First GOP Primary Debate goes on without Trump

While former President Trump takes off on his jet to Georgia to face yet another indictment, his competitors battle it out in Milwaukee at the first Republican primary debate. The spotlight focused heavily on Governor Desantis, former Vice President Pence, and newcomer Vivek Ramaswamy. Ramaswamy, who has been recently rising in the polls managed his way under the former Vice Presidents skin to the point where we actually saw Mike Pence come alive to snap back at the entrepreneur, calling him a "rookie". This ended up playing out well for Pence as it showed he actually has some fire inside of him. Governor Desantis was able to regurgitate his memorized lines while managing to muster a shockingly awkward smile. Nikki Haley looked sharp firing back at both Ramaswamy and Christie on several occasions. However, she finished the debate with her hand raised for Donald Trump, admitting that she would still support him as presidential nominee even if he was convicted. Christie was surprised by the new energy of his opponents and failed to stand out as much as he had hoped to. It is likely that we see a change in Christie's tactics, he may choose to ramp up his attacks on more vulnerable candidates as many of his shots at Trump and Ramaswamy were met with boos from the crowd. Overall, Pence, Ramaswamy and Haley outperformed themselves while Desantis stood his ground against the few softballs that were thrown at him. Scott and Christie underperformed while Hutchinson and Burgum struggled to garner much attention. Expect to see Pence and Haley rise in the polls. Scott and Christie will stay active in the media to avoid beginning their descend.