Left out of the main stage for the first debate, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, businesswoman Carly Fiorina, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and the rest of the “kiddie’s table” crew are already plotting how to earn airtime even if they can’t find a way to qualify for the next debate in September.
The prospect of getting left out of another main event again is likely to ratchet up the pressure on the candidates running near the back of the pack of polls to take a more aggressive posture against their rivals.
“I do believe that as we move down the road each of the candidates is going to sharpen their approach and messaging and the elbows will come up a little bit as they jockey for position,” said Charlie Gerow, a GOP strategist who supports Ms. Fiorina.
The debates provide unparalleled exposure to millions of viewers, and to millions more GOP primary voters who will watch or read follow-up coverage — but the seven candidates who didn’t make the prime time affair said they’ll have to find other ways to get their message out.
“That is out of my hands,” said former Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III. “That is not my focus. My focus is on offering the credentials, the experience and the plan for the people of the U.S. to address their concerns. I will do that out of the 17th spot, the second tier or the first tier.”
Mr. Gilmore entered the race late and polls at the bottom of the 17 major candidates recognized in most surveys of the Republican presidential field. Also in the second division are Mr. Perry, Mr. Jindal, Ms. Fiorina, former New York Gov. George Pataki, former Sen. Rick Santorum and Sen. Lindsey Graham.
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They can all take some solace in looking at Mr. Santorum’s situation for years ago, when he garnered less than 2 percent support in national polls at this point in the race, yet went on to capture the Iowa caucuses and finish second in the overall nomination popular voting, behind eventual nominee Mitt Romney.
This year the former Pennsylvania senator is polling at 1.5 percent nationally, according to the current RealClearPolitics.com average of polls, but still has hopes of tapping his 2012 magic.
Mr. Santorum said Thursday that he believes his message will stand out in the crowded field and eventually win him support.
“I would say the message that got us the win in Iowa and 10 other states against pretty overwhelming odds is the message that is going to deliver us in this election,” Mr. Santorum said in Thursday’s early debate.
“We didn’t start out four years ago at the top of the heap,” he said. “We were behind where we were today, but we stuck to our message. We stuck to the fact that Americans are tired of Washington, corporate interests and Democrats who are just interested in politics and power, and they are looking for someone who is going to fight for them.”
Mr. Santorum needs to improve his standing to make the next main debate stage.
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Mr. Perry, meanwhile, said Thursday that he has learned from his disappointing 2012 White House campaign and that voters will move in his direction once they see that he is better prepared for the job.
“I will assure you as the governor of the state of Texas and as those last four years have shown me, the preparation to be ready to stand on this stage and talk about those monetary policies, those domestic policies and those foreign policies, Americans are going to see that I am ready to be that individual,” he said.
Fox News, which ran Thursday’s affair, set a cutoff that only allowed the top 10 candidates in the polls to appear in the prime-time debate. The seven others were invited to an earlier forum, aired at 5 p.m., which became known as the “kiddie’s table” debate.
CNN has adopted similar qualifying criteria for the next debate, to be held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on Sept. 16.
Following the Thursday’s debate, Mr. Perry, Mr. Jindal and Ms. Fiorina were set to fly south to the RedStateGathering in Georgia, which is thought to be moving closer to becoming a swing state in the general election.
Mr. Jindal and Ms. Fiorina are then scheduled to head to New Hampshire over the coming weeks. They are also among the candidates that are scheduled to touch down in Iowa for the annual state fair, where they will have the chance to pound down a corn dog or indulge in some of the local fried delicacies — whether that be a Oreo or a stick of butter.
Mr. Perry and Mr. Graham will also hit the fair, in hopes of building momentum that they can carry out of the summer and into the post-Labor Day leg of the campaign when things are expected to pick up speed.
Noticeably missing from the schedule this year is the Iowa straw poll. GOP leaders in the state scrapped the quadrennial event after several of the top ranked candidates decided that the risks of attending and doing poorly outweighed the benefits of a good showing.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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