The leading Republican presidential candidates – most of them, at least – are on stage tonight in Milwaukee for their first debate ahead of the 2024 primary.
Follow along here with the USA TODAY Fact Check Team as we dig into candidates’ claims and add context on expected campaign themes, including election fraud, the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, the war in Ukraine and more.
Former President Donald Trump’s decision to skip the debate means eight candidates will participate, including Trump’s former vice president, Mike Pence, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, widely seen as Trump’s most formidable challenger. The other candidates expected on the debate stage are North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott.
Republican debate live updates: GOP primary candidates take stage − without Donald Trump
Here’s some background from our archives on key topics we expect to see through the campaign and perhaps tonight:
US aid to Ukraine divides Republican candidates
Nearly a year and a half after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began, there remain differing views among Republican presidential candidates when it comes to continuing U.S. support for Ukraine’s defense.
Former President Donald Trump, who isn’t on the debate stage, has repeatedly suggested the U.S. is providing too much support to Ukraine. He has also refused to say whether he wants Russia or Ukraine to prevail in the conflict.
Ron DeSantis has also been skeptical of U.S. support for Ukraine, and Vivek Ramaswamy said the U.S. has done enough to help. Mike Pence, who visited Ukraine in June, has said he supports providing Ukraine with military aid to fight back against Russia. Chris Christie too has said he supports continuing U.S. support for Ukraine, as does Tim Scott and Asa Hutchinson. Nikki Haley said support should be through collaborating with allies to be sure Ukraine has “the equipment and the ammunition to win.”
Public debate over the best approach in Ukraine has also sparked a wide array of misinformation:
– Chris Mueller
Jan. 6 riots play key role in Trump, Pence campaigns
The Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots loom large during the campaign because several of that day’s central figures – Trump and Pence – are in the race.
In the worst attack on the Capitol in 200 years, a mob of thousands of Trump supporters overwhelmed police and raided the building on the day lawmakers formalized Biden’s victory. Some rioters chanted that they wanted Pence hanged.
Other candidates have brought up the attacks, with DeSantis calling it not an insurrection but a “protest” that “ended up devolving, you know, in a way that was unfortunate.” Ramaswamy blamed the riots on “pervasive censorship” and called it “unproductive” to point the finger at Trump.
The attacks have been a consistent source of misinformation during the past 2½ years. Here are some we’ve previously debunked:
– Joedy McCreary
Debate comes amid indictments of Trump, allies
Trump won’t be on the debate stage, but the former president looms large over the debate in light of both his commanding lead in the polls and his unprecedented legal troubles.
Most recently, Trump and several allies were indicted Aug. 14 by a Georgia grand jury that accused them of trying to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state, where Trump lost to President Joe Biden by about 12,000 votes.
The charges against Trump in Georgia are only the latest in a series of prosecutions against him that began in March, when he was indicted for allegedly falsifying business records related to hush-money payments intended to silence two women before the 2016 election. Trump also faces charges for allegedly mishandling classified documents and allegedly conspiring to steal the 2020 presidential election, including his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection.
Trump’s legal woes have been the subject of an array of false or misleading claims on social media:
– Chris Mueller
Election integrity critical issue in GOP race
One key issue for the candidates is whether they will trust – and abide by – the elections that will decide the winners and losers.
State-level reviews of the 2022 midterm elections found no indication of systemic problems with voter fraud, in line with reviews of the 2020 election. That’s significant because baseless allegations from Trump and his allies have penetrated the Republican Party and eroded confidence in the process.
Several candidates have pushed election-related changes in their home states.
DeSantis created Florida’s Office of Election Crimes and Security. A year ago, his administration accused 20 felons ineligible to vote in 2020 of illegally casting ballots and charged them with third-degree felonies.
Haley as governor signed a law in 2011 that requires South Carolina voters to show photo ID. Christie vetoed a bill in 2016 that would automatically register New Jerseyans to vote when they obtain or renew their driver’s license, calling it “a cocktail of fraud,” NJ.com reported.
What none of these agencies found, of course, is any sign that election outcomes had been compromised or votes had been miscounted. But claims to the contrary have circulated widely online. Here are a few of our recent debunks:
–Joedy McCreary
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