Trump's liberal past could haunt him in his first GOP debate

As the current Republican frontrunner leading into the first Republican primary debate of the 2016 election cycle, Donald Trump will face a lot of scrutiny from viewers Thursday night -- and he could just find his past coming back to haunt him.

While his campaign has so far been largely built on popular right-leaning ideas and unapologetically politically incorrect talk, some of the real estate mogul's interviews from years past would raise eyebrows with a diehard conservative crowd.

If his rivals decide to go on the offense, you might just hear them bring up a few of these points:

1. "I am very pro-choice."

These days he says he's pro-life, but Trump told NBC in 1999 that he was ultimately pro-choice.

"I hate the concept of abortion," he said. "But I still just believe in choice."

2. "We must have universal healthcare."

Trump is a vocal opponent of Obamacare, but back in 1999 he called himself a "liberal on health care," saying "We have to take care of people that are sick."

3. He supported taxing the wealthy.

Trump once called for a "one-time 'net worth tax' on individuals and trusts worth $10 million or more."

See Trump through the years:

4. He's called for legalizing drugs.

In a speech in Miami back in 1990, Trump said politicians who "don't have any guts" were responsible for the war on drugs and that the only solution was legalization.

"You have to legalize drugs to win that war," he said. "You have to take the profit away from these drug czars."

5. He's been a big fan of Hillary.

While most of his other liberal viewpoints were expressed decades ago, this one came back in 2012, when Trump suggested Hillary Clinton would run in 2016 -- and got very close to endorsing her.

"Hillary Clinton, I think, is a terrific woman," Trump said in an interview on Fox News. "I am biased because I have known her for years. I live in New York, she lives in New York, and I've known her and her husband for years and I really like them both a lot."