Between the two dominant American parties, the most electrifying and sensational is the GOP primary race. The most enthralling feature of the race has been the overt and irate Donald J. Trump. Trump has dominated this primary and his poll numbers seem to have increased without limit. He is closely followed by Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Ben Carson, and Jeb Bush. There has been no love lost among these candidates and throughout last Wednesday’s debate there was plenty of mudslinging.

The debate consisted of your typical questions such as foreign policy, visions for the economy, and the social issues which have dominated the country in the past four years under the Obama administration. There were also questions asked by Fox Business Network’s hosts Neil Cavuto and Maria Baritromo which put some of the candidates’ personal and past lives in question. A great example would be when it was asked if Ted Cruz’s citizenship was valid. However, for the most part the questions that were asked had a lot of substance and forced the “elephants in the room” into the spotlight.

The questions asked covered various different topics which were previously stated, and came randomly, so essentially there was no real theme. Therefore, the topics will be arranged into three categories: Foreign Policy, Economy, and Social Issues.

Foreign Policy

What can be said about foreign policy is that each candidate believes that President Obama and his administration have done everything wrong. Whether you as the reader agrees with that statement depends on which party you follow. Nevertheless, many of Obama’s “successes” have been, in the eyes of GOP leaders, as some of America’s greatest blunders. All of the candidates agree that President Obama and Secretary Kerry conceded too much to the Iranian government. In addition, the Navy sailors who were captured by Iran’s Revolutionary guard were still in captivity at this time which increased the outrage against the relations between Iran and America. Overall, when it comes to Iran, Republicans believe that America has to be tougher. Another fiery issue is what to do with the Islamic State (ISIS), which has plagued the Middle East with religious purges and onslaughts. In light of the daring terrorist attacks in Paris and at home in San Bernardino, the candidates unanimously agreed that military action must be taken. Where they disagreed is how their strategies should be conducted. The reason why is that many Americans remember the mistakes made during our earlier crusades to the Middle East.

Trump wants to obliterate ISIS with extreme prejudice without alliances with any Arab nations. Bush on the other hand is the complete polar opposite. He believes that there should be a United Coalition with as many “friendly” nations in the region especially Israel where they would crush ISIS collectively. Everyone else falls in between the two; however, the most interesting point made was by Ben Carson. He explains that war in general has evolved where it has no rules and it has no borders. There are no uniforms worn by the enemy. Carson goes on to state that our government should not limit our military and that we should let them do their jobs without many restraints.

Economy

The plans as to what to do with the economy vary among candidates and becomes more complicated when it comes to dealing with China. Candidates like Donald Trump believe that there should be a tariff on their goods because of America’s inability to manage their debt with the Chinese. Others such as Jeb Bush believe that a tariff would only provoke China and in turn they would tax our goods which would not be beneficial for the consumer. Overall, dealing with financial rivals such as China would be imperative towards creating a stronger and more secure economy.

Another issue which was discussed was the fact that many manufacturers move their business over seas, which takes many jobs from Americans. All of the candidates agreed that these business practices are wrong. There is no problem with doing business with other countries, but they should be putting their country before their own personal gain. Therefore, there would be taxes and boycotts of goods concerning this problem.
Lastly, tax plans were inquired about. Ben Carson for example will impose a flat tax where every American citizen is taxed the same equal amount. There would be no exceptions, nor would there be any loopholes for the wealthy to exploit. Essentially, the United States has to find a system of taxation which would support individual citizens’ incomes while maintaining a steady tax revenue for the State and Federal Government.

Social Issues

In light of recent terror attacks and the numerous instances of gun violence, there was no surprise that gun violence was brought up. Republicans in general support the Second Amendment, but they also believe that something must be done to keep guns out of the wrong hands. However, some like Donald Trump believe that if some of the citizens in San Bernardino were armed then they could have fought back against the terrorists who attacked them.

Closing Thoughts

In the majority of debates a lot of the questions which are asked are not always answered. Politicians, by nature, say only what you want to hear and make promises they are most likely not going to keep. That is why I am sure who is going to win the primary. The winner will be Donald Trump. Trump is not a politician. Although what he says can be viewed as controversial and offensive at times, he will if elected do what he says he will do for a few reasons.

First he is the head of a multibillion dollar corporation. He is not running for president for fame because he is already well known. Secondly, no one is supporting him financially; therefore, he is not a puppet for someone else.

Lastly, he currently has the support of the majority of republicans. All he has to do now is play defense and keep the lead and he won his party’s support in the general election. However, Trump must continue to press the attack in this week’s debate to help secure the lead.