Christie, Huckabee sent to JV debate team

NEWARK, N.J.

- New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee have been bumped from the main stage at next week's GOP presidential debate.

Former New York Gov. George Pataki and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham have been cut from the lineup altogether.

Debate sponsor Fox Business Network announced the moves lasdt night, dealing a major blow to all four candidates, particularly Christie and Huckabee, as they struggled to stand out in the crowded Republican field amid signs of momentum in states where the first primary contests will be held.

The decision underscores concerns about the pivotal role that national opinion surveys have been playing in shaping the contest for the GOP nomination. Statistically, pollsters say, there is no significant difference between candidates lumped together near the bottom of the pack in national polls, which often have a margin of error of 3 percentage points or more.

"I tell people, 'Ignore the national polls and just follow those early states,"' said Republican pollster Frank Luntz, who argues that early opinion surveys are notoriously unreliable. "Except that now national polls drive the debates, and debates drive the polling."

According to debate criteria issued by Fox Business, candidates must score 2.5 percent or higher in an average of the four most recent major polls conducted through Nov. 4 to be featured in the prime-time debate. They must hit the 1 percent mark to qualify for an undercard debate airing before the main event.

As a result of the new standards, the prime-time affair will feature eight candidates - the smallest lineup so far. Eleven candidates were featured in the party's opening primetime debate in August.

The prime-time lineup: businessman Donald Trump, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former technology executive Carly Fiorina, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and Ohio Gov. John Kasich. The undercard event features just four candidates: Christie, Huckabee, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.

Pataki and Graham already faced a tough road to the GOP nomination. Their omission from the undercard debates will make it even harder for them to convince voters - and donors - that they have a viable path to the nomination.

"It is ironic that the only veteran in the race is going to be denied a voice the day before Veterans Day," Graham campaign manager Christian Ferry said in a statement. "In the end, the biggest loser tonight is the American people and the Republican presidential primary process that has been hijacked by news outlets."

During an appearance on Fox News earlier in the day, Christie seemed resigned to the fact that he might be forced into a matchup that has been derisively referred to as the "kiddie table." After the announcement, Christie tweeted: "It doesn't matter the stage, give me a podium and I'll be there to talk about real issues."