GOP Debate Recap
Diane Ellis ·
September 23, 2011 at 2:57am
Thanks to all who joined us for the GOP debate live chat. The next debate is scheduled for October 11th at Dartmouth College. More details forthcoming.
Be sure to add your reactions to tonight's debate in the comments below.
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Comments:
Jul '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Perry is finished. You only have one chance to make a good first impression and here he duplicated his lethargic, slightly dazed performance in the first debate. Illegal immigration is clearly not the issue in Texas it is elsewhere in the country. Business and industry there clearly like the flood of cheap labor from south of the border and Perry is clearly on board. His defense of a $22,000 annual college subsidy for the offspring of illegals while students from other states pay the full fare was enough to sink him. And then there is the study published yesterday that said 90% of the new jobs created in Texas went to illegals. So much for that boast. Also finished: Bachmann, Santorum, Newt, Herman, Jon, Paul and his soul mate Johnson. Let's see, who does that leave?
Jul '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
If Romney is the candidate, expect four more years of Obama. The guy is a loser.
Jul '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
The Google influence was extraordinarily annoying. In a presidential debate, elevating the insignificant factoids to objects of awe and worship gave the Sisyphuses long stretches to exercise the mute button. I was disappointed when Fox was teamed with the Examiner (despite my general enthusiasm for Byron York) but I was appalled with the dueling Barbies and banal word clouds and why was screen time wasted on not questioning the candidates (aside from the sophomoric banality of the questions themselves).
The streaming was lame as well, all told after missing maybe a quarter due to streaming issues we bailed. The only solid performance on streaming so far was the Tea Party debate. From what I saw, Herman Cain won on points but Bachmann's steadfast "Repeal ObamaCare Now" drumbeat is huge. Can't overcome her total fail on the how much of my earnings should I be allowed to keep question.
Can we toss these candidates back in and draw nine new ones? It works in Scrabble.
Jul '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Michael Tee
If Romney is the candidate, expect four more years of Obama. The guy is a loser. · Sep 23 at 5:31am
Even if Romney wins, he's ObamaLite. If he made Ron Paul Secretary of State, his administration would almost perfectly replicate the weak points of the Regime.
Oct '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
being a good communicator and having a good command of the issues does matter. the post-debate polls will show...
May '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Like Perry, W was not a natural debater, but he made himself into a competent one through preparation and hard work.
Perry's done no such thing, and it speaks to his lack of seriousness. It also speaks to his likely lack of effectiveness as a president, communication and salesmanship being essential to getting anything even remotely conservative signed into law.
Feb '11
Re: GOP Debate Recap
I am ambivalent at best about the field, and this debate didn't help. I would still vote for any of them over the current White House occupant, though Huntsman, a Paul or (hypothetically) a Christie would bring on acute nausea and indigestion.
The national situation boils down to two necessities, both of which must happen in this election cycle. First, the Senate needs to be shifted significantly right and the House further to the right. Most of the important domestic changes require congressional action to happen. A managerial progressive like Romney is not going to veto those bills. He might even be goaded to implement them in some vaguely conscientious manner. Second, someone in the presidency who is not named Barack Obama. Obama will veto everything in sight coming from a Republican Congress. If the veto is overridden he will obstruct implementation to the maximum of his abilities. Obama has to go. In the context of the first point, it doesn't really matter who replaces him as long as that person has an R after his or her name.
May '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Agree with DrewInWisconsin - Gingrich/Cain
Dec '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Snow Bird: I am ambivalent at best about the field, and this debate didn't help. I would still vote for any of them over the current White House occupant, though Huntsman, a Paul or (hypothetically) a Christie would bring on acute nausea and indigestion.
The national situation boils down to two necessities, both of which must happen in this election cycle. First, the Senate needs to be shifted significantly right and the House further to the right. Most of the important domestic changes require congressional action to happen. A managerial progressive like Romney is not going to veto those bills. He might even be goaded to implement them in some vaguely conscientious manner. Second, someone in the presidency who is not named Barack Obama. Obama will veto everything in sight coming from a Republican Congress. If the veto is overridden he will obstruct implementation to the maximum of his abilities. Obama has to go. In the context of the first point, it doesn't really matter who replaces him as long as that person has an R after his or her name.
Agreed. Reading the post-debate recap convinces me we've got to have a TEA Party Congress.
Dec '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
I didn't watch the debate, so let me see if I have this right... We've got robots, drunks, drones and wannabes in the race. Sounds like the Star Wars Cantina. Maybe the next debate should be set to the same music.
"Save us, Paul Ryan! Save us!!"
