What are the GOP candidates doing during the Democratic debate?
The Republican presidential hopefuls have spent a fair amount of time this year attacking the Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, but they seem largely disinterested in what Clinton -- or any of her primary opponents -- will have to say in Tuesday night's Democratic debate.
GOP frontrunner Donald Trump apparently thinks the first Democratic debate, taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada, will be "very boring" but was nevertheless goaded into live-Tweeting it:
The chatter on Twitter seems to suggest the public is nearly as interested in Trump as they are in the debate: Within the past 24 hours, the hashtag #DemDebate has been used about 92,000 times, while the phrase "Donald Trump" has been mentioned around 60,000 times, according to social media analytics site Topsy.
Meanwhile, Sen. Rand Paul will allow his online supporters to watch the debate with him, in a way. Paul's been live-streaming his entire day and plans to continue live-streaming through the debate. Just before the debate starts, Paul is holding a rally at the University of Northern Iowa.
Ben Carson, the second-most popular GOP candidate in the latest CBS News poll, will be watching the Democratic debate with his wife at home, his campaign told CBS. Carly Fiorina is also spending the evening with her spouse, her campaign told CBS. The former Hewlett-Packard CEO has no official plans to watch the debate, but she and her husband might tune in for some of it. Former Gov. Jeb Bush, meanwhile, may watch the debate, his campaign told CBS -- or he may watch the Dodgers-Mets game.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich has a campaign event in Littleton, New Hampshire on Tuesday night about an hour before the Democratic debate starts. He may watch some of the debate but has no real plans to, his campaign tells CBS.
Sen. Ted Cruz has a campaign event at a Pizza Hut in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa at the same time as the debate. Former Sen. Rick Santorum also has an event slated for the time of the debate -- a town hall in Iowa City, Iowa.
Sen. Marco Rubio told Fox News' Greta Van Susteren on Monday, "I doubt I'll be watching" the Democratic debate. "I've got a busy day ahead of me. I'm sure I'll see the clips and the highlights," he said. While Rubio may or may not be watching, his campaign is urging supporters to watch while playing "Democrat debate bingo." The campaign emailed its supporters a link to the bingo cards along with an appeal for a donation.
