Kelly Ayotte stumbles and exits early after final debate, state Republicans panic and point fingers

In their final debate ahead of the November 5th election, Democrat Joyce Craig’s full-throated critiques on Republican Kelly Ayotte’s deep ties to Donald Trump, self-enrichment from corporations that raise the cost of housing, and long legislative record rolling back women’s reproductive rights culminated in Ayotte leaving the studio before making a final statement to voters and left New Hampshire Republicans in an uproar.

“Republican Kelly Ayotte declined our offer for an after the fact interview.” said WMUR Reporter Steve Bottari immediately following the debate after playing an interview with Democrat Joyce Craig.

Ayotte appeared unsteady throughout the debate as Craig landed significant verbal blows on the former senator for her longstanding ties to former president Trump and decision to endorse him in this year’s presidential contest.

In one exchange, in a forceful tone, Craig asked Ayotte where she drew the line on Trump.

“Where do you draw the line, Kelly, with Donald Trump? Is it when he sexually assaults women? Is it when he boasts about Hitler? Or is it when he tries to overthrow democracy?” Craig said, trying to pin Ayotte’s support of Trump down, in a campaign where Ayotte has gone to sometimes extreme lengths to avoid the press or answer questions from reporters.

In another exchange, Ayotte was pressed three times in a row by a debate moderator over her willingness to support Trump despite his many criminal convictions and his being found guilty of sexual assault.

“Donald Trump, who has been convicted of 34 felonies by a jury of his peers, faces more felony counts in three other criminal cases and in a civil case, has been found liable of sexual abuse. Your support for Trump in this cycle has been unwavering.”

“As a former prosecutor and a former attorney general, do his criminal convictions just not matter to you?” Bottari asked Ayotte. She refused to offer a substantive answer.

Craig pressed the advantage.

“So where is it with Donald Trump? Where do you draw the line when he sexually assaults women? Because last time you didn’t support him, when he was thought to have sexually assaulted women, but now it’s proven that he does, and you support him,” Craig said.

RELATED: John Lynch: Joyce Craig is the leader we need now for New Hampshire

Ayotte, clearly unprepared, offered a nonsensical defense.

“You’re never going to stand up if your party’s in that, that office, you’ll never stand up because you’re a party-line person, I’ve stood up to my party,” said Ayotte, after pointedly not standing up to her party.

The troubled debate performance has left the New Hampshire Republican establishment in a state of panicked damage control, pointing fingers at the broadcast news station that conducted the debate, WMUR.

“It was clearly biased,” prominent Ayotte endorser Governor Chris Sununu told a conservative radio host Thursday morning, attempting to provide cover for Ayotte by attacking the station that hosted the debate.

“This is an unhelpful debate. Maybe start talking about issues people will be voting for?” said Greg Moore, the Regional Director for American’ For Prosperity New Hampshire, the Koch Brother-backed conservative independent expenditure group that acts as the de facto ground game operation for the Republican Party in the state of New Hampshire.

“Do better @WMUR9” he said in another post, scolding the station.

Even as Republicans engaged in seemingly coordinated spin mode on Ayotte’s behalf, some were forced to admit moments of weakness from the former senator.

“The one moment when Ayotte appeared rattled was when the debate turned to Trump,” disgraced conservative former radio show host Michael Graham wrote in a blog post that largely focused on criticism of WMUR for not serving up enough friendly topics for Ayotte to have found success on the debate stage.