Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis beat the socks off former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley in the most recent GOP primary debate held by CNN, which focused largely on “women’s issues.” Haley is largely considered to be the establishment candidate in the race and many of her answers on the issue of abortion fit that description rather nicely. Which is probably going to hurt her overall chances of being the party nominee to take on President Joe Biden in the general election this November.
A poll conducted by the Daily Mail and J.L. Partners discovered that a total of 55 percent of viewers believe DeSantis defeated Haley, while 31 percent said Haley bested the Florida governor. Only 14 percent stated they weren’t sure who won.
Here’s more from the Daily Wire:
James Johnson, cofounder of J.L. Partners, told the Daily Mail that the outcome of the primary would be determined by whether the field narrowed down to two candidates, thus creating a one-on-one race vs. former President Donald Trump, who is the current frontrunner.
“Republicans who watched the debate last night gave a clear message: that person should be Ron DeSantis,” Johnson said. “He was seen as the winner over Nikki Haley as well as the best to go up against Trump.”
Ron DeSantis declared the WINNER over Nikki Haley in Daily Mail's snap poll of the most crucial debate yet pic.twitter.com/JXiKJDcprj
— Lindsey Curnutte 🐊 (@lindseycurnutte) January 12, 2024
The debate between DeSantis and Haley was intense, with both candidates trading barbs throughout the night, and Haley repeatedly urging viewers to go to a website that her campaign created that showed what they said were fact checks on DeSantis’ attacks.
“Though a different, punchier DeSantis was on display last night, this tallies with what we have known for some time,” Johnson remarked. “Nationally the Republican primary audience is very socially conservative, does not want the US to get involved in foreign wars, and is one modeled in the image of Donald Trump.”
“DeSantis ticks those boxes more than Haley, and was successful in showcasing those assets last night,” he added. “The question now is whether he can convert his debate boost into a clear second place showing in Iowa.”
As much as I like DeSantis, and I like him a whole lot, I just don’t think he’s got the support and push right now to overtake Trump. I think there are a couple of reasons for that. One, Trump has a very faithful and loyal base that is increasing in number due to the radical left’s constant assaults against him and his supporters. He’s seen as a fighter who does battle on behalf of the individuals who for years now have felt marginalized by progressives in government. Secondly, DeSantis hurt himself by promising to focus on being governor and completing his second term, but not following through by choosing to run against Trump almost immediately. He’s also taken a lot of donations from folks that are typically on board with the establishment and that’s alienated him from many who previously backed him.
Johnson said that Haley was likely to do better in the New Hampshire primary than in the Iowa caucuses next week because Independent voters can participate in the primary. “This will reduce DeSantis’ chance of getting down to what he and – as our poll shows – the national Republican primary audience most want: a showdown between DeSantis and Trump,” he said.
Weather could play a major factor in the Iowa caucuses, which begin on January 15, as forecasts show that it could be the coldest caucus in the state’s history. The National Weather Service has forecasted that there will be “life-threatening cold” temperatures during the caucus or -25 to -45 degrees.
Life-threatening winter weather is expected beginning tonight with heavy snow. White-out conditions likely Fri into Fri night. To follow, extreme wind chills as low as -45° possible through early next week.
Plan ahead for this dangerous stretch of winter weather! #iawx pic.twitter.com/LIASboryuZ— NWS Des Moines (@NWSDesMoines) January 11, 2024
I’m surprised the radical left hasn’t already ceased on the possibility of bad weather to start calling for folks to stay home and use mail-in ballots. After all, that’s the kind of strategy they employed with the COVID pandemic in the 2020 presidential race, and things miraculously seemed to work in their favor. Wink, wink.