RNC: Only 7 GOP candidates qualify for Round 2 of primary debates

RNC: Only 7 GOP candidates qualify for Round 2 of primary debates – Hutchinson OUT

By ramontomeydw // 2023-09-28

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Only seven Republican candidates qualified for the second round of the presidential debates, according to the Republican National Committee (RNC). The RNC released the names of candidates qualified to join the Sept. 27 debate, which was held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley California. The qualified candidates were as follows:

Former President Donald Trump
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
Former Vice President Mike Pence
South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley
Vivek Ramaswamy, entrepreneur

According to the Washington Post (WaPo), the RNC is "raising the threshold required to qualify for each successive debate." Unfortunately, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson did not make the cut. "To make the Simi Valley stage, candidates had to prove that they had at least 50,000 unique donors to their campaigns," WaPo noted. "They [also] had to register at least three percent in two national polls or three percent in one national poll and two polls from separate early-nominating states such as Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada." (Related: Anti-woke presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy vaults into third place in Republican primary behind Trump and DeSantis.) In a statement, RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said the Sept. 27 debate "is another opportunity for the RNC to share our diverse candidate field with the American people." She continued: "The Republican Party is united around one common goal – beating [President Joe] Biden – and there is no better place to showcase our conservative vision for the future than the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library." Meanwhile, Hutchinson responded to the news of his exclusion by pledging to keep campaigning for president in Iowa and other early primary states like New Hampshire. "I understand that the RNC and the media are trying to reduce the number of candidates, but I measure success based on the response I receive in early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire," he said. "My goal is to increase my polling numbers to four percent in an early state before Thanksgiving. If that goal is met, then I remain competitive and in contention for either Caucus Day or Primary Day."

Trump says his GOP rivals "running for a job" under him

While Trump was among the seven qualified candidates, he declined to attend the Sept. 27 debate – echoing his refusal to show up in the first round last August. The former president has zero reason to appear in the debates, given that he has consistently topped surveys with double-digit leads against his rivals. Trump instead took swipes at his GOP rivals during a separate engagement, this time joining workers on strike at an automotive plant in Clinton Township, Michigan. He remarked that the other candidates "are all running for a job" in his administration. "We're competing with the job candidates. They are all running for a job," he quipped. According to Trump, his rivals will "do anything" just to be a secretary under him the moment he returns to the White House. The real estate mogul-turned-chief executive also pointed out that he doesn't see anyone who is vice president (VP) material among the participants of the Sept. 27 primary debate. "They even say VP? I don't know," Trump remarked. "Does anybody see any VP in the group? I don't think so." The former president also noted that he drew a larger crowd than his rivals, who congregated in California for the second primary debate. "They don't have a crowd like we have," Trump said, adding thousands were outside the plant hoping to get inside. Head over to VoteRepublican.news for more stories about the GOP in the upcoming 2024 presidential elections. Watch this Reuters report about former President Donald Trump skipping the second round of the primary debate to appear before striking auto workers. This video is from the High Hopes channel on Brighteon.com.

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Trump says his GOP rivals "running for a job" under him

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