Keller @ Large: Trump Card
BOSTON (CBS) - "I didn't want to be here, I have to be honest, I wanted to be about five minutes away," said Donald Trump as he opened his rally across town from the GOP debate he chose to skip after a spat with its Fox News sponsors. "When you're treated badly you have to stick up for your rights."
With that, some niceties about how he holds no grudge for Fox, an announcement of millions raised to help veterans, and a surprise cameo from the last two Iowa caucus winners, Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee, Trump likely blunted any significant backlash over his debate no-show.
And the wisdom of his gambit, as he nurses a small but consistent lead in the stretch-run Iowa polls, was proven in the debate, where the evening devolved into low-grade bickering among the rest of the pack.
Off the top, the candidates were invited to ridicule Trump's absence, and a couple obliged.
"I'm a maniac and everyone on stage is stupid, fat and ugly, and Ben Carson, you're a terrible surgeon," said Ted Cruz. "Now that we've gotten the Donald Trump portion out of the way...."
Added Jeb Bush: "I kinda miss Trump, he was a teddy bear to me, his little tweets, I wish he was here. Everybody else was in the witness protection program when I went after him."
But after that, the debate focused on a familiar Republican target.
"It's not about Donald Trump, he's an entertaining guy, the greatest show on earth," said Marco Rubio. "But this campaign is about the greatest country in the world and a president who has systematically destroyed many of the things that made America special."
As expected, Rubio and Cruz had some sharp exchanges over immigration, and Chris Christie landed his usual swipes at Washington. Rand Paul, Carson and John Kasich seemed to vanish for long stretches. But Bush had one of his more energetic performances, with just three days to go until Iowans caucus.
Still, whatever else you think of Trump, let's acknowledge one thing - when it comes to political tactics, he is playing chess while the rest of the field is playing checkers. He proved that Thursday night by snatching away the spotlight his competitors desperately needed.
