So says a panel of conservative students at The College Fix. Aaron Marcus of Rutgers:
Romney stole this debate tonight by creating a stark contrast between himself and the indistinct Rick Perry. Romney has remarkably been able to shift the other Republican presidential candidates from focusing on Romneycare and onto Perry, regardless of policy. While Bachmann’s candidacy has become largely irrelevant, both she and Santorum took Perry to task on his in-state tuition law for illegal immigrants and failure to accept a protective fence along the American border with Mexico.
Just wondering if Romney has a handshake deals to pay off Bachmann's and Santorum's campaign debt when they drop out....
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThe college kids are right. I'm not a fan, but I have to admit that Romney stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of rhetorical ability and polish.
Perry has had three debates now and he has actually gotten worse in each one. That's not an encouraging trend.
The 2012 election is too important to entrust it to a lightweight like Perry. If he thinks his GOP rivals are tough on him, just wait until the Democrats focus in. Romney may not be perfect, but he's our best shot to ensure Obama's defeat.
I'm afraid Republicans might get overconfident with Obama's recent declining poll numbers and take a shot at a substandard candidate like Perry. But don't rule out a come-back for Obama. He may be bottoming out too soon.
I just wish we could combine Perry's conservatism with Romney's brain and business experience.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseGovernor Romney's years of running for president have obviously paid off. However I do wonder how well he performs when faced with another skilled debater, which in my opinion there isn't on the stage.
Given the ongoing catalog of flip flips, evasions and borderline out right lies I think it reasonable that president Obama may well be able to eviscerate the governor. These weaknesses will only be compounded as the questions will certainly be created to put the governor in the worst possible starting position.
That's not to say I agree with governor Perry's weak excuse about not electing the best debater but I do struggle with the thought that governor Romney is just as slick as our current president only with even less true principles.
Other than of course saying whatever he believes will help him at that particular moment in time, then talking his way around it when caught.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseAt this point it's become yet another tallest pygmy contest.
I hope someone better enters the field.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIf one does not actually listen to Romney, but merely observes style and tone, Romney came off well. But Romney's actual words were not always coherent or well received. At one point he seemed to attack Perry for something he did not even say, but everyone was so impressed with his verve and Perry's non-response that it looked like he had scored a point. Romney's status as winner depends on the audience's prior perception of him as front runner. If we can set aside our prior knowledge of current polling results, Gingrich has been the most impressive, confident, profound, and authoritative debater. Cain wins on likeability. Paul is so wonderful on domestic issues, yet so weird on foreign affairs. Santorum's self-righteous moral outrage schtick is a turn off. I want to like Bachman, but she can't stop milking the same few largely symbolic issues, and the lack of breadth and substance is starting to bother me. Hunstman is annoying to watch and hear, comes off as so plastic that he almost makes Romney look sincere, and brings no distinctive value to the process.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWell said, tinsmith. My only slight disagreement would be about Romney's presentation. He always seems phony or smug or some combination of the two. No more phony or smug than Bill Clinton, of course, but Clinton has the 'aw shucks' down pat that offsets/covers up the creepier aspects. If Romney would drop the mask, maybe he'd make some progress with those who, like me, are uncomfortable with his overweening self-assurance. Humility, a little humility.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYou have made an assumption that there is a mask. Your comment, and the others in the same vein suggest more about you than they do about Romney. he "seems" phony or smug? To whom? It starts to come across as unverifiable and more a reflection of your reluctance to consider the candidate in a fair light. Is he too smug? Yes or no, and why? I observe the debates and evaluations at a distance - perhaps up close there is an odor or something. But the words and the deeds clearly indicate that Romney has strong conservative convictions, is successful, competent, articulate, and well engaged. I grow weary of innuendo that this is all an act.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbusePerhaps if you reviewed Romney's ever-changing set of values and positions it would focus your vision. The man is a political windsock.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYour analogy may not mean the same thing to others that you think it does. A windsock is fixed. Yes, it changes direction with the wind of the moment, but it nevertheless is firmly rooted in one location and we know where to find it in a storm. I think this is a fair metaphor for a successful conservative politician. Romney has an enduring commitment to America and to liberty. You might believe others are better suited to the position, but I find it ludicrous to suggest that he is without conservative convictions or that he "seems" smug.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI wish Romney were a windsock. It's worse than that; he's a progressive.