May '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Michael Tee: .
The whole Romney deal is this "He is such a good debater." I could care less if he is a good debater if he's not articulating conservative positions.
Precisely. All Perry's entry seems to have done for Romney is send him scurrying to the Left on entitlements. On top of it, he seems to be dragging Perry further over there with him.
Dec '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
I honestly don't know where to go from here. I was one of the first to mount the Perry band wagon, but he really disappointed me last night. He borrowed W's mouth and McCain's Palin handlers to prepare himself for the debate. I still cannot be for the Stepford candidate (Romney), and no one else has the slightest chance. At this point I'm starting to hope others get in.
I loathe the format being foisted upon us in these debates. I'm tired of trying to make a meal of hors d'oeuvres and ketchup packets.
May '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
I feel for you Prawn, really. We Mitt Robotron supporters (if "supporters" is even the right word) regard him only as our least bad alternative. We're stuck, that is.
Resistance is futile, resistance is futile........
Aug '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
I actually think Romney would be fine, given a Republican House and Senate that would make it easy for him to take Republican positions. A bigger worry with Romney would be what happens after his first midterm should the Democrats retake the Senate and/or the House. He strikes me as someone who might 'triangulate' a la Clinton, except that he would be moving to the left instead of moving to the right.
I thought Perry was awful. He was stiff, stilted, and his answers were confused enough to make it clear to me that he doesn't really know what he's talking about and is relying on scripted answers and boilerplate. Push him off script slightly and he seems to meander all over the place. He also looked nervous and yet sleepy - not a good mix.
The most impressive candidate for me for the night was Herman Cain. In previous appearances he came across as a bit of a lightweight and a bit nutty. But this is a guy who clearly does his homework, and he was more in command of the facts and had a more coherent message this time.
Aug '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Newt was excellent on policy. His demeanor and character flaws make him a lousy candidate for President, but he's positioning himself very well for either a VP run or as a cabinet member in a Republican administration. A Republican president could make him interior secretary, or head of HHS, or even a 'restructuring czar'. But I think everyone knows that if he were the Republican nominee, the inevitable meltdown/gaffe/scandal during the general election would be a major risk.
Aug '11
Re: GOP Debate Recap
King Prawn, Scott. It was very good that I get to follow your posts. I feel much the same way.
I'm not so down on Perry though. He has time. Also, I give him an implicit benefit of the doubt, in that he has a record of governing and executive experience. If Perry were a judge or a member of Congress I'd be much more concerned.
Also, I'm not looking for a debate winner to be my president.
And this "win the debate" thing. I just don't know what it means to win a debate in this type of format. Implicitly, I set the bar low for all involved-- don't look like an idiot, and don't reveal some major social faux paux like hating this or that racial/gender group. They all passed well.
Dec '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Goldgeller, my hope right now is that no one is watching these debates. Maybe when candidates start dropping off we will get substantive debates and get to really judge these candidates on where they stand on issues. What we have now is like buying a car after test driving it around the lot.
Jul '11
Re: GOP Debate Recap
What can we do to make this happen??
-E
Nov '10
Re: GOP Debate Recap
At this rate it will be likely that Palin jumps in just because the more libertarian and "basic America" crowd fades as Romney picks up steam. It will become a debate between the establishment republicans and the anti-political class crowd. I think Palin has a very good chance in the Primaries under those conditions. I don't know how it would play out after the Primaries, but there are signs that her message is being taken more seriously by the general public, even if she's still wrestling with that caricature of herself that has been brandished by the MSM since 2008.
Apr '11
Re: GOP Debate Recap
Palin 47% Obama 47%:
"how do we know that the poll is not a fluke? The easiest way to see it is not a fluke is because this surge only happened in Obama vs Palin, but not in Romney vs Obama. If it were merely growing discontent with Obama and a desire to elect a Republican, we would assume that all candidates would have surged equally
In reality, Palin’s 44% is 9-14 points higher than her previous efforts in any Marist poll taken this year, where her other numbers were 30% (twice), 34%, and 35%. Meanwhile, Obama was down 7 points against her, a bigger drop than against any other candidate. Compare this: Romney has seen virtually no movement. At 44% now, that is little different than his three previous numbers of 41%, 42%, and 45%. Whereas Obama had fallen 7 points against Palin, Obama has held firm at 46% in 4 straight polls against Romney. So why would the Obama-Romney match-up remain the same for 4 test cycles while Palin closes a 21-pont gap?"
http://pollinsider.com/2011/09/21/palin-47-obama-47-turnaround-why-marist-poll-is-no-fluke/#comments