GOP debate update: Final thoughts

Huckabee’s name got mentioned again during the last thirty minutes — by mistake. Cue the disappointed sighs of Huckabee supporters. While he wasn’t heard as frequently throughout the debate, he’s strong when he was speaking. He spoke passionately of making government more moral, but because his presence wasn’t as strong as some of his competitors, his arguments didn’t resonate as much.

When asked whether he believes Trump is morally capable of being president, Huckabee remained kind in his response. He defended Trump and mentioned his respect for his fellow presidential candidate. In this debate, Huckabee was the nice guy. He spoke passionately of a moral government and creating a fairer country, but failed to stand out. He never interrupted a candidate, and he always waited to speak until he was spoken to. During his final statement, Huckabee looked viewers in the eyes, and assured everyone that he’s working towards the betterment of the country. Overall, Huckabee didn’t do as well as the other candidates. Compared to his more aggressive competitors, he doesn’t stand a chance.

The topic of Trump’s claims against Rubio was brought up by the moderator, saying that Trump referred to Rubio as “Mark Zuckerberg’s personal senator.” Rubio responded by saying that the mainstream media is helping Hillary Clinton by acting as a Super PAC, making Clinton look good despite the Benghazi hearings. Rubio fell back on criticizing Clinton as a way to detract attention other people’s views on Rubio’s relationship with mass media.

The moderator then referred to Rubio as a “champion of Americans living paycheck to paycheck,” referring to Rubio’s advocacy of financially struggling Americans. Rubio’s tax plan is highly criticized by both Democrats and Republicans; both parties say that it’s unfeasible and wouldn’t actually help low-income families. Rubio defended his plan, arguing that it will help people on the lower end of the financial spectrum.

Rubio then touched on illegal immigration and disagreed with our current system. In Rubio’s eyes, the solution to the problem centers around one question: Are they coming to live here or to be an American?

He also talked about Social Security reform, making it clear that the problem is for future generations, not the current ones. America should care about the country’s future, not just its present.

Rubio closed off the debate by touching on his personal heritage, and how the nation changed the history of his family. Rubio wholeheartedly believes in the American dream because of his personal experience with it, and he refuses to let it slip away.