Republican Debate, 1-24-08
Son,
Brian Williams is on stage to moderate his biased colleague Tim Russert.
The Republicans are at it. These folks are much less inspiring than the Democrats. Is this because I don’t believe that any one of these men will be elected President. Perhaps. At any rate the Republican debate is at times boring.
Mike Huckabee is trying to be charming by being witty – that means that he sat up all night last night practicing a couple of funny things to say – so far it has not worked.
Romney rattles off statistics as if he knows what he is talking about. Certainly he is clever and skilled.
Giuliani wants to stop illegal immigration at the border. “…You can’t get into most countries without identifying yourself. We need a national ID Card… But to be a citizen you need to be able to read, write, and speak English… The exception for those from Cuba was made in the 1960’s to help people escape Castro… In every other situation you have to prove you are fleeing political persecution…”
To Huckabee about Chuck Norris, Huckabee “… I didn’t disagree with Chuck at the time because I was standing next to him… I don’t think Senator McCain lacks the rigor to be President… McCain and I have different approaches to being President…”
Brian Williams to Giuliani on arrogance, Giulianni – “… Because I never did anything the neocons suggested I did while I was Mayor and I believe I have shown true compassion for people… The NY Times has criticized me – but that was a good thing…”
To Romney about changing positions with the wind, “…Gosh that is tough on the part of my critics… But I am not going to Washington to please politicians, I am going to Washington to change things… I encourage anyone who questions my positions to look at my record as Governor of Massachusetts… I have a sound record on conservative issues… ”
To Senator McCain on his temper, McCain “I don’t see that as an impediment… I have dealt with my colleagues for many years and they support me… All these are good people who are running here and I respect them…”
To Huckabee on faith, “My faith gives me a solid core on what I believe… I don’t try to impose it on others… but for me to run from it it is impossible – it is who I am… If a person dislikes me because of my faith then I’m not sure they understand my faith… Most Americans believe in God.
To Ron Paul on a third party, “My biggest concern is that the others will not stick to the conservative ideas… I have no intention of doing starting another party… The party should welcome us… They say I’m too strict on the constitution… That’s what the Republican Party used to stand for…”
Ultimately Romney stands out on economic issues – he is fast and informed. He understands economics. Romney made some commanding stump speech statements that only people like me have seen before. People like me means people who enjoy watching the political game.
There was a great deal of introduction – the debate is in Florida where the primary will be held in a few days – so the Republicans acted as if they needed to introduce themselves.
John McCain was reassuring to conservatives that he has the Republican credentials. I’ll add to this as I think of other opinions.
Dad
Comment by Dru on 25 January 2008:
I am a Republican, yes, a lot of people are surprised by that, I also lean more towards the conservative side although I believe I am close to the line. I am not impressed by the Republicans that are running right now. Unfortunatly, I agree more with Ron Paul than anyone else, I say Unfortunatly because I am pretty sure Dr. Paul will not make it though the primaries. I think their are so many people that are going to vote for the Democrats this election that it wouldn’t matter who was running on the Republican side of things. As a Veteran I do like McCain, I was taught in my Military career that McCain is a Hero, and he is, but some of the things he has said has shown me that he is so conservative that he will not listen to the people.
Giuliani just scares me, Yes I am a New Yorker and he was great for 9/11, but there were a lot of people involved that made him look great. In the face of Disaster any good leader will look great.
Ron Paul has a few things going for him, I am not as gun ho as most Ron Paul people.
– He is a Doctor, as a disabled person I want someone that has the background to make decisions that support things like Medical Care, Medical Insurance, and of course Medication.
– He was Air Force – GO AIR FORCE – He is a Veteran and I am looking for someone that will take into consideration that there are a lot of KIDS coming home with a lot of sand in their boots and a lot of medical issues.
Yes I am selfish, I am worried about the problems I face as a Disabled Veteran and I am looking for someone to run the country that will benefit me. It is just a coincedence that Ron Paul stands on the same side of most issues as I do.