Donald Trump Hints At Presidential ‘Retribution’ As His Fading Rivals Squabble At Debate

As his two main rivals squabbled in a heated debate on CNN, the front-runner in the 2024 race for the Republican presidential nomination, Donald Trump, spent an hour mocking them and suggesting he might bring the force of the presidency down upon his perceived enemies if he recaptures the White House.

It was an apt television split-screen example of the primary campaign that wasn’t, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley spending their time attacking each other in a one-on-one Republican presidential debate while Trump coasts unharmed to a likely victory in the Iowa caucuses on Monday.

During his town hall, Trump gloated about overturning Roe v. Wade, vowed to carry out mass deportation of undocumented immigrants, didn’t deny that his businesses took in millions from other governments during his presidency and suggested that it would be “not so bad” for him to focus on retribution during a second term.

“I’m not going to have time for retribution. We’re going to make this country so successful again I’m not going to have time for retribution,” said Trump, who has vowed to direct the Department of Justice to go after his political opponents.

Trump also poked fun at former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who dropped out of the race earlier on Wednesday. Trump said Christie’s exit was overshadowed by an apparent hot mic moment when Christie was caught criticizing Haley at a campaign event in New Hampshire.

“The biggest story wasn’t the fact that he dropped out. Nobody cared too much about that,” Trump said mockingly.

Meanwhile, on CNN, both Haley and DeSantis said it was time for the GOP to move on from Trump. But they declined to outright attack him as unsuited for a return to the