An Ol’ Broad’s Ramblings
More Debate Stuff
Republican candidates engage in ‘demolition derby’ at debate
The evening got off to a fiery start, when Fred Thompson, the former Tennessee senator who has been criticized for a slow and sometimes disengaged beginning to his campaign, questioned the conservative credentials of Rudolph Giuliani, the former New York mayor who has led in national opinion polls.
“Mayor Giuliani believes in federal funding for abortion,” Thompson said. “He believes in sanctuary cities. He’s for gun control. He supported Mario Cuomo, a liberal Democrat, against a Republican who was running for governor, then opposed the governor’s tax cuts when he was there.”
Giuliani was prepared: “You know, Fred has his problems, too,” going on to criticize Thompson, a lawyer, as “the single biggest obstacle to tort reform in the United States Senate.”
I don’t remember Guiliani doing any explaining. I DO remember Thompson responding to the criticism. I realize Guiliani is strong because of 9/11, but honestly, what exactly did he do? He didn’t run away, he stuck with the city. Yes, a good thing. But what exactly did he do? He didn’t go after anyone. He didn’t declare war. Now, don’t get me wrong, I like Guiliani too. But New York is a LOT different from the rest of the country. As a matter of fact, most people in New York aren’t even aware there IS a ‘rest of the country’.
Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who has renounced his past support of abortion rights and gay rights, questioned whether his rivals in the race were conservative enough.
“We’re not going to keep Hillary Clinton out of the White House by acting like Hillary Clinton,” Romney said.
Well, THAT’S obvious! I’m beginning to think the Hildebeast actually taught der Schlickmeister.
The exchanges at the debate, held in Orlando, Florida, and sponsored by Fox News Channel and the Florida Republican Party, were the culmination of weeks of steadily escalating attacks. The candidates even took a few jabs at President George W. Bush, with McCain remarking that he had looked into the Russian president Vladimir Putin’s eyes and seen only three letters: “KGB.” It was a pointed allusion to Putin’s past as head of the Soviet-era intelligence service and to Bush’s reference to having looked at Putin and gotten a “sense” of his soul.
“Uuuuuuu rrrrrrrrrrrr getting verrrrrrrrrrry sleepy!”
The debate came at a time when the party’s conservative base, especially religious conservatives, is uneasy with the candidates. Giuliani and McCain tried to convince Republicans that conservatism was about broader principles and opposition to the kind of liberalism that they sought to tie to Clinton.
We’re going to have to face the fact that, in reality, none of the candidates are ‘perfect’. Unless we want a socialist in the White House, we are ALL going to have to work together for the candidate who wins the nomination, and that includes the Ron Paul fanatics. We’re not going to have much luck if we ‘little folk’ keep sniping at each other.
The attacks, particularly in the opening minutes of the debate, were so fierce that Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, likened the event to a “demolition derby.”
I dunno. I found the first few minutes quite telling (and entertaining). Although, I did agree with Huckabee’s comment. It seemed as if he was the only grownup on the stage there for a while.
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