
Last week, a debate memo published on the website of a firm linked to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis offered some initial clues as to what observers should expect at the event, which will take place in Milwaukee on Aug. 23.
The memo suggested Mr. DeSantis could “hammer Vivek Ramaswamy in a response.”
“Take a sledge-hammer to Vivek Ramaswamy: ‘Fake Vivek’ Or ‘Vivek the Fake,'” it reads.
In addition, it advises him to attack both President Joe Biden and the media repeatedly and “defend Donald Trump in absentia in response to a Chris Christie attack.”
President Trump confirmed he would not participate in the Aug. 23 debate in an Aug. 20 post on his Truth Social platform.
The New York Times first reported that an interview of President Trump by Tucker Carlson would run opposite the debate. Mr. Carlson’s new online show has run on X, formerly Twitter. His account can be reached here.
The Trump-less candidate gabfest will air on Fox News, the network that recently fired Mr. Carlson.
When asked by The Epoch Times about Mr. Christie’s debate strategy, the executive director of the former New Jersey governor’s PAC, Tell It Like It Is, shared a one-sentence “Memoranda” email: “Be yourself, and tell it like it is.”
Mr. DeSantis reacted to the leaked debate memo in recent comments to Fox News, stating that it was not his document and that he had not reviewed it.
“It’s just something that we have and put off to the side,” he said.
“I know from the military when you’re over the target, that’s when you’re taking flak. And if you look really in the last six to nine months, I’ve been more attacked than anybody else,” Mr. DeSantis added.
Reached by The Epoch Times, a spokesperson for Mr. DeSantis’s campaign shared messaging guidance from DeSantis campaign manager James Uthmeier.
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