The Daily Caller obtained an advance transcript of Thursday night’s first Republican debate in Cleveland, Ohio. It is published here, in its entirety, without comment.
Moderator: Welcome to the first Republican presidential debate. Assembled on stage are the top 10 candidates according to the average of the last five national polls. Let me quickly explain the format. For the first half of the debate, we will direct all questions toward Donald Trump. For the second half of the debate, we will ask the other candidates to respond to what Donald Trump said. Mr. Trump will, of course, be permitted to critique both your answers and you personally. So let’s begin. Mr. Trump, your opening statement please.
Donald Trump: Thank you for having me tonight. Look, I’m not a debater, I’m a doer. So this is an unusual setting for me — and, by the way, not just unusual because I’ve never really debated before. It’s also unusual because I’ve just never been in a room with so many losers before. I’m a really rich guy — I mean, much richer than most people know. Like over $10 billion rich. Maybe over $100 billion. And I’m not even saying this to brag. I’m just saying I don’t usually deal with so many losers. I mean, look at these guys. Just look at them. [Begins pointing at each candidate, one-by one] Looooser. Looooser. Looooser. Looooser. Ted Cruz is only a semi-loser because he said some nice things about me. Looooser. Loooser. Loooser. And looooser. All total losers. Trump’s a winner. I can make American great again.
Moderator: That concludes our opening statements. Mr. Trump, let me ask the first question. What is your view of Roe v. Wade?
Trump: Rove V. who? I don’t know who that is. Don’t have an opinion of him, though, to be honest, he’s probably not a winner because I’ve never heard of him. I know all the winners. And if he has said nasty things about me, then, well, he’s probably a total loser. Maybe even a bigger loser than Scott Walker over there, who, if we’re honest about it, is one huuuuge loser.
Moderator: No, I’m wondering about your view of 1973 Supreme Court decision finding abortion to be constitutional right, Roe v. Wade.
Trump: Well, I’m very, very pro-life. I love everything about children, especially making them — have you seen my wife Melania? Yes, Trump is very pro-life. Very, very pro-life. No one is more pro-life than Trump.
Marco Rubio: Except it was just the other year he was calling himself pro-choice.
Trump: Who let the dummy on stage?
Moderator: Let’s get to another question for Mr. Trump.
Rubio: Excuse me, are we really not going to get to participate in this debate until the second half?
Trump: No one wants to hear from a dummy. Isn’t he a dummy, folks? Really, come on.
Rubio: Listen here, you’re …
Trump: Shh. No more talking. The adults are having a discussion. No one wants to hear from a dummy. Please go ahead with the next question.
Moderator: Very well. What do you think the biggest problem facing the country is?
Trump: Well, we have a lot of problems. Huuuge problems. Hard to choose just one. But I would say the biggest problem is jobs. They lie about the unemployment rate. They say six percent, but the number is really more like 20 percent. Someone actually told me it might be 140 percent. Can you believe that? 140 percent. Totally amazing.
Moderator: Who told you that it was 140 percent?
Trump: I don’t know exactly. Someone. Just amazing.
Moderator: Someone who?
Trump: Yes, that might be his name, Someone Who. The point is whether it’s 20 percent or 140 percent, we’re in bad shape. We’re in really bad shape. But let’s be real: No one knows how to create jobs like Trump does. I employ, like, tens of thousands of people — and that’s just to file all my frivolous lawsuits. I know how to create jobs. I know how to make America great again.
Moderator: How exactly would you do that?
Trump: Well for starters I would negotiate better trade deals. The Chinese are killing us. You think Trump ever got out-negotiated by a Chinaman? I wrote the “Art of The Deal,” which someone told me the other day sold more books than the Bible. The Bible, can you believe that? Remember that question they asked me: Have you ever asked God for forgiveness? Based on book sales, maybe God should be asking Trump for forgiveness — am I right? Anyway, I would give the Chinese a choice. Either stop devaluing your currency or enjoy 100 years of nuclear fallout.
Moderator: So you would threaten nuclear war?
Trump: Listen, we spend millions and millions of dollars on a nuclear arsenal we don’t use. We don’t even use it and we spend million and millions of dollars on it! How stupid can we be? Trump never wastes money on things he doesn’t use.
Moderator: On the campaign trail, you’ve said you are both “very smart” and “very, very smart.” Which is it?
Trump: Well, I’m probably underselling myself a bit. I’m about as smart as I am rich — and I’m very, very, very rich, as you know. I don’t like to talk about it because I’m a private person and am not really a bragger. But I had to release my financials and now people see just how rich I am. I’ve built a great company. I’m worth something like, I don’t know, something like well over 15 trillion dollars, almost bigger than the GDP of the United States. It’s really hard to count. I mean, I don’t know exactly the number. But it’s really, really big. I don’t say this to brag. Just to point out I’m a winner — unlike the nine losers standing besides me.
Moderator: How is it possible you are worth $15 trillion? Just a second ago you said you were worth between $10 billion and $100 billion?
Trump: It’s a feeling. I feel it’s $15 trillion — may be more, actually. And just the other day my accountant reminded me that I own more Monopoly board games than anyone in the world. More than anybody. I don’t know if you have ever seen the game, but it comes with billions and billions of dollars of Monopoly money. Each game. So when you add it up, it must be something like $15 trillion. And I’m probably lowballing it. Look, bottom line: I’m a great businessman. I know what it takes to make America great.
Moderator: But didn’t you go bankrupt?
Trump: Why do people keep saying this? I never went personally bankrupt. I strategically put several of my businesses into bankruptcy. I mean, my companies have been bankrupt four times — more than almost any other person in the history of this country. Even with bankruptcies, Trump is number one. I’m a winner. Only I can make America great again.
Moderator: OK. Let’s now get some responses to Mr. Trump. Jeb Bush, what do you say?
Bush: I give up. I’m dropping out of the race. I can’t handle this anymore.
Moderator: Very well. Let’s go to Rand Paul. Sen. Paul, what is … well, it appears as if Sen. Paul has hung himself on stage. Probably a good sign we should wrap it up. Sorry for the candidates we didn’t get to. Mr. Trump, can we get a closing statement.
Trump: Remember three things: Trump is really, really rich. Only Trump can make America great again. And if you’ve never golfed at Trump National Doral in Miami — the greatest golf course in the history of world, other than possibly Trump Turnberry in Scotland — you haven’t really lived. Thank you very much.