G.O.P. debate
I disagree with 90% of what was said on the stage tonight so take my review with that in mind. I am judging the performances by who made the best presentation of their beliefs, who looked most presidential and who articulated clear plans for his presidency.
I would have thought that Rudy Guliani would have been able to demonstrate more skill in this format. But Romney and McCain were the clear winners tonight.
Gov Jim Gilmore beat the pool of second tier candidates.
Credit to Romney, Brownbeck, Huckbee and McCain for responding to the question by focusing on on the Hillary Clinton as President rather than the spouse
I like how Chris is encouraging people who may disagree with an answer that someone just gave to speak up. It is a good way to realize that there are differences between these guys.
And I like the way he is trying to get them to actually answer questions they want to dodge. A gentler version of Hardball. Because he knows that if they really want to dodge a question, that is something the viewers should see.
(By MSNBC's Tucker Carlson)
Last year, Mitt Romney bragged about the mandatory health insurance bill he helped write in Massachusetts. Over the past several months, conservatives have criticized that legislation, so Romney has downplayed his role in it, telling one audience that the liberal Massachusetts legislature made changes to the law he didn’t agree with. Called on his flip-flop tonight, Romney flipped again. “I love it,” he said when asked about the health insurance bill. Romney is nothing if not flexible
Well John Chambers, Chairman of CISCO will get lots of attention tomorrow. He is also one of the most aggressive CEO lobbyists on behalf of favorable tech policies.
(By MSNBC's Tucker Carlson)
Tommy Thompson just declared that “several thousand" soldiers have been injured in Iraq so far. Try more than 24,000. Come on. That's pathetic.
(From NBC's Chuck Todd)
Four guys seemed ready for this debate, the other six were, well, not ready for prime time. The "ready" candidates on this stage tonight: McCain, Hunter, Romney and Huckabee.
The other six... shaky at best.
(From NBC's Chuck Todd)
Big story of the night: Giuliani's tentative performance. This is almost a carbon copy of last week. The hot buzz candidate (Obama vs. Rudy) is struggling in their debut while the old reliables (Clinton vs. McCain) showed experience in this format matters.
Is Guliani even in this deabte? This "I was a Governor and therefore I....." is very interesting. Lots of credential flashing tonight.
That didn't happen much in the Democratic debate. Here it has put Romney and Gilmore out front with more confidence.
McCain is keeping up. But Where is Rudy??
(By MSNBC's Tucker Carlson)
Would the day Roe v. Wade is repealed be a good day for America? It’s a simple enough question, and all the candidates responded to it simply. Nine of them agreed it would be a good day. Giuliani’s response: “It’d be OK.”
So the repeal of the single most controversial Supreme Court decision of the last 30 years is no big deal one way or another? You can support Roe or oppose it, but indifference is an odd response, especially for a presidential candidate.
Another weird moment: Giuliani is asked if the increased influence of evangelicals is a good thing for the Republican Party. His answer: “The increased influence of large groups of people is always good.” Notice the immediate shift from the specific (evangelicals) to the general (“large groups of people.”) That’s always a sure sign of a dodge, and in this case there was no reason for it. This isn’t New York City. It’s the Republican primary. In a Republican primary, evangelicals aren’t considered scary. They’re good. More than that, they’re politically necessary. There’s no reason not to say nice things about them in public. Why can’t Giuliani do it?
