Rivals turn on Trump, warning he would be a ‘chaos president’

US Republican frontrunner Donald Trump faced attacks from his rivals in the final TV debate of the year as candidates fought to prove which of them could best keep America safe. The property billionaire is still leading the national polls with Texas senator Ted Cruz in second place. However, Cruz is leading in the all-important Iowa polls. Former Florida governor Jeb Bush was the most aggressive toward him, saying: “He would not be the commander-in-chief we need to keep our country safe.”

So Donald, you know, is great at the one-liners, but he’s a chaos candidate. And he’d be a chaos president.

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush

Trump was unrepentant over his call for Muslims to be banned from America, explaining: “We’re talking about security. We’re not talking about religion. We’re talking about security." The focus of the debate was on a single question - who can protect America from the terror threat? Amid the bickering and personal insults there was no clear winner. Trump offered much of the same lines he’s delivered in the past: he’s going to make America great again by building a wall and keeping out Muslims.

It is photo op foreign policy. We need to use overwhelming air power. We need to be arming the Kurds. We need to be fighting and killing ISIS where they are.

Marco Rubio on Obama’s war on terror

Politics Republican debate