Republican debate: contenders distance themselves from Bush

MUCH of the US Republican presidential debate this week focused on Iraq and immigration, as 10 hopefuls aired their views on war, immigration reform and conservation.

The three frontrunners, Senator John McCain, former mayor Rudy Giuliani and former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney left little room for the second-tier candidates to break through, in what was a low-key debate with few surprises.

Jim Gilmore, former governor of Virginia called the front-runners ‘‘Rudy McRomney’’, accusing them of not being a conservative ticket.

All candidates distanced themselves from the Bush administration and its handling of the war, but few offered an alternative approach.

Mr Romney blamed the administration’s lack of preparedness for the aftermath. Sen McCain said the fault lay with mismanagement. Mr Giuliani accused the Democrats of being in denial saying Iraq was part of the war on terror, that it was justified, and that Iran is also a real threat.

Outsider Congressman Ron Paul, who generated much controversy in the last debate by suggesting American policy caused 9/11, received the most applause of the evening. He said Iraq was a mistake, as it hadn’t threatened national security but did now.

Mr Giuliani, Mr Romney and Congressman Duncan Hunter backed a pre-emptive strike against Iran either by conventional or nuclear means, prompting Mr Paul to call Bush’s pre-emptive war doctrine the single most troubling moral issue faced by the United States.

Sen McCain and Mr Romney had sparred on the immigration issue in the days before the debate but refused to be drawn into a clash on camera. Sen McCain co-authored the legislation. Mr Romney is vehemently opposed to the bill that requires illegal immigrants to return home, pay a fine and apply for a Z visa, which grants them permanent residency, saying it rewards people who break the law.