2016 Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Jeb Bush faced off at dueling town hall events in New Hampshire on Wednesday evening, capping a day of campaigning in the early-voting state.
In Derry, Trump drew a capacity crowd to a high school auditorium of almost 1,000, complete with overflow rooms. He started his criticism of Bush in a briefing with reporters and continued in the town hall.
Several national polls show Trump leading the crowded Republican presidential field — there are 17 of them — including Bush, a former Florida governor. Bush and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker are also in the top tier.
"I don't see how he's electable," Trump told reporters ahead of the town hall, later describing Bush as a "low-energy person" who has trouble getting things done.
"Right down the road, we have Jeb," Trump said early in the town hall, drawing boos from an auditorium packed with enthusiastic supporters. Trump mocked Bush for going "down like a rock" in early polls in the state and failing to excite his supporters.
"You know what's happening to Jeb's crowd?" he asked at one point. "They're sleeping."
In nearby Merrimack meanwhile, Bush, who had once been reluctant to go after his opponents, portrayed the billionaire businessman as a tax hike-promoting Democrat that voters would eventually tire of.
"I think what people are eventually going to vote for is a proven conservative leader that's done it," Bush said in a video of the event released by his campaign.
He went on to criticize Trump for his past contributions to Democrats, as well as his changing positions on issues including taxes and his previous support for a single-payer health care system.
"He's won over a lot of people. People are very angry about how Washington's not working. He's tapped into that," said Bush. "But when people look at his record, it is not a conservative record"
Trump and Bush, who remains the favourite of establishment donors, have been clashing frequently over their stances on issues, including immigration, in recent weeks.
Bush's wife was born in Mexico and he has said in the past that people entering the country illegally do so as an "act of love" for their families.
Trump, who is calling for the mass deportation of people who have entered the country illegally and the building of a giant wall on the border, has mocked such rhetoric. Trump also defended the use of the term "anchor babies' Wednesday and also bragged about the wall he plans to build along the Mexican border, saying it would look good as well as keep people out.
Bush, meanwhile, criticized Trump's immigration platform, arguing that it's "not a conservative plan" because it would cost tens of billions of dollars to carry out.
This content appears as provided to The Globe by the originating wire service. It has not been edited by Globe staff.