MANCHESTER, N.H. — Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney clashed with Mike Huckabee on foreign policy and John McCain on immigration Saturday night in a high-stakes presidential campaign debate three days before the New Hampshire primary.
“It’s not amnesty,” McCain shot back after Romney criticized his plan for overhauling the immigration system. “You can spend your whole fortune on these attacks ads, my friend, but it’s not true.”
Earlier, Romney criticized Huckabee for having written that the Bush administration was guilty of an “arrogant bunker mentality” on foreign policy.
“Did you read the article before you commented on it,” asked Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor.
“I read the article, the whole article,” Romney shot back.
Romney’s aggressive demeanor reflected the stakes in the wide-open race for the Republican presidential nomination. Huckabee defeated him in the Iowa caucuses on Thursday with an underfunded campaign. Now Romney faces a strong challenge from a resurgent McCain in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary next Tuesday.
Former Sen. Fred Thompson, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Texas Rep. Ron Paul also shared the stage, but they were largely eclipsed for significant portions of the 90-minute debate as Romney, McCain and Huckabee struggled for advantage.
A pre-debate poll suggested McCain’s momentum had carried him into a narrow lead over Romney in New Hampshire, and that Huckabee was in third place. It also suggested he had not yet profited from his victory in Iowa, but the results of an election in one state often take several days to show up in surveys in another state.
Both Huckabee and McCain jabbed at Romney for having changed his position on numerous issues such as abortion, gun control and gay rights.
“You are the candidate of change,” McCain said with a laugh.
And Huckabee, admonished not to characterize Romney’s position on the Iraq war, replied, “which one.”
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