Miami Mayor Francis Suarez answered questions from New Hampshire voters Wednesday for a taping of “Conversation with the Candidate.”Suarez said he helped bring the city of Miami back from the brink of a fiscal crisis and could do the same for the U.S. government if elected president.”I would argue that I’m either the only or one of the only candidates in the field that actually cut a public sector budget,” Suarez said. “It’s not easy. It’s not fun. But it’s necessary. Right now, we are spending fictitious money, your money. That’s the money that we’re spending. And so, we’ve got to come back to reality.”The Republican candidate fielded a wide range of questions from Granite State voters. Pressed on foreign policy, he says the U.S. must take a hard line with China in defense of Taiwan. “I’ve been told by a leading microchip CEO that if China takes Taiwan and takes it over tomorrow, it would be a 14% reduction in our GDP,” Suarez said. “OK, and that’s just a number, right? That’s Great Depression-type reduction, but that’s just a number. That’s not even including the devices.”Suarez is optimistic he can meet the criteria to make the first Republican presidential debate next week. He was asked about the debate requirement from the Republican National Committee that candidates pledge to support the eventual nominee.”Well, many of you who maybe have done research on me know that I did not vote for the former president in ’16 or in ’20,” Suarez said. “However, I am a rule follower, and I do believe that if you’re going to play by the rules of the party – and this is a partisan contest and process – they set out some rules. I’ve abided by those rules.”Some voters who were meeting Suarez for the first time said they want to see more of him on the New Hampshire campaign trail.”I thought he was really impressive,” Karen Davis of Manchester said. “He answered the questions well. I thought he listened to what the people were asking, and he really wanted to address what they wanted to know.”You can see the full conversation with Suarez at 7 p.m. Friday on WMUR-TV. An additional half-hour of questions and answers can be seen on WMUR.com and the WMUR app.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez answered questions from New Hampshire voters Wednesday for a taping of “Conversation with the Candidate.”
Suarez said he helped bring the city of Miami back from the brink of a fiscal crisis and could do the same for the U.S. government if elected president.
“I would argue that I’m either the only or one of the only candidates in the field that actually cut a public sector budget,” Suarez said. “It’s not easy. It’s not fun. But it’s necessary. Right now, we are spending fictitious money, your money. That’s the money that we’re spending. And so, we’ve got to come back to reality.”
The Republican candidate fielded a wide range of questions from Granite State voters. Pressed on foreign policy, he says the U.S. must take a hard line with China in defense of Taiwan.
“I’ve been told by a leading microchip CEO that if China takes Taiwan and takes it over tomorrow, it would be a 14% reduction in our GDP,” Suarez said. “OK, and that’s just a number, right? That’s Great Depression-type reduction, but that’s just a number. That’s not even including the devices.”
Suarez is optimistic he can meet the criteria to make the first Republican presidential debate next week. He was asked about the debate requirement from the Republican National Committee that candidates pledge to support the eventual nominee.
“Well, many of you who maybe have done research on me know that I did not vote for the former president in ’16 or in ’20,” Suarez said. “However, I am a rule follower, and I do believe that if you’re going to play by the rules of the party – and this is a partisan contest and process – they set out some rules. I’ve abided by those rules.”
Some voters who were meeting Suarez for the first time said they want to see more of him on the New Hampshire campaign trail.
“I thought he was really impressive,” Karen Davis of Manchester said. “He answered the questions well. I thought he listened to what the people were asking, and he really wanted to address what they wanted to know.”
You can see the full conversation with Suarez at 7 p.m. Friday on WMUR-TV. An additional half-hour of questions and answers can be seen on WMUR.com and the WMUR app.
