Political Wire

  • Front Page
  • Members
    • Subscribe
    • Sign In
  • Trending
  • Resources
    • Politics Extra
    • Political Job Hunt
    • Political Dictionary
    • Electoral Vote Map
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / 2016 Campaign / Who Will Make the Debate Cut?
Members should sign in for the full experience.

Who Will Make the Debate Cut?

July 28, 2015 at 8:58 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 104 Comments

Only the top 10 GOP candidates in an average of the last five national polls will get a podium on the debate state on August 6. First Read crunched the numbers as they look today:

  1. Trump: 18%
  2. Bush 14%
  3. Walker 10.6%
  4. Rubio 6.2%
  5. Paul 6%
  6. Cruz 6%
  7. Huckabee 5.6%
  8. Carson 5.2%
  9. Christie 3%
  10. Perry 2.2%

Not making the cut:

  1. Kasich 2%
  2. Santorum 1.6%
  3. Jindal 1.4%
  4. Fiorina 0.8%
  5. Graham 0.2%
FavoriteLoadingSave to Favorites
  • Bluesky
  • X
  • Threads
  • Facebook
  • Email

Filed Under: 2016 Campaign


You're reading the free version of Political Wire

Upgrade to a paid membership to unlock full access. The process is quick and easy. You can even use Apple Pay.

Upgrade Now

  • ✔ Become a member to get many great benefits -- exclusive analysis, a trending news page, no advertising and more!
  • ✔ If you're already a member, log in for the full experience.



Recent Posts

Trump Attacks Columbia’s Accreditation

June 4, 2025 at 4:02 pm EDT

“The Trump administration took aim at Columbia University’s accreditation, a significant escalation in the government’s battle with the Ivy League school,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The Department of Education…

Elon Musk Calls on Republicans to Kill Trump’s Bill

June 4, 2025 at 3:51 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 4:03 pm EDT

Elon Musk called on Republicans to kill President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” and demanded that a new bill be drafted. He later posted an image from the Quentin Tarantino movie…

John Thune Angers Blue State Republicans

June 4, 2025 at 3:18 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 3:20 pm EDT

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said that Senate Republicans are eager to tweak the state-and-local-tax deduction language in the House’s reconciliation bill, Punchbowl News reports. That brought dramatic reaction…

Johnson Tries to Reassure Republicans After Musk’s Threat

June 4, 2025 at 2:55 pm EDT

“Speaker Mike Johnson spent several minutes during a closed-door House Republican Conference meeting on Wednesday morning pushing back on Musk and trying to reassure Republicans after Musk signaled that he…

Republicans Discredit Cost Estimates of Tax Bill

June 4, 2025 at 2:47 pm EDT

New York Times: “In the bitter war over the nation’s fiscal future, President Trump and his Republican allies have united around a new foe: the economists and budget experts who…

Economists Question Quality of U.S. Inflation Data

June 4, 2025 at 2:44 pm EDT

“Some economists are beginning to question the accuracy of recent U.S. inflation data after the federal government said staffing shortages hampered its ability to conduct a massive monthly survey,” the…

Join Us!

June 4, 2025 at 2:40 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 2:42 pm EDT

Political Wire only works because of the support of readers like you. If you’re not yet a member, upgrade to a paid subscription today!  Save to Favorites

Trump Calls on Lawmakers to Scrap the Debt Limit

June 4, 2025 at 2:38 pm EDT

President Trump doubled down on calls to scrap the nation’s debt ceiling, The Hill reports. Said Trump: “I am very pleased to announce that, after all of these years, I…

Ron Johnson Says Trump’s Bill Is ‘Grotesque’ and ‘Immoral’

June 4, 2025 at 2:31 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 2:33 pm EDT

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) is continuing to rail against the “big, beautiful bill,” calling it “grotesque” and “immoral,” CNBC reports. Said Johnson: “This is immoral, what us old farts doing…

Republicans Are Trying to Stop Huizenga’s Senate Bid

June 4, 2025 at 2:30 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 2:01 pm EDT

“As the GOP tries to retain control of the House and Senate, Republicans in the White House and on both sides of the Capitol have a simple message for Michigan…

House Republicans Want to Question Former Biden Aides

June 4, 2025 at 1:56 pm EDT

“House Republicans are expanding their investigation into President Biden’s health with a new tranche of requests to interview top White House aides, including former Chief of Staff Ron Klain and…

