Six of the eight GOP presidential candidates at Wednesday’s debate indicated they would support former President Donald Trump as the party’s nominee, even if he is convicted in one of his indictments.
However, some were a lot more enthusiastic than others in their show of support.
“If former President Trump is convicted in a court of law, would you still support him as your party’s choice?” Fox News’ Bret Baier asked the group.
He prefaced his question by reminding the debate participants that they had been required to sign a pledge to support the GOP’s eventual nominee — one of the reasons Trump gave for not participating in the event.
Despite having signed that pledge, two of the candidates — former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — indicated they would withhold their support if Trump is nominated after being convicted.
The other six candidates — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy — affirmed their support.
There was a noticeable difference in the speed and enthusiasm with which the candidates responded to the question.