2016 drop-outs

Cory Gardner expects 2016 drop-outs after debate

By Eliza Collins

Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner expects underperformers to drop out of the race after tonight's debate, and urged the remaining contenders to start pitching voters on how they will fare against Clinton.

“I think you’ll start to see some whittling tonight, I really do, in the coming weeks. And I think you’ll start to see that, you saw it on the Democrat side,” the Republican senator told reporters in Boulder. “The past several months have been defined by sort of personalities and politics but as the personality and politic intrigue wears off they’re going to have to be more specific in policies and I think this is going to be a night where you’ll start to see it.”

But he stopped short of naming Trump as one of the personalities who will suffer.

“If Donald Trump comes up with specific policies on debt on budget just as the other candidates are going to have to do. Then it’s game on for everyone,” he said. “As those sort of intrigue wears off on the personality side the policies and specifics really do matter.”

Gardner said the biggest question candidates will have to answer tonight is how voters will be better off with a GOP candidate versus Hillary Clinton.

“Let’s face it Hillary Clinton is going to be the nominee. It will be the Clinton coronation and they can be, I think, very clear in the difference between a candidate who supports more freedom, less government versus a candidate who is trying to out-socialize, or out-socialism the other guy,” he said.