Questions about how to handle the conflicts with Hamas and Iran opened a fiery exchange about the candidates’ foreign policy experience and smarts.
Asked whether they would send U.S. troops to rescue American hostages held in Gaza, Christie answered, “Damn right, I would.” DeSantis didn’t appear to answer the question directly.
Ramaswamy, asked about his position that the U.S. shouldn’t be lending military support to Israel, acknowledged his policy on that was “a little bit different.”
“Israel absolutely has the right to defend itself without the U.S., U.N. or EU second-guessing its decisions,” he said.
Ramaswamy, who is often faulted for his lack of foreign policy experience, then turned the focus to Haley, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
“Foreign policy experience is not the same as foreign policy wisdom,” Ramaswamy said. He followed up with a challenge to Haley to name three provinces in eastern Ukraine, prompting Christie to rebuke him for being rude.
Haley did not bite on the Ukraine-province challenge.