If debates were won based on interruptions and bombastic declarations, Vivek Ramaswamy would be Wednesday night's victor, the Daily Beast said on Friday. Adopting favorite tactics used by Donald Trump, coupled with open expressions of admiration, earned him praise from the leading Republican presidential candidate, who was himself absent during the Wednesday event.
“President Trump, I believe, was the best president of the 21st century,” Ramaswamy said during the debate.
“This answer gave Vivek Ramaswamy a big WIN in the debate because of a thing called TRUTH. Thank you Vivek!” typed Trump.
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to run for office?
But GOP operatives have seen it before and they've seen what happens when someone becomes too popular with the former president.
“The minute he starts claiming to be the second coming of Trump, it’s over,” the Beast cited a key Republican in an early primary state as saying. The person warned that Ramaswamy is pushing it by adopting so much of Trump's strategy.
“I thought Vivek, as you say, Vivek, like cake, did very well," Trump told Newsmax on Thursday night.
In a previous report from the Beast, Trump's team confessed that they see Ramaswamy as an ally in taking down the other GOP opponents. His eagerness to attack Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), in particular, makes it easier for Trump to focus on promoting himself.
“Trump surrogates will go in on him once he starts encroaching on Trump’s territory,” the GOP operative said.
“He was careful last night. When he’s stumping, he will always use the phrase, ‘I am the new version of Trump.’ He didn’t do that on stage last night,” the Republican explained. “And the reason he didn’t is because Trump would be up his ass so fast, Vivek wouldn’t know what hit him.”
There were a few moments when Ramaswamy was willing to attack Trump for being unwilling to debate and refusing to talk to the media outside of Republican-aligned outlets.
“My view is, if you’re not willing to sit across the table from NBC News… or across the debate stage from me as the new outsider in this race, if you’re Donald Trump, then I don’t think you’re fitted to be the person sitting across the table from [Chinese President] Xi Jinping," said Ramaswamy.
“The thing that now bothers me about Trump now is saying he’s not going to get on the debate stage,” Ramaswamy continued. “That’s not the Donald Trump of 2015. Donald Trump in 2015 is standing up to the establishment. We need to be a party… that says we embrace free speech and open debate.”
It's unclear if Trump heard that message.
