GOP lauds Fox Business debate

by Ben Kamisar - 11/10/15 11:48 PM ET

The Republican National Committee (RNC) criticized CNBC minutes after the close of Tuesday’s GOP presidential debate on Fox Business Network, grading the most recent bout much more favorably than last month’s.

{mosads}”And that CNBC is how you run a debate,” RNC chairman Reince Priebus tweeted minutes after the debate ended.

He expanded on that in a press release that lauded the Fox moderators for sticking to business-themed questions and not stepping into the spotlight themselves.

“Debates need to focus on the issues, and that goal was accomplished tonight. Our candidates, not the moderators, were at the center of tonight’s debate, and they were all treated with fairness and respect,” he said.

“Thanks to a well-run debate, the country was able to see our diverse field of talented and exceptionally qualified candidates exchange ideas for how to reinvigorate the economy and put Americans back to work.”

Sean Spicer, the RNC’s chief strategist, praised the debate in an appearance on CNN’s “Anderson Cooper 360” as “a home run [that] set the bar for future debates.”

The RNC’s kind words contrast sharply with its response to last month’s CNBC debate, which took heat from the political committee and the campaigns for days. Priebus said CNBC “should be ashamed” of how it handled the debate, and the outcry sparked a brief attempt by candidates to join together and take control of future match-ups.

This time, candidates praised the Fox Business moderators in the aftermath, with Trump lauding the moderators as “three talented people” in an interview afterward with one of the moderators, Neil Cavuto.

“I thought you folks did a fantastic job,” he said.

“You were fair and professional and especially after the last catastrophe, you did a great job.”

Cavuto repeatedly took subtle digs at CNBC during the show, noting that it’s possible to hold an interesting debate that solely focused on economics and that the moderators wanted to make sure the story centered on the candidates.

Tags GOP debate