Donald Trump a “chaos candidate”, Jeb Bush says, citing Muslim ban

Jeb Bush tussled with Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump Tuesday night, jumping to defend himself against Trump’s insinuation that he isn’t tough enough to serve as president.

“If you’re a threat to him, he’ll go after you”, Republican strategist Rick Wilson said of Trump.

“Jeb doesn’t really believe I’m unhinged”.

There was no candidate more eager to avoid riling Trump than Ted Cruz, the United States senator from Texas who The New York Times said had criticised Trump at a private fundraiser last week in New York by questioning whether the real estate mogul had the judgment to be in control of the U.S. nuclear arsenal.

“You’re moving further and further”, Trump said to Bush. “I think it’s very sad”, Trump said.

While debating strategies to fight ISIS, Bush, the former Florida governor, blasted Trump’s “lack of seriousness”.

Trump seized on Bush’s dismal standing in recent polls and largely shrugged off the criticism. “Pretty soon you’re going to be off the end”.

In the final Republican debate before the new year, Donald Trump, unsurprisingly, was asked about his proposal to ban all immigration by Muslims.

“ISIS is gaining strength because the perception is that they’re winning, and President Obama fuels that perception”, Cruz said. Rubio, who voted against the act, said Cruz was wrong to have supported it. Cruz has moved past him in some Iowa surveys. Trump, meanwhile, beat back repeated attacks from his Republican rivals in the primetime faceoff to ensure a central role in the 2016 contest, fueled by deep anti-establishment frustration among the GOP’s angry electorate.

Later, Trump slapped Cruz on the back in appreciation. The Republican debate on Tuesday was the first since the attack in California and another in Paris, and was expected to focus heavily on national security.

Trump, the tycoon and onetime reality television star who has been the surprise leader of the Republican presidential race, has only gained in popularity since making his abrasive anti-Muslim comments, even as rivals accused him of playing into jihadist hands.

Cruz surged to 14 percent, with 10 percent for Rubio and nine percent for retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson.

All five appeared in the main debate along with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Ohio Governor John Kasich, U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and former corporate executive Carly Fiorina.

The critiques of Trump were previewed in an earlier so-called “undercard” debate that preceded the main event. “Donald Trump has done the one single thing you can not do – declare war on Islam itself”.

“As far as other people, like in the migration where they’re going, tens of thousands of people having cell phones with ISIS flags on them”, Trump said.