The Atlantic

The Frosty Republican Sideshow in Des Moines

Only two candidates took the stage in the final Republican debate before the Iowa caucus.
Source: Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Tom Brenner for The Washington Post/Getty

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Last night, the weather was chilly outside in Des Moines, Iowa, and things were even frostier at the debate between Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley at Drake University.

The earlier, more populated GOP primary debates were punchy affairs, featuring notable collisions between candidates, many of which were entertaining and some of which were even illuminating. Whittled down to two candidates—Donald Trump, as usual, skipped—this debate was a pure slog, with DeSantis and Haley barely

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