Trump wasn't there to defend himself, but comes away relatively unscathed in DeSantis-Haley Iowa debate

DES MOINES, Iowa – It was a slugfest.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, sharing the debate stage in Iowa five days before the state's caucuses kick off the Republican presidential nominating calendar, spent much of their two-hour showdown Wednesday night attacking each other and disagreeing on policy.

That allowed the absent front-runner in the GOP race - former President Donald Trump - to emerge relatively unscathed in a debate that was held a couple of hours after another contender - former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, suspended his campaign.

Trump, who skipped a Republican debate for the fifth straight time since last summer, was a few miles away in downtown Des Moines, taking part in a Fox News town hall.

WHAT FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP SAID AT A FOX NEWS TOWN HALL IN IOWA

Former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, right, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, left, appearing at a Republican presidential nomination debate at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

The verbal fireworks ignited moments into the debate, with DeSantis charging that Haley was a "mealymouthed politician who just tells you what she thinks you want to hear just to try to get your vote."

Haley immediate hit back, labeling DeSantis a liar.

"What we're going to do is rather than have him go and tell you all these lies, you can go to DeSantislies.com and look at all of those," Haley argued, in the first of numerous references to a new campaign website.

And she warned the audience at the debate - which took place at Iowa's Drake University - "don’t turn this into a drinking game. You will be overserved."

After DeSantis claimed that "Haley's running to pursue her donors' issues. I'm running to pursue your issues and your family's issues," she returned fire, arguing DeSantis "is only mad about the donors because the donors used to be with him, but they're no longer with him now."

And Haley charged that DeSantis' "campaign is exploding."

DeSantis, who touted a campaign website of his own full of opposition research clips of Haley, knocked her for suffering from "ballistic podiatry" as he pointed to her recent gaffes on the campaign trail.

He also targeted Haley over her record as South Carolina governor, from gas taxes to groceries, while she took aim at DeSantis for votes he took as a congressman from Florida.

CHRISTIE TAKES AIM AT HALEY AS THE FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR DROPS OUT OF THE GOP PRESIDENTIAL RACE

DeSantis, who was convincingly re-elected to a second term as Florida governor 14 months ago, was once the clear alternative to Trump in the Republican White House race. He was solidly in second place behind Trump, who remains the commanding front-runner as he makes his third straight presidential bid.

Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis participates in a Republican Presidential Primary Debate at Drake University on January 10, 2024 in Des Moines, Iowa.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

But after a series of campaign setbacks over the summer and autumn, DeSantis saw his support in the polls erode.

Haley grabbed momentum during the autumn, thanks to well-regarded debate performances. And in recent weeks she caught up with DeSantis for second place in the polls in Iowa and in national surveys. 

Haley also surpassed DeSantis and surged to second place and narrowed the gap with Trump in New Hampshire, which holds the first primary — just eight days after Iowa's caucuses.

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, a former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina governor, participates in a Republican Presidential Primary Debate at Drake University on January 10, 2024 in Des Moines, Iowa.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Haley and DeSantis battled over key issues, from the war in Ukraine and the bloodshed in the Middle East to border security, immigration, and raising the Social Security eligibility age.

DeSantis charged Haley was a globalist, saying "you can take the ambassador out of the United Nations, but you can't take the United Nations out of the ambassador,

In a sharp exchange on immigration, DeSantis accusing Haley of being soft on securing the border. Haley returned fire, arguing "you can’t trust what Ron is saying."

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While DeSantis and Haley spent plenty of time targeting each other, they did step up their attacks on Trump, with both of them criticizing Trump for not showing up at the debate and knocking the former president on policy.

DeSantis slammed Trump for failing to "drain the swamp" and to finish building the border wall with Mexico, and slammed him on the issue of abortion.

Former President Donald Trump, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, speaks during a Fox News town hall in Des Moines, Iowa, on January 10, 2024.  (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Haley targeted Trump for the exploding national debt and not taking a tougher stance against China.

She also aimed to frame the race as a two-candidate contest between her and the former president, stressing "I wish Donald Trump was up here on this stage. He is the one that I’m running against."

Longtime Republican strategist David Kochel, a veteran of numerous GOP presidential campaigns and statewide contests in Iowa, was in the debate hall on Wednesday night.

Kochel told Fox News that DeSantis and Haley are "both getting a little bolder in going after" Trump.

"There are two campaigns going on in Iowa right now. One is Trump vs. his expectations and the other one is Haley vs. DeSantis to see who gets the right to take on Trump one-on-one," Kochel emphasized.

Kochel, who remains neutral in the GOP nomination race, noted that Haley and DeSantis "both want a shot at Trump and the other one’s in the way."

"She certainly got her licks in. She came across as more polished," he argued. But he added that DeSantis "knew what he wanted to do tonight."

And Kochel didn't see much downside for Trump - who is sitting on a massive lead in the latest Iowa polls - in skipping the debate.

"His people don’t care. They’re with him no matter what," he said. And he noted that DeSantis and Haley are "in the semi-finals. Trump has a bye week."

Not on the debate stage because he fell short of the qualifying thresholds was multi-millionaire entrepreneur and first-time candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. 

But Ramaswamy did appear, in a direct-to-camera TV ad that aired on Iowa TV during a commercial break where he urged viewers to "turn this sh-- off."

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.