--- title: GOP Debate: Republicans Make Their Final Pitches to Voters description: With days to go until Iowa caucus, Republicans use their last moment in the sun to sell themselves to voters canonical: https://time.com/4199259/republican-debate-closing-arguments/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-29T06:50:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:40:57.496Z article:section: Politics og:title: Republicans Make Their Final Pitch to Voters Before Iowa og:description: Here were their closing arguments. og:url: https://time.com/4199259/republican-debate-closing-arguments/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d2a86510ee31d3/69887b25428a9e573fcd129d/republican-presidential-debate-gop-jan-28-photos-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4624 og:image:height: 2601 og:image:alt: TIMEPOL debate og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Republicans Make Their Final Pitch to Voters Before Iowa twitter:description: Here were their closing arguments. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d2a86510ee31d3/69887b25428a9e573fcd129d/republican-presidential-debate-gop-jan-28-photos-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Republicans Make Their Final Pitch to Voters Before Iowa > 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=7d275526-b64b-4b99-bf4f-52872a9134b7&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Watch The Republican Debate in Under 4 Minutes [Watch (HLS stream): Watch The Republican Debate in Under 4 Minutes](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/yAWlwSjX.m3u8) (3:34)  _Published 2016-01-29. GOP Debate-012816-v1_ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Jan 29, 2016 6:50 AM UTC GOP Debate-012816-v1 by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Jan 29, 2016 6:50 AM UTC Just a couple days before the Iowa caucuses, seven Republican presidential candidates made their final pitch to voters at a Republican debate. The candidate who has been a surprisingly commanding force in the primary contest was notably absent from the debate, as businessman Donald Trump opted out of attending. Here’s what the others had to say (and why they said it): **Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Texas Sen. Ted Cruz Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA If Donald engages in insults or anybody else, I don’t intend to reciprocate. I have not insulted Donald personally and I don’t intend to. I am glad Donald is running. I’m glad he has produced enormous enthusiasm, and, to every Donald Trump voter or potential voter, I hope to earn your support. I know everyone else on this stage hopes to earn your support. Now, there is a difference between personal insults and attacks — between going into the mud with ad hominems and focusing on issues and substance. I think issues and substance, policy and vision and record should be the meat of politics. That’s fair game. That’s where I’m going to focus. _What does it mean?_ Sen. Ted Cruz trying not to offend Trump supporters since the two contenders are vying for the same conservative voters in Iowa, but he wants to make clear that they should back him over Trump. **Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Florida Sen. Marco Rubio Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA Let’s begin by being clear about what this campaign is about, it’s not about Donald Trump—he’s an entertaining guy, he’s the greatest show on earth. This campaign is about the greatest country in the world and a president who has systematically destroyed many of the things that made America special. You see, we usually elect presidents in America that want to change the things that are wrong in America. Barack Obama wants to change America. Barack Obama wants America to be like the rest of the world. We don’t want to be like the rest of the world, we want to be like the United States of America. That is why Hillary Clinton cannot win this election … if I’m our nominee I will unite this party and we will defeat Hillary Clinton. _Why did he say it?_ Rubio is trying to make the case that he’s the most electable candidate and the best-positioned to defeat Clinton in the general election while also throwing enough red meat out to satisfy conservative voters. **Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA Bret, we’re just starting. The first vote hasn’t been counted. Why don’t we let the process work. I trust Iowans, Granite Staters, people in South Carolina, people in Nevada, to start this process out. _Why did he say it?_ Once perceived as a frontrunner, Bush is lagging in the polls. He’s using the classic “the only poll that matters is the one on Election Day” logic while arguing that he’s in the race for the long haul. **Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA This is what makes a difference when you’re a governor. You can change your mind. Ted can change his mind. Marco can change his mind. It’s perfectly legal in this country to change your mind. But when you’re a governor, you have to admit it. You can’t hide behind parliamentary tricks. That’s the difference, and that’s the kind of leader we need in the White House. Stop the Washington bull and let’s get things done. _Why did he say it?_ Christie is trying to cast himself as an experienced leader as well as a Washington outsider in order to split the difference between voters looking for a fresh face and those who want a steady hand. **Gov. John Kasich of Ohio** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Ohio Gov. John Kasich Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA We cannot fix things in this country — the Social Security, the border, balancing the budget, getting wages to grow faster — unless we lead as conservatives, but we also invite people in from the other party. We have to come together as a country. And we have to stop all the divisions. And, you know, that’s been my message in New Hampshire. And having been in New Hampshire and here in Iowa, but in New Hampshire, I just received the support of seven out of eight of the newspapers in that state because they see positive, they see unity, they see coming together, and they see a record of change and a record of accomplishment. _Why did he say it?_ Though the Iowa caucuses are the first in the nation, Kasich has essentially thrown in the towel on the Hawkeye State and has opted instead to focus on making headway in the more stubbornly independent New Hampshire. **Ben Carson** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA I will gladly confess that I’m the only one on this stage with no political title. You’re not going to hear a lot of polished political speech from me, but you will hear the truth. And I don’t think you have to be a politician to tell the truth … we are in a situation right now in our country that we have never been in before. We need people who think out of the box and can solve problems, can utilize the resources around them, very smart people, to focus on the problem and solve the problem. _Why did he say it?