Trump praises Ramaswamy after first GOP debate

Former President Trump praised biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy after the Republican millennial defended him during the first debate.

“This answer gave Vivek Ramaswamy a big WIN in the debate because of a thing called TRUTH. Thank you Vivek!” Trump posted early Thursday morning on his Truth Social platform of the 2024 GOP presidential candidate.

Trump included a clip of Ramaswamy’s remarks, in which the 38-year-old Republican contender said during the first debate: “President Trump, I believe, was the best president of the 21st Century.”

Ramaswamy was the center of much of the attention during the date Wednesday night, after candidates including former Vice President Mike Pence, former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie took jabs at the GOP upstart. 

While Christie used part of the debate to go after Trump, Ramaswamy was the only candidate to defend the former president, who snubbed Fox News and the Republican National Committee (RNC) by not attending and instead releasing a prerecorded interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

“Here’s the bottom line: Someone’s got to stop normalizing this conduct, OK? … Now, whether or not — whether or not you believe that the criminal charges are right or wrong, the conduct is beneath the office of president of the United States,” Christie said during the debate when asked by the moderators why he was hesitant to say whether he would support Trump as the party’s choice despite his legal challenges.

“I’d like to get in and respond,” Ramaswamy chimed in at one point. “Let’s just speak the truth, OK? President Trump, I believe, was the best president of the 21st Century.”