--- title: Republican Debate: Trump Called Out For Comments on Women description: Carly Fiorina and Jeb Bush both put Donald Trump in uncomfortable positions onstage Wednesday night about his comments on women. canonical: https://time.com/4037757/donald-trump-carly-fiorina-republican-debate/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-09-17T02:08:10.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:32:25.352Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Called Out During Debate For His Comments on Women og:description: Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina went on the attack. og:url: https://time.com/4037757/donald-trump-carly-fiorina-republican-debate/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1b6d5668986e2c1/698864170b72e325f56e5ddb/carly-fiorina-donald-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2100 og:image:height: 1181 og:image:alt: carly-fiorina-donald-trump og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Called Out During Debate For His Comments on Women twitter:description: Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina went on the attack. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc1b6d5668986e2c1/698864170b72e325f56e5ddb/carly-fiorina-donald-trump.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Trump Called Out During Debate for Comments on Women > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=37b586d1-ea4b-4ff5-be7b-2c974a75da27&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: CNN 2016 Presidential Debate: Fiorina on Trump [Watch (HLS stream): CNN 2016 Presidential Debate: Fiorina on Trump](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7FlcbfG9.m3u8) (0:35)  _Published 2015-09-17. CNN 2016 Presidential Debate: Fiorina on Trump_  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Sep 17, 2015 2:08 AM UTC  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Sep 17, 2015 2:08 AM UTC Donald Trump was put in uncomfortable positions at the Republican debate Wednesday night when debate moderators and candidates called him out on comments he’s made about women. In a heated exchange, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard Carly Fiorina, the only woman on the stage, was asked to respond to Trump’s recent comment about her to _Rolling Stone_ last week, where he said, “Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that, the face of our next president.” Fiorina’s response onstage was concise, and left Trump fumbling: “I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr. Trump said,” she said. To which Trump blushed and responded, “I think she’s got a beautiful face and I think she’s a beautiful woman.” Florida Governor Jeb Bush similarly made Trump address his comments on Columba Bush in which Trump said that “if my wife were from Mexico, I think I would have a soft spot for people from Mexico.” “To subject my wife into the middle of a raucous political conversation was completely inappropriate and I hope you apologize for that,” Bush said to Trump onstage. Trump declined to apologize, arguing he had done nothing wrong, but said, “I have to tell you, I hear phenomenal things. I hear your wife is a lovely woman.” ### See the Covers of the 2016 Presidential Hopefuls' Memoirs  The cover of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's 2014 book "Hard Choices" is a classic of the political memoir genre: The politician's face, front and center with a strong but vague title beneath.  Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina's 2007 book "Tough Choices" followed the same playbook as Clinton's, even down to the similar titles.  Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson's 2014 book "One Nation" is a variation on the theme, the crossed arms and the subtitle underlining the message, since he's not been a politician before.  Former New York Gov. George Pataki's 1998 autobiography, "Pataki," presents him as such a towering figure that he doesn't even need a regular title.  Other politicians go for a softer touch with a more autobiographical book to help voters learn more about who they are, as in Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's 2013 memoir, "An American Son."  South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham's 2015 e-book, "My Story," takes a similar approach.  Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum's 2005 book, "Rick Santorum," is less autobiographical, but the cover also goes for the soft touch.  Some books zero in on a specific image. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's 2015 book, "God, Guns, Grits and Gravy" and the photo of him, tieless, in a pastoral scene, sells him as an avatar of rural America.  Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry's 2014 book defends the Boy Scouts, reinforcing the fact that he's an Eagle Scout and a cultural conservative.  And business mogul Donald Trump's 1988 book, "The Art of the Deal," sells his image as a dealmaker so much that he still references it today.  Other candidates aim to show they are leaders, as in Ohio Gov. John Kasich's 2006 book, "Stand for Something."  Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul's 2015 book, "Taking a Stand," goes a similar route, though the subtitle, "Moving Beyond Partisan Politics," gives it a slightly different spin.  Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's 2015 book also pitches him as a truth teller, with a casual portrait and the title "A Time for Truth." AP  Former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee's 2010 book, "Against the Tide," also promotes him as willing to go it alone, in this case referencing his vote against the Iraq war.  Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's 2014 book, "Unintimidated," goes the same route, promoting his fight against labor unions. Penguin Group/AP  And Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's 2010 book, "Leadership and Crisis," adds a photo of first responders to bring to mind natural disasters.  But the cover of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders' 1998 memoir shows that he really does go his own way. It breaks all the design rules, looking more like an airport thriller. ## Transcript Would you feel comfortable with Donald Trump's finger on the nuclear codes? That's not for me to answer, it is for the voters of this country to answer. And I have a lot of faith in the common sense, and good judgement, of the voters of the United States of America. Mr. Trump [ APPLAUSE ] First of all, Rand Paul shouldn't even be on the stage. He's number 11, he's got 1 % in the polls, and how he got up here. There's far to many people. Anyway, as far as temperament, and we all know that. As far as temperament. And believe me, my temperament is very good, very calm. But we will be respected outside of this country. 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