We've seen his type at work for years. They gave us John Paul Stevens and David Souter on the Supreme Court. They gave us affirmative action, structural deficits, extensions of Medicare in the face of looming bankruptcy, bailouts, multiple stimuli, surrender in the face of cultural decay and a society that just gets more and more disfunctional.
Romney doesn't just blow around with the wind. He tacks in an effort to confuse Republican voters about his true direction. If he has to say he's pro-life, he'll say it. That doesn't mean he rejects the progressive principle that inconvenient life is disposible, only that he can't get away with adhering to that principle openly. If he has to say he'll support repealing Obamacare, he'll say it. That doesn't mean he doesn't believe in government engineered "universal coverage," only that he can't fight for it openly. He sure isn't going to fight against it.
I wish the guy were a windsock. A windsock we could work with. You can always move a windsock where you want it to go by creating a strong enough breeze. There is no breeze strong enough to turn Mitt Romney in a conservative direction. A Romney presidency would be a conservative's worst nightmare.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseIt is, what it is.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseThis format, so called debate, is actually a parallel news conference of multiple candidates.
To declare a winner one night, then a winner another night is for the media entertainment.
In troubled times, suffering from buyer's remorse over an inexperienced (leftist) reformer, will voters go for an inexperienced (conservative) reformer? Or will they prefer a more famliar, safer, status quo ante candidate? What troubles people more about Obama? His incompetence, or his radicalism? Which of our candidates can capitalize on both factors? Do voters want to replace a leftist wrecking ball with a rightist wrecking ball? (I am talking about perceptions here, I don't really believe there is such a thing as a rightist wrecking ball, by definition). Is Romney a closet liberal who harbors a disdain of conservative goals? If Congress is not overwhelmingly conservative, would he conspire with RINO's and Democrats to thwart Tea Party measures? Is his inability to say anythimg negative about Social Security just a political tactic, or does he really think that the New Deal is carved in stone in a way that the 10th amendment is not? This suspicion about Romney means that his fron runner status is very thin, more a result of the other candidates weanesses than his own inherent strengths.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseA must-see video of Romney:
External Link
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseWe need to spread more videos like this out there. People need to understand that Mitt Romney is NOT a conservative, but a political opportunist. It's especially disgusting to watch many of the NRO staff fawn over him (especially Katrina).
2008 should have taught conservatives that going for the "moderate and electable" candidate is not a path to victory.
Reply to this commentLinkReport Abuse"WAH! WAH! Mommy where's my bottle!"
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseHow about debating the points? Or are you just incapable of doing so?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseSeeing this video of Romney saying how much he supports abortion, even for girls under 18 without parental consent is very disturbing. And he sounds so convincing and convicted. It's clear Romney has no principles and will do or say anything to get elected.
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseI guess the college students aren't very good at geography. Build a fence along the Rio Grande? Do they know about water access rights?
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseRUBIO, RYAN, JINDAL OR CHRISTIE
Reply to this commentLinkReport AbuseYes, I realize Christie is a roll of the dice in regards to his Conservatism but I can't pull the lever for Mitt and Christie beats Obama in a walk.
The surest bet, of course, would be Rubio. I don't buy the argument he isn't ready, unfortunately, I do buy the fact he doesn't want to run.
Bachmann actually did very well; she just wasn't given much air time, but she did well with what she got. She even handled the unfortunate repetition of the Gardasil question well this time. Santorum did well, too, but there is no path for him. I think a comeback for Bachmann is still well within the realm of possibility, but something has to happen to revive the buzz.
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