Ex-Colleagues Respond with Derision to Karine Jean-Pierre

June 4, 2025 at 1:53 pm EDT

“Karine Jean-Pierre’s announcement that she’s leaving the Democratic Party — timed with the rollout of a new book — has detonated long-simmering grievances among her former White House colleagues about…

Putin Tells Trump He Will Respond to Ukraine Attack

June 4, 2025 at 1:50 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 1:58 pm EDT

“Russian President Vladimir Putin told President Donald Trump in a phone call Wednesday that he was obligated to respond to Ukraine’s weekend drone attack, Trump said, setting up a potential…

Extra Bonus Quote of the Day

June 4, 2025 at 1:45 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 12:17 pm EDT

“He’s dismantling not just the means of prosecuting public corruption, but he’s also dismantling all the means of oversight of public corruption. The law is only for his enemies now.”…

Republicans Scramble to Avoid War with Elon Musk

June 4, 2025 at 12:50 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 12:16 pm EDT

House Republicans, dismayed by Elon Musk’s harsh criticism of President Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” are now trying to talk their erstwhile ally down from the ledge, Axios reports. Speaker…

‘Big Balls’ Is Officially a Full-Time Government Employee

June 4, 2025 at 12:45 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 12:09 pm EDT

“Although Elon Musk has said that he is largely exiting his role at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, at least three of his early operatives and key lieutenants throughout…

Biden’s Press Secretary Dishes on ‘Broken White House’

June 4, 2025 at 12:01 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 12:03 pm EDT

“Former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has a book out this fall that promises a close look at President Biden’s decision not to run for reelection and calls for…

Trump Pardons Are Big Business for Lobbyists

June 4, 2025 at 12:00 pm EDTJune 4, 2025 at 10:57 am EDT

“Seeking a pardon from President Donald Trump has become big business for lobbying and consulting firms close to the administration, with wealthy hopefuls willing to spend millions of dollars for…

Trump Waits By the Phone for Xi to Call

June 4, 2025 at 11:45 am EDTJune 4, 2025 at 2:10 pm EDT

President Trump is once again betting that his personal charm — and a direct call — can solve a crisis of his own making. With tensions escalating between the U.S….

Trump Aims to Be Sole Arbiter of Judges

June 4, 2025 at 11:31 am EDTJune 4, 2025 at 11:03 am EDT

Lisa Rubin: “In an era where fidelity to the whims of Trump is far more important than allegiance to any conservative legal agenda, much less the rule of law, Trump…

« Jeb Bush Positions Himself as the Grown Up
The Latest on Wonk Wire »

Get Smarter About Politics

Members get exclusive analysis, a trending news page, the Trial Balloon podcast, bonus newsletters and no advertising. Learn more.

Subscribe

Your Account

Sign in

Latest for Members

  • Trump Waits By the Phone for Xi to Call
  • Trump’s Trade War Backfires
  • Why Elon Musk’s Criticism Is a Real Problem for Trump
  • Tensions Boil Over Between Trump and Musk
  • What Their Hair Says About Their Politics

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

Praise for Political Wire

“There are a lot of blogs and news sites claiming to understand politics, but only a few actually do. Political Wire is one of them.”

— Chuck Todd, host of “Meet the Press”

“Concise. Relevant. To the point. Political Wire is the first site I check when I’m looking for the latest political nugget. That pretty much says it all.”

— Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the Rothenberg Political Report

“Political Wire is one of only four or five sites that I check every day and sometimes several times a day, for the latest political news and developments.”

— Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report

“The big news, delicious tidbits, pearls of wisdom — nicely packaged, constantly updated… What political junkie could ask for more?”

— Larry Sabato, Center for Politics, University of Virginia

“Political Wire is a great, great site.”

— Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”

“Taegan Goddard has a knack for digging out political gems that too often get passed over by the mainstream press, and for delivering the latest electoral developments in a sharp, no frills style that makes his Political Wire an addictive blog habit you don’t want to kick.”

— Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post

“Political Wire is one of the absolute must-read sites in the blogosphere.”

— Glenn Reynolds, founder of Instapundit

“I rely on Taegan Goddard’s Political Wire for straight, fair political news, he gets right to the point. It’s an eagerly anticipated part of my news reading.”

— Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist.

Copyright © 2025 · Goddard Media LLC | Privacy Policy | Corrections Policy

Political Wire ® is a registered trademark of Goddard Media LLC