Childish personal attacks were coming at Mitt Romney from every direction, but instead of demeaning himself to other candidates' lowly level, Governor Romney deflected attacks with substantive discussion on issues people care about. Romney was eloquent on how to move forward in the global war on terror, he was sharp and logical when explaining his healthcare plans, and he convincingly showcased his devastating blow to a potential Mitt vs. Obama matchup - one focused on experience. A Mitt vs. Obama matchup would pit two Washington outsiders against each other - both focused on CHANGE. But while the theme is the same, their records are different. Obama talks about turning things around, but Mitt has actually done it - many times. While at Bain he turned around businesses, as CEO of the olympics, he executed a spectacular turnaround of the scandal-ridden games, and as Governor of Mass, he turned around a state government on the brink of financial disaster. Mitt will thrash Obama once voters start looking past the rock-star nonsense and begin evaluating substance, experience, and issues.
As for his fellow Republicans, Mitt slammed McCain on being a Washington insider - part of the problem, not part of the solution. He correctly argued that Iowa demonstrated America's desire for change and that McCain does NOT represent change - he represents the status quo. Huckabee didn't have much to say. Once he has to move out of his comfort zone of folksy one-liners, his lack of experience and skills begins to show. He was careful not to get deep into any issues because he's uncomfortable and prone to gaffes and misstatements. Fred Thompson actually did quite well. He's not as eloquent or precise as Romney, but at least he's a full-spectrum conservative, unlike McCain and Huckster. Finally, Rudy did pretty well. He learned from the last debate that personal attacks will come back to bite you and he stayed (mostly) out of the fray.
Overall, it was a great format - a bit chaotic at times, but lots of fun and a much better way to get to know the candidates than other debate styles.
I'm more excited than ever about Romney as the Republican nominee. I hope America is paying attention and can see that Mitt Romney is not only the sole Republican with a chance in the general election, but also that Mitt Romney will make one of the best presidents in our country's history.
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6 comments:
I haven't had a chance to see today's debate footage yet (certainly look forward to Sunday's on Fox!), but I do know that the more air time Mitt has and the more people get to hear him explain his ideas, the better off he is. Not that he doesn't make an occassional gaffe, like all candidates, but he seems the most presidential to me, has the best stances on most issues and just seems to handle himself well in all situations.
Even on the defensive, I'm sure he came off quite well.
Yeah, McCain and Huck looked like little children attacking Mitt, calling him names. It's obvious they were trying to take Mitt down since he is such a big threat to them. I predict it will backfire big time. People saw their childishness, while Mitt stuck to the issues. Mitt won this debate.
What a horrible debate performance by Mitt! As expected, Thompson was comically bad, Giuliani was bumblingly evasive, Paul seemed like he was on loan to the Republicans from another planet, but Mitt, well…he was awful, by far the worst in the field. I thought he was supposed to be a statesman, tested, cool under fire. Last night he was shrill, defensive, panicked. His opponents, sensing blood in the water, went for the kill which, given Mitt’s limp wristed defense, turned out to be surprisingly easy. When pressured, one would have expected Mitt to react with pressure of his own, coolly returning fire. Instead Mitt was petulant, his poorly reasoned responses mostly consisting of whiny requests for his opponents to stop picking on him. Instead of a statesman, Mitt seemed more like a petulant teenager, his performance resembling what one might have expected from a 13 year old girl. This is a guy we’re expecting as president to go eye to eye with foreign leaders? It wasn’t even that nasty, and poor Mitt folded, collapsed. You can’t tell me that he was ill-prepared; Mitt’s nothing if not thorough. But under light flogging from McCain and Giuliani Mitt was worse even than that bumbling nincompoop Bush. Everyone’s familiar with Mitt’s penchant for lying and with his ethical handicaps. But it seems that some Republicans were willing to look past that based on their expectations that Mitt was tried, tested, intelligent, a professional. But that façade was cruelly punctured last night as Mitt, under light pressure, folded like a cheap tent. I’m not sure what else was learned from last nights debate, but one thing is glaringly apparent, and that if that Mitt is tragically unsuited for the job of president. One hopes that the people of New Hampshire bestow upon Mitt the electoral thumping he so richly deserves.
Have a great day!
Phil
Phil,
I was surprised to read your 'limp-wristed' comment in reference to Romney. I don't think that John Edwards or Hillary would appreciate your gay-bashing here. Your comments were pretty mean-spirited and it makes me wonder what kind of person spends his time this way?
Phil,
You should have spend more time watching the debate and less time on your eloquently written but misguided review. You sound like a mean-spirited liberal who is conserned that the only Republican who could take down your nominee is Mitt Romney.
Phil seems a bit threatened, here people. Everyone take three steps back and give him some space until his ability to reason returns.
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