_ Carson’s sticking to the message that served him well in the past: He’s not a career politician. **Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky** _What did he say?_ --- > “” ---  Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky. Charlie Neibergall—AP I’m an eye surgeon from Bowling Green, Kentucky, I miss doing eye surgery, still get to do a little bit. Did a couple of cataract surgeries over Christmas holidays. Got to go to Haiti last year. I’ve gotten to do some incredible things. Got to be on the floor of the Senate. And it has been amazing to me. _Why did he say it?_ After being dropped from the last debate due to low poll numbers, Paul seemed freer, mostly happy to talk about the issues he cares about without worrying whether he’ll win Iowa or New Hampshire or anywhere else. ## Transcript [00:00] Welcome to the seventh Republican presidential debate. [00:03] I'm a maniac and everyone on this stage is stupid, [00:07] fat and ugly. And Ben, you're a terrible surgeon. [ LAUGH ] [00:11] Now that we've gotten the Donald Trump portion out of the [00:13] way. [ LAUGH ] He's an entertaining guy, he's the greatest [00:16] show on earth. I have not insulted Donald personally and I [00:18] don't intend to. I kind of Donald Trump, he was a little teddy [00:21] bear to me. I want to thank Everyone here for showing the [00:24] men and women of Iowa the respect, to show up and make [00:28] the case to the people of this state and people of the [00:30] country why each of us believe we would make the best [00:33] Commander- in- Chief. I've been held accountable for six [00:35] years of the Governor of New Jersey. And with a [00:37] Democratic legislature, I've gotten conservative Things [00:39] done. That is exactly what I'll do as a president of United [00:42] States. The ball collection of your phone data. The invasion [00:45] of your privacy did not stop one terrorist attack. I don't think [00:49] you have to give up your liberty for a fall sense of security. [00:52] We cannot fix these things in this country. The sole [00:55] security, the boarder Balancing the budget. Getting wages [00:58] to grow faster. Unless we lead as conservatives, but we [01:01] also invite people in from the other party. We need people [01:05] who think out of the box, and can solve problems. The last [01:10] four questions have been, Rand please attack Ted. Marco [01:13] please attack Ted. Chris please attack Ted. Jeb please [01:16] attack Ted. It is a debate, sir. If you guys ask [01:20] one more mean question I may have to leave the stage. [01:23] You cannot destroy ISIS with a military that's being [01:26] diminished. When I'm President we are rebuilding the U. S. [01:28] military because the world is a safer and a better place. [01:32] When America's the strongest military in the world. You [01:34] claim it is tough talk to discuss carpet bombing. It is not [01:38] tough talk. It is a different fundamental military strategy [01:41] than what we've seen from Barack Obama. We need to [01:43] arm directly to Kurds, embed our troops with the Iraqi [01:46] military, re- engage with the Sunni tribal leaders, get the [01:49] lawyers off the damn backs of the military once and for all. [01:52] Arming the allies of ISIS will make the situation worse. [01:55] Then what we really need to do is defeat ISIS, but if [01:59] you defeat Assad, what you will wind up with is a larger [02:03] and more powerful ISIS that occupies that space. If there [02:06] were someplace in this country where radical Jihadists are [02:08] planning to attack the United States, we will go after them [02:11] wherever they are, and if we capture them alive, They are [02:14] going to Guantanamo. And if you wanna defend the [02:16] country, it begins with border security, and this is where I've [02:18] had my disagreement with Senator Rubio. You can't be in [02:21] favor of defending us against Islam, radical Islam, if you're [02:24] not for border security. I will support law Law enforcement [02:27] and we will stop radical terrorist attacks in this country by [02:30] supporting out intelligence community and our law [02:32] enforcement community. We need to stop allowing political [02:36] correctness to dictate our policies. We are a nation of [02:39] immigrants. As such, everyone is welcome, from any race, [02:43] any country, any religion if they wanna be Americans. We [02:47] are not gonna round up and deport 12 million people but [02:50] we are not gonna go around handing out citizenship cards [02:52] either. Nations will have to make a choice. They can do [02:54] business with Iran or they can do business with America. [02:57] And I am very confident that they're going to choose [02:59] America before they choose the Iranian economy. If we find [03:02] out they're developing a nuclear weapon and we know [03:04] how to get to it We're gonna go take it out. What we need [03:07] to do is make sure that the war on drugs is equal protection [03:10] under the law and that we don't unfairly incarcerate [03:13] another generation of young African American males. Get [03:16] rid of Planned Parenthood funding for the United States of [03:18] America. [ APPLAUSE ] Bernie Sanders is a socialist. I [03:21] think Bernie Sanders is a good candidate for president of [03:23] Sweden. Hillary Clinton is disqualified from being the [03:26] Commander and Chief of the United States. In fact one of [03:29] her first acts as president may very well be to pardon [03:31] herself. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4199259/republican-debate-closing-arguments/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4199259/republican-debate-closing-arguments/"},"headline":"Republicans Make Their Final Pitch to Voters Before Iowa","datePublished":"2016-01-29T06:50:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-05T08:40:57.496Z","description":"With days to go until Iowa caucus, Republicans use their last moment in the sun to sell themselves to voters","url":"https://time.com/4199259/republican-debate-closing-arguments/","keywords":["Iowa","Republican debate","GOP Debate"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d2a86510ee31d3/69887b25428a9e573fcd129d/republican-presidential-debate-gop-jan-28-photos-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9d2a86510ee31d3/69887b25428a9e573fcd129d/republican-presidential-debate-gop-jan-28-photos-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"TIMEPOL debate","caption":"Republican presidential candidates, from left, Sen. 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