Thursday's Republican presidential debate in Charleston, South Carolina, featured a fracturing of the long truce between Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz, the first- and second-polling Republicans in the race. So it is perhaps not surprising that those two candidates clocked the most speaking time at the debate, Cruz at 17 minutes, 52 seconds, and Trump right behind him at 17 minutes, 12 seconds, according to NRP's count. Notably further behind was Ben Carson, who spoke for only 8 minutes, 26 seconds:
The unequal speaking time is due in part to the moderators, Fox Business anchors Neil Cavuto and Maria Bartiromo, and partly because of their relatively lax enforcement of the debate rules. One of those rules is that if you are mentioned by another one of the candidates, you can try to force yourself into the conversation. Carson was so overlooked that at one point he jumped in after Jeb Bush wrapped up and said, "Neil, I was mentioned, too." When Cavuto, confused, said, "You were?" Carson got off his best line of the night: "Yeah, he said everybody." It was funny because it was true.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Christian Brückner: why prime suspect in Madeleine McCann case can refuse Met interviewThe Explainer International letter of request rejected by 49-year-old convicted rapist as he prepares to walk free
-
Angela Rayner: the rise and fall of a Labour stalwartIn the Spotlight Deputy prime minister resigned after she underpaid £40,000 in stamp duty
-
Crossword: September 16, 2025The Week's daily crossword
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to TrumpSpeed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raidsSpeed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raidSpeed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearingSpeed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mountSpeed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own listspeed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battleSpeed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
