Feb. 07--REPORTING FROM MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Republican presidential candidates began their final face-off Saturday, each hoping for a breakthrough before a New Hampshire primary that could dramatically reshape the battle for their party's nomination.
The debate offered perhaps the last, best chance for candidates to cut into what has been a commanding lead here for Donald Trump -- that is, if they dared to challenge him.
Sen. Ted Cruz, winner of the Iowa caucuses, was asked in the early moments of the debate whether Trump had the temperament to be commander in chief.
"I think that is an assessment that the voters are going to make," he said.
Trump seized on Cruz's unwillingness to answer the question and made it an argument against his leadership.
"That's what's going to happen with our enemies," he said. "People back down with Trump."
Trump is trying to sustain his celebrity-driven candidacy after finishing second in the Iowa caucuses, a blow to the New York businessman who has consistently touted his first-place ranking in polls.
But all week the candidate who has been the primary target has been Marco Rubio, the senator from Florida, and as expected, he quickly became the center of attack, with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush criticizing what they said was his lack of leadership experience and comparing him to President Obama -- not a compliment on a Republican stage.
Even though he finished third in Iowa, Rubio benefited by it, and his campaign has picked up momentum. Averages of New Hampshire polls show Rubio in second place, narrowing the gap with Trump while putting distance between himself and the rest of the field.
Cruz and Gov. John Kasich of Ohio currently are tied for third place, the polling averages suggest.
Three candidates -- Bush, Christie and Kasich -- are counting on strong performances that they hope will breathe life into their lagging campaigns. For them, the debate is an opportunity to explain why their experience should matter in an election year when voters seem resolutely uninterested in politician's resumes.
Candidates who fear being squeezed out by Rubio have been trying all week to blunt his momentum, accusing him of being a sheltered "boy in the bubble" (Christie) or a "great speaker" who can't make a tough decision (Bush).
Cruz, who finished first in Iowa, is also criticizing Rubio. He's counting on singular support from conservatives for his campaign, and he wants to avoid any of his potential voters from viewing Rubio as a credible alternative.
The seventh and final candidate on stage is Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon whose campaign has sagged in recent weeks and shows no signs of regaining strength.
Each of the seven, with the possible exception of Carson, has the potential to turn the campaign in his favor.
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"This race is up for grabs, and can go any which way," said Andrew Smith, director of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. The debate could play a particularly important role because many of the state's voters make up their minds late, Smith said.
Saturday night represents "the last opportunity for some of these candidates to break out," Smith said.
Saturday's debate was a smaller affair than previous overstuffed debates, representing a slimmed-down Republican field. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum all dropped out this week.
In addition, there was no undercard debate for candidates who have trailed too far behind in the polls to make the cut. That means Carly Fiorina, the former Hewlett-Packard executive, and Jim Gilmore, the former Virginia governor, won't have a shot at speaking in front of a national television audience Saturday night.
Fiorina, who received less than 2% of the vote in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, has complained bitterly about ABC's decision to stick with its announced criteria for who would participate in the debate. She told MSNBC on Friday that her exclusion was proof the game was "rigged."
For more on Campaign 2016, follow @ChrisMegerian on Twitter.
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