COLUMBUS – Ohio Gov. John Kasich, trailing in the polls, joined in the free-for-all that was the third Republican presidential primary debate in Boulder, Colo., Wednesday night.
Taking a lightly veiled shot at retired neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson and real estate billionaire Donald Trump, the two front-runner in the large field, in his first answer from the podium, Kasich said his “great concern is that we are on the verge, perhaps, of picking someone who cannot do this job.”
Carson and Trump, political outsiders, have built comfortable leads in polls over the rest of the crowded field.
Kasich also criticized the other candidates’ budget plans, saying they would add to the national debt, while his plan is “realistic.”
After enjoying a bump in the polls earlier in the summer, Kasich’s numbers have fallen off again and he barely qualified for the debate, sponsored by CNBC.
The 10 contenders and party leaders are railing against the moderators of the debate complaining during the face-off that the CNBC moderators’ questions were hostile and based on inaccurate premises.
Several complained the network was more interested in pitting candidates against each other than discussing serious issues.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz made the most oft-quoted comment, comparing the debate to a wrestling “cage match” and saying that the performance of the moderators showed why Americans had lost faith in the news media.
Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus added in a statement that the moderators had done a disservice to their network, the candidates and voters.
He says he plans to fight to ensure future debates allow for a more robust exchange.
Another highlight was a testy exchange between Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and the state’s former governor, Jeb Bush, who called for Rubio to resign his Senate seat because he is missing votes to campaign.
The former allies are competing for many of the same donors and party activists.
But Rubio downplays the rivalry, telling ABC’S “Good Morning America” he has admiration for Bush and wants only to discuss policy differences.