Donald Trump has come under attack from all sides in a fiery
debate between the top Republican presidential candidates in the 2016 election. The party's frontrunner, a billionaire businessman with no
political experience, refused to apologise over comments about the wife of Jeb
Bush.
And he was on the receiving end when Carly Fiorina drew huge
applause facing up to his recent jibe over her looks. Fifteen Republicans are vying to be the party's White House
nominee in 2016. With more than a year until polling day, the second
Republican debate in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California saw
Mr Bush and Mr Trump trading blows several times.
Their most notable clash in the debate, hosted by CNN, came
when the former Florida governor demanded that the tycoon apologise to his wife
for saying he was weak on immigration because she is Mexican. Mr Trump refused.
But the loudest audience response of the night came when Ms
Fiorina was asked about an interview in which Trump said she could not be
president because "Look at that face".
She replied, to thunderous applause:
"I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr Trump said."
Mr Trump's exchange with Mr Bush:
JB: "To subject my wife into the middle of a raucous
political conversation was completely inappropriate and I hope you apologise
for that Donald."
DT: "Well, I have to tell you I hear phenomenal things,
I hear your wife is a lovely woman. I don't know her."
JB: "She is, she's fantastic. She is absolutely the
love of my life, and she's right here, and why don't you apologise to her right
now?"
DT: "No, I won't do that because I said nothing wrong,
but I do hear she's a lovely woman."
Mr Trump's exchange with Ms Fiorina:
Moderator Jake Tapper gives Ms Fiorina the chance to respond
to Mr Trump's comments about her in Rolling Stone magazine in which he said:
"Look at that face. Would anyone vote for that. Can you imagine that as
the face of our next president?" Mr Trump later said he was talking about
her persona, not her appearance.
CF: "You know it's interesting to me. I think women all
over this country heard very clearly what Mr Trump said."
(Loud applause)
DT: "I think she's got a beautiful face and I think
she's a beautiful woman."
But if Mr Trump predictably took plenty of punches, as the
candidate who has held a commanding lead for much of the campaign, he gave as
good he got throughout the debate in his trademark style.
He returned fire on Kentucky Senator Rand Paul with an
oblique personal insult about his appearance, mocked the fiscal record of
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and introduced himself with the words: "I
say, not in a braggadocious way, I've made billions and billions of
dollars."
Other highlights in the debate:
Mr Bush said the UK's former prime minister, Margaret
Thatcher, should have her face on the $10 bill Ms Fiorina said women's health organisation Planned
Parenthood should be denied all state funding, even if it triggers a government
shutdown the only woman in the field also attacked the record of the
Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton Chris Christie said Mrs Clinton should be prosecuted for
using a private email server Marco Rubio and Mr Bush defended speaking Spanish on the
campaign trail, after criticism from Mr Trump
Mr Bush admitted smoking pot in his youth, while Rand Paul
took flak for defending legal marijuana the Kentucky senator also said he would not send US troops
back to Iraq to fight Islamic State militants Ben Carson, second in the polls, had a quiet night Ted Cruz said he was the only candidate not backing amnesty
for illegal immigrants.
Source
BBC NEWS
Source
BBC NEWS
No comments