I ate a good amount of homemade pulled pork before bed…and a lot of powerade…and a Big Mac. Yes, my night went badly.
I was up early for the debate…alarm or no, I was not sleeping.
Here’s my pitiful little 2 cents.
The PMSNBC debate was far, FAR better than the ABC debate last night. The dynamic duo of Sawyer/Stephanopoulos was pathetic…I guess this explains why ABC isn’t even on the same level as a real news channel. George’s hypothetical questions earned him pushback from the candidates, and it was getting silly enough that I wondered if his next question might not be, “So if the alien gummy bears attack, how will you prepare the nation for an intergalactic candy war?”
While PMSNBC did host a better debate, I felt that the time allotments and the questions were skewed. The questions seemed to focus on other candidates strengths, and on Mitt’s weaknesses….or maybe everyone else just defended better. I felt like the real losers for TIME were Ron Paul and Jon Huntsman. I felt that the questions and exchanges didn’t really include them…and this is why Fox put on a far better debate: Everyone got a lot more time on camera with a live mic. I also felt Fox’s questions were better.
So here’s my thoughts candidate by candidate.
Romney – got the lion’s share of airtime, but also the lion’s share of attacks. He had good answers for the most part, but he trended to the moderate tightrope in a hurry on some issues. Santorum and Gingrich really landed some effective blows, and while this may be “too little—too late” for NH, it may hurt Mitt in South Carolina.
He did not come across as “The Conservative”. He also got more airtime though, and this probably won’t hurt him with crossover voters or with moderates—given his answers. Verdict? Partial win. His recent McCain endorsement will not, and does not endear him to conservatives what so ever.
Gingrich – Newt offered good answers to the moderators, but Romney called him out near the end of the debate for pandering to Nancy Pelosi (shudder), and for some of his more moderate ideas. Newt’s performance wasn’t bad, but at this point, given the polls, I’m not sure it matters. Newt may be more useful as a spoiler for beating up Romney than as a top tier candidate. His personal life doesn’t help him either. Verdict? Partial win…he didn’t hurt himself, and he did hurt Mitt.
Santorum – Santorum showed a few really good strengths: wit, clear answers, inability to be bullied, and most importantly, he used a lot of specifics. He looked bright eyed and bushy tailed in spite of the late debate last night. He spoke with passion and clarity. He was memorable and his answer on Iran was extremely good. In fact, it was nearly perfect…he showed understanding of Islam and took a tough question well and delivered a memorable, smart, and informed answer on why Iran is different than North Korea, Pakistan, or Russia: Iran is a theocracy.
Verdict? He didn’t get away scot-free, but he did very well and possibly legitimized himself in South Carolina. I’d expect a good showing on Tuesday in NH.
Ron Paul – I’ve got no deep-seated love for Paul’s foreign policy or stance on Islamic-jihad (in fact I really disagree with him on those issues), but I will say this: his economy answers were darn good. Fortunately for Paul, the questions asked of him were not about foreign policy—which means he didn’t take much damage from the other candidates. Unfortunately his answers were abbreviated…I wanted to hear more and I knew he had a more complete thought, but he honored the time limits and it seemed to me like few questions came his way. His energy and fed size answers were great, and even Newt gave him a nod on oil and jobs. Ultimately his verdict isn’t great because it’s split: Partial win because he didn’t damage himself with foreign policy, and he answered very well on everything else. But it’s also a partial loss because he didn’t get the time to give better answers, and because he didn’t get many questions or attention from the moderators. This may be a good thing in some ways…they could have dragged a lot of stuff about newsletters and Iran into the light and other candidates could have really hurt him over those.
Perry – not dissimilar to Newt: Good answers, but who cares? Perry has about two weeks left in this gig if he can’t turn the car around. He did show humor when dealing with his past “forgotten answer” from 3-4 debates ago…kudos! He also spoke clearly, but I think he sounds like G.W. Bush to a lot of people. Even though those two are mortal enemies, I don’t think it’s going to help him. He was specific and very collected, but again, the poll numbers are against him. I think at this point he has to nuke Mitt and Newt in a big debate and put the hurt on them so eloquently and so badly that they really do reel from it to regain his footing.
Verdict: Win…in a sense, He didn’t get hurt, but he really didn’t get helped. I wonder if he’s thinking of a VP offer? He threw grenades when he needed a nuke.
Huntsman – in my mind, Jonny-boy got a free pass from PMSNBC. He came across as “safe” and “nice”…and REALLY moderate. I don’t think that’s going to help him here.
I forget which candidate (might have been Santorum or Newt) that asked (and I paraphrase), “Hey, our socialist president picked this guy…do you really think Obama would pick a genuine conservative?” It’s a good point. As ambassador to China, he values the relationship, and that might hurt him—because other candidates do NOT value China and neither does the conservative base. He felt smarmy, clichéd, and very much like Mr. Rogers. He felt too smooth and “safe.”
For the red-blooded conservatives that want a nutcracker like Reagan, this ain’t the guy. Verdict? Partial win, but he took a few (precious few) shots from the other candidates. And the partial win was only because the mods gave him a pass more or less.
Other thoughts:
Think VP picks. See any weird sort of alliances going? Maybe a few…
All told, a good debate…not a terrible day for anyone, though I think Romney took the most hurt, but I doubt it will effect Tuesday that much. Who knows though…the talking heads say that 20% of voters haven’t made up their minds. That’s a big swing…we’ll see. Primary Party at my house on Tuesday? ☺
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