The Most Surprising Moment from Wednesday's Republican Presidential Debate

Since the advent of the television modern American presidential debates have become steadily more theatrical, now focused mostly on political pageantry and whether candidates can pull off a selfie or a fist-bump without looking confused or senile. Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate offered plenty of bizarre moments for the canon: Jeb Bush suggested that British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher replace Alexander Hamilton on the $10 bill; Donald Trump claimed to have witnessed a baby get autism from a vaccine; Rand Paul said his Secret Service code name would be "Justice Never Sleeps."

But the biggest surprise of the night was when key Republican candidates were engaging in a vaguely sensible discussion of criminal justice policy. That's right: After decades of the War on Drugs and spiraling mass incarceration, something—whether it's the Black Lives Matter protest movement or cost-cutting impulses or bald political calculation—has mainstream conservatives expressing at least tepid support...

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http://www.vice.com/en_uk/read/the-most-surprising-thing-about-wednesdays-republican-presidential-debate-916