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Thursday, November 10, 2011

Last Night's Debate - 'Oops'



Ouch.

The big news out of last night's debate is that Rick Perry may have crippled his campaign beyond repair.

After saying there were three government departments he'd eliminate, he was only able to name two and froze for an agonizing 53 seconds when he tried to name a third one...ending with an embarrassed "Oops."

OK, anyone can have a brain freeze, but the problem here is two-fold; first, that he did it to himself, and second, that it reinforces his reputation with voters as someone who is an abysmal debater and likely to look like a fool facing President Obama. And that's a pretty low bar, frankly.

Even worse, he tried to recoup during th eanswer to another question, saying "It was the Department of Energy I was trying to think of." Aside from being lame, the Department of Energy is one of the last government departments I think you want to close given that our whole approach to energy independence needs to be ramped up and the efforts co-ordinated nationally.

Even Governor Perry realizes what a game changer this is.

Perry came into the debate at 9.3 percent on InTrade. He’s now down to 4.9 percent and dropping. One of his top fundraisers is reportedly saying that his campaign is over and it's time for him to focus on being governor of Texas.

Herman Cain managed to skate through on the sexual harassment question. Moderator Maria Bartiromo brought the topic up, saying: “Shareholders are reluctant to hire a CEO where there are character issues.”

Cain's response was to sort of sidestep an answer and attack the premise of the question: “The American people deserve better than someone being tried in the court of public opinion based on unfounded accusations,” Cain said. “This country’s looking for leadership and this is why a lot of people, despite what has happened over the last nine days, are still very enthusiastically behind my candidacy.”

It was an obviously prepared and rehearsed answer that got some cheers and was probably the smartest thing he could have said, but it doesn't really address the situation - or his poor handling of it thus far.

The candidates seem to have decided, individually or collectively that there's not going to be any sparks between candidates and they will focus on the positive. Newt Gingrich was his usual articulate self and Mitt Romney also continued to look like the most presidential person on the stage, at least in terms of his poise and ready answers.

He spent a decent amount of time talking about national security and foreign policy issues,an area where he's fairly strong. He reiterated unequivocally that as president, he would see to it that Iran did not obtain nuclear weapons.

When asked to address the flip flopping image, he was likewise strong, saying,“I think people know me pretty well, particularly in this state. I think people understand that I’m a man of steadiness and constancy.”

“I will be true to my family, to my faith and to my country, and I will never apologize for the United States of America.”

In summation, Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich came out of the debate with some momentum, Herman Cain managed to avoid any major mistakes and Rick Perry is going to have some serious thinking to do about his next move.

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2 comments:

  1. B.Poser10:28 AM

    Rick Perry was never presidential material any way. As far as TX job growth, he was simply fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time and due to variety of circumstances he was unable to that thing that government personnel do so well. That is to meddle in things they don't understand. For him to attempt to take any credit for this, he is at best misinformed. Perhaps he has advisors who have misinformed him on how great he is. At worst, he is being disingenous. Eitehr way, not good.

    As for government departments to eliminate, I can easily think of three. Department of Education, OSHA, and EPA. If I were POTUS, each department head would need to be prepared to explain why their department should be kept. My emphasis would be on finding departments to eliminate.

    I agree that eliminating the Department of Energy is probably not advisable. This is why we so desparately need to get out in front on this. If we don't the cuts will be force on us in ways that are not helpful to America's just interests. For all practical purposes Aemrica is bankrupt. Private entities often go through bankruptcy proceedings and reorganize and later emerge stronger than they were before. Aemrica can do this to but it is absolutely imperative that we address the problem head on. Otherwise others who do not have our interests in mind will force the restructing in ways that are harmful to us.

    Given the dire issues our country faces, we are spending obessive amounts of time focusing on Herman's Cain sexual prowess and we are using a ridiculous debate format to select a candidate for arguably the most important governmental position in our country. America is fundamentally not a serious country right now. Somewhere Russian and Chinese leadership have to be laughing hysterically at us. That is they are laughing hysterically in between thinking whatever god or gods they believe in that the issues they face are no where near as severe as those faced by America.

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  2. Anonymous10:48 AM

    These debates are not unlike a game of russian roulette where everyone takes a turn but Romney. They're dropping like flies due to their own foibles and Romney will end up the nominee. Given how much the base hates him, I have a hard time seeing him winning the presidency. Obama is seriously the luckiest guy on the face of the earth.

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