Standing on the stage of the first Republican primary debate, eight candidates face the moderators. However, there is a void on the Milwaukee stage. Is he pouting? No one really knows. One fact is certain: the various candidates would undoubtedly have liked to take on Donald J. Trump. Plagued by scandals, and largely in the lead in the polls, the 45th President of the United States of America opted to skip the exchanges.
Although he was not physically present, his influence was felt throughout the evening. He was even on everyone’s mind. As the great absentee of the event, one might have thought that he would be attacked from all sides. Yet this was not the case. Vivek Ramaswamy, a political rookie, was the one who drew all the fire. It may have been his first spin on the political circuit, but Ramaswamy watched the 2016 election very closely. Trump was not on the stage, but everyone was trying, at their own level, to embody him.
“Climate change is a hoax”, said Mr. Ramaswamy on the occasion of the only question devoted to the climate change topic. Sounds familiar? Behind a completely transparent Ron DeSantis, the entrepreneur produced the perfect imitation of the ex-president, both in content and style. On August 30, Mr. Ramaswamy was credited with 8% of voting intentions, a long way from Mr. Trump’s 52%, but within striking distance of the Florida governor (15%). Nikki Haley, the only woman and probably the most moderate political figure in this election (the only one to defend the reality of climate change), is trying to catch up with the three front-runners, with 6% of voting intentions.