Sen. Rand Paul was king of the Republican presidential debate on Tuesday evening, according to Rep. Justin Amash, R-Mich.
The congressman told students and Center for Constructive Alternatives guests that Paul’s performance in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was just what he needed at this point in the race.
“As the field whittles down and there are fewer people on stage, he’ll have a bigger role to play,” Amash said. “He used his time very effectively last night.”
Since the first debate, Amash said Paul increasingly represents himself more genuinely on stage. Compared with other candidates who are polling higher, such as Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Amash said Paul has better content in the debate arena.
“I think Rand sounded logical, and that he was the one on stage making coherent arguments,” Amash said. “People say that the strongest debaters generally are Rubio and Cruz. I thought Rand had much better debate points than either one last night.”
In the past week, several important donors have pledged support for Rubio, who is rising in the polls. But Amash doesn’t think that Rubio will last once the field narrows.
“I think if you put Rubio especially in a smaller room, he’s going to be not nearly as effective,” Amash said. “Most of his debate points are recitations of his speeches.”
The congressman said the Florida senator often repeats moderator’s questions and then recites snippets of scripted speeches already on the record. Amash challenged his audience to compare the debate transcript with prior speeches.
“That is not debating,” Amash said. “I don’t think Rubio’s all that quick on his feet. I think in a small setting, he’s going to be in trouble. Cruz and Rand are much better on their feet than Rubio. I think you’d have a very good debate between the three of them.”
Amash is an influential player in the Liberty Caucus in the U.S. House of Representatives, which unseated former Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, last month. He also recounted to spectators the Liberty Caucus’ negotiations with current Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., when he was considering his run for the speakership.
The congressman spoke on campus Wednesday evening in Lane Hall at an event hosted by Praxis.