In their final meeting before pivotal nominating contests Tuesday in Ohio and Florida, the four remaining Republican presidential candidates are sharing a debate stage once again — this time in Miami, where CNN’s Jake Tapper takes the reins as moderator.
Here are a few of the most memorable lines from Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and John Kasich. (For the blow-by-blow, check out the CNN live blog.)
Trump makes the case he’s bringing in new voters to the GOP: “One of the biggest political events anywhere in the world is happening right now with the Republican Party. Millions and millions of people are going out to the polls and they are voting. … The Republican establishment, or whatever you want to call it, should embrace what’s happening.”
Cruz tries to set a softer tone for this debate: “This debate is not about insults, it’s not about attacks, it’s not about any individuals on this stage. This election is about you and your children.”
Kasich on the importance of legal immigration: “I’d be maybe running for president of Croatia if it weren’t for immigration.”
Rubio promising that his proposed Social Security reform wouldn’t affect seniors: “I’m against any changes to Social Security that are bad for my mother.”
Trump on the Democratic race: “I watched them very intensely, even though it’s a very, very boring thing to watch.”
Trump on the reserved tone of the night: “So far I cannot believe how civil it’s been up here.”
Cruz diagnoses Trump’s pitch to voters: “He’s right about the problems, but his solutions don’t work. … We’ve got to get beyond rhetoric of China bad and actually get to how do you solve the problem?”
Trump on whether he stands by his comment, on CNN Wednesday, that he thinks “Islam hates us”: “I will stick with exactly what I said to Anderson Cooper.”
Rubio on Trump’s comments about Muslims: “I know that a lot of people find appeal in the things Donald says, because he says what people wish they could say. The problem is presidents can’t just say anything they want, it has consequences — here and around the world.”
Rubio defends his defense of Muslims: “I’m not interested in being politically correct. I’m interest in being correct.”
Trump on how he’d take on terrorists, given past suggestions he’d use torture or target their families: “We have to obey the laws, but we have to expand the laws. … We better expand our laws or we’re being a bunch of suckers.”
Rubio is not so bullish on the Middle East peace process: “There is no peace deal possible with the Palestinians.”
Rubio mocks Trump on the Cuba deal: “I don’t know where Cuba is going to sue us, but if it’s in a court in Miami, they’re going to lose.”
Rubio on Climate Change: “One of the reasons why the climate is changing is because the climate has always been changing.”
Rubio why he doesn’t think legislation intended to slow it would be useful: “America is not a planet, it’s a country. … I am not going to destroy the U.S. economy for a law that will do nothing for our environment.”
Kasich disagrees: “You can have a strong environmental policy at the same time that you have strong economic growth.”
Trump blames protesters for the rash of violence at his rallies: “We have some protesters who are bad dudes, they have done some bad things. They are swinging, they are really dangerous. And they get in there and they start hitting people and we had a couple big strong powerful guys doing damage to people. … If they’re going to be taken out, I’d be honest we have to run something.”
Kasich perhaps leaving some room for contesting Trump at the convention: “Math doesn’t tell the whole story in politics.”
Trump says a plurality of delegates should be enough to win the GOP primary: “I think that whoever gets the most delegates should win,” then calls the 1,237 majority needed to clinch the nomination a “random number that somebody set.”
