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 The nine other Republicans sharing the stage with Trump turned on
one another at times but largely avoided direct challenges to the
combative real estate mogul who has rocketed to the top of opinion
polls in the 2016 race.
Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky did take on Trump, confronting him
after Trump kicked off the debate by refusing to pledge his support
for the Republican nominee in the November 2016 election.
"I will not make the pledge at this time," said Trump, who for weeks
has said he would not rule out an independent bid that would almost
certainly split the Republican vote and boost the chances of victory
for the Democratic nominee.
Trump's response drew boos from the crowd and a rebuke from Paul,
who said Trump was keeping his options open to support Democratic
front-runner Hillary Clinton, a reference to his past friendship
with both Clinton and her husband, Bill.
"He's already hedging his bets because he's used to buying
politicians of all stripes," Paul said.
 Trump's veiled threat to bolt the party if necessary could risk his
support among Republican primary voters and stall his momentum,
although the billionaire reality television star has repeatedly
defied predictions of political doom.
In a show of hands, participants in a Fox News focus group who
supported Trump before the debate overwhelmingly indicated they had
changed their minds about him, critical of his refusal to commit to
backing the eventual Republican nominee.
"I think he took out a gun and shot his campaign in the head," said
Florida Republican strategist Rick Wilson.
(For candidates' comments at a glance: http://reut.rs/1gNN90T)
NO CLEAR WINNER
No candidate emerged the clear winner from the two-hour debate,
leaving the Republican race potentially more unsettled than ever. A
record 17 candidates are vying for their party's nomination.
During a combustible performance, Trump fired off insults at Paul,
Fox News moderator Megyn Kelly, comedian Rosie O'Donnell, the
Mexican government and an assortment of other targets.
He tangled with Kelly when she pressed him about past derogatory
comments he had made about women, including calling them “fat pigs,”
“dogs,” and "slobs," Trump dismissed the question as “political
correctness.”
He accused Kelly of not treating him well, drawing more boos from
the audience.
 “Honestly Megyn, if you don’t like it, I’m sorry. I’ve been very
nice to you although I could probably maybe not be based on the way
you have treated me,” Trump, whose base of support is overwhelmingly
male, said to a mixture of boos and applause.
The debate's feisty tone suited the flamboyant Trump, who has been
the center of campaign attention for weeks for his personal attacks
on rivals and his scathing comments about U.S. Senator John McCain's
war record and about Mexican immigrants.
Trump kept it up in the debate, calling the Mexican government "much
smarter, much sharper, much more cunning and they send the bad ones
over."
The sometimes combative nature of the debate made bystanders at
times of more measured rivals such as former Florida Governor Jeb
Bush, who is No. 2 in the polls, and Wisconsin Governor Scott
Walker.
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Bush called Trump's rhetoric "divisive" and said "we're going to win
when we unite people with an optimistic message."
Bush's senior advisers said after the debate they were happy with
his mistake-free performance, which focused on him talking up his
record as Florida governor.
Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson finished second behind Trump in the
number of mentions on Twitter. Trump led with 30 percent, while
Carson was second at 12 percent and Paul was third with almost 10
percent.
SIDE-BY-SIDE COMPARISON
The debate was the first chance for Republican voters to make a
side-by-side comparison of the top 10 presidential contenders.
Trump's rivals had to decide whether to directly confront him or to
try to stay above the fray and look presidential.
Paul, who has lagged in the opinion polls, went on the offensive. In
addition to challenging Trump on his potential independent run, Paul
accused Trump of not realizing that Republicans opposed a single
payer healthcare system. But Trump dismissed his attacks.
"You're having a hard time tonight," Trump said.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie belittled Paul's efforts in the
Senate to curtail the government's electronic surveillance system,
saying there should be more tools for tracking terrorists.
"When you're sitting in the subcommittee just blowing hot air about
this, you can say things like that," Christie said.
Before the main event, seven candidates whose poll ratings did not
qualify them for prime time took part in a separate daytime debate.
Several challenged Trump's conservative credentials, noting he had
changed positions on abortion, healthcare and other issues.
But Carly Fiorina, a former business executive and the only woman in
the Republican field, acknowledged Trump had tapped into a broad
sense of frustration with Washington.
"Whatever your issue, your cause, the festering problem you hoped
would be resolved, the political class has failed you. That's what
Donald Trump has tapped into," said Fiorina, who was the runaway
choice at more than 80 percent when Fox News asked viewers to tweet
who they thought won the first debate.
Shortly after the early debate, social media interest in Fiorina
surpassed interest in Trump, according to Google analytics. The next
Republican debate is on Sept. 16.
(Additional reporting by Megan Cassella, Luciana Lopez, Amanda
Becker; Writing by John Whitesides; Editing by Ross Colvin and
Howard Goller)
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