Fox News moderators asked eight candidates taking part in the first Republican presidential primary debate last night if they would support Trump as their nominee if he was convicted in a court of law. All but one – former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson – raised their hands (Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, said he was wagging his finger). Vivek Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur and the Trump heir-in-chief of the night, was the first to jump in and also pledged to pardon Trump for any convictions. None of it will make much difference. The elephant not in the room – Trump himself, who released an interview with former Fox host Tucker Carlson instead – has a near 40-point lead in the polls. Trump is due to turn himself in today to authorities in Georgia, where he faces criminal charges over his attempt to overturn the 2020 election. His mugshot will be what people are talking about by the end of the week.
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