So the Tea Party debate was amazing. Let’s pick it apart by candidate. First off, as a voracious Romney critic I have had a really good time scoring points on him for his flip flopping and unsure footing on the issues. He was clearly well prepped and ready to tango in the debate and his sights were set squarely on taking Perry down. He did not completely eviscerate the frontrunner, but he did a very good job exposing Perry’s weak points, namely the Gardasil debacle and his weakness on immigration. Mitt was also well on his way to talking his way out of Romneycare being the blueprint for Obamacare, until Michele Bachmann tore him apart. Bachmann made a clear case for BOTH mandates lacking a Constitutional basis and cleared the path as the only clean frontrunner on the issue.
Huntsman was impressive as the Democrat candidate for the Republican nomination. I’m honestly so tired of seeing his face and hearing his ideas. He definitely enjoys being in the limelight and it will be a welcome change to see him go back into the private sector.
Ron Paul was in rare form. He always has an interesting showing at these debates. But tonight Rick Santorum took him down on his recent blog post on the cause of 911. He was visibly angry at the force with which Santorum delivered his rebuke. It was a golden moment for Santorum; who had a great night, but not enough to score him any real gains in the polls. And we all know that Paul has no chance at the nomination.
Herman Cain is a favorite of mine for his direct attacks on government and politicians run amok. His explanation of his 9/9/9 plan was stellar. It is a shame that he isn’t receiving a more serious consideration from the voting public. Yet, considering the severity of the current economic situation and the enormity of the government in size and overreach, it’s just not his time. My sincere hope is that he will be the VP on the ticket.
Newt Gingrich had an excellent showing as usual. His intellect, knowledge of politics, foreign and domestic policy… I could just go on and on. Newt is a fabulous debater. He will not win the nomination – but not to use him in a senior level cabinet position would be a travesty.
Michele Bachmann brought her A game and had only a couple of slow answers. She spoke of repatriating business taxes to draw companies back to the US. She didn’t say much that was new, but the way she delivered her answers showed how much she wants to stay in the race. And of course you can’t forget this moment:
Last but not least we come to Governor Perry. He obviously needs a great deal more debate prep. He must be fast and deadly on his defense of his weak points and go for the kill more easily than he did tonight. I appreciate how he has apologized for his mistake on the Gardasil mandate. At least he can admit that he was in error. Romney is still trying to justify his stance on government mandated healthcare. Perry should spend some time in thought about the in state tuition for illegal aliens. His answer was not good for me. But even those two negatives don’t change my mind about the good Governor from Texas (the state of my birth by the by…) Perry did well considering he was everyones number one target, but in order to stop Mitt, he must be smoother and have a cleaner delivery.
Please join me every Wednesday at 7:48 am on Allman in the Morning on KFTK 97.1 FM Talk radio in St. Louis, or on live streaming at http://www.971talk.com/Other/s treaming.html
Join the Discussion
Comments are currently closed.