Who won the Republican debate?

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   promisemposted 9 years ago

   I watched it with no previous preferences for one candidate or the other, although Trump is too extreme and impulsive for my taste.
   
   I thought Jeb Bush looked presidential, but he acted unsure of himself and hesitated quite a few times. Christie and Walker seemed well spoken. The others didn't seem too impressive.

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      rhamsonposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I liked a little bit of each of what they said. The problem is the detractors in each of them had made it hard for me to not overlook any one person. I was taken aback by the way this was produced with such an awkward beginning to the way some of the questions were very inflammatory and derogatory. How do you start off a debate with a made up pledge? I guess we will know who won or lost when the election rolls around. I am sure the pundits and sycophantic press will have many declarations to spin for us in the meantime. Remember a good debater does not necessarily make a good leader.

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         promisemposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Great answer!

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      Dr Billy Kiddposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      The debates are now all about entertainment, not policy. Said differently, politics has become entertaining. That's what Trump brought from his campaign to the debate.
      By that measure, Trump won the first debate by a large margin.
      For example, Trump fired everyone with the first question when he refused to pledge support to the winner of the Republican primary--unless it was him! Totally funny....

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   Kathryn L Hillposted 9 years ago

   Trump seemed uncomfortable.
   He is done.
   I actually liked Huckabee!!
   He seemed typically presidential. No else seems as presidential. I liked Carson Big time… but as a professor or surgeon. Yet, his common sense might be just what we need.

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      promisemposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. Now that I think about it, Huckabee did seem comfortable and focused.
      
      Trump said he didn't practice before the debate, and it clearly showed. On the other hand, some of them practiced too much.

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         Kathryn L Hillposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Bush, I maintain, is the Globalist/Elitist pick.  He did not come across like much of anything. I would pick Huckabee over Bush any day.

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      rhamsonposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Trump and the rest of them that seem to think a huge fence and patrols will keep the illegal immigrants from coming here will work are dancing around the elephant in the room. Illegal hiring is what entices them to leave their homes and family and come here on the sly. Unless you remove the need you will never cure the problem. Some mentioned E verification but for the most part it was ignored. I guess they still don't want to pi$$ off possible voters and have to be accountable for the illegals they may have hired themselves (Trump and all his construction and hotel staffs). It is much like the reasons why drugs keep being a problem. The need is met by the means. Erase the need, erase the means.

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         Kathryn L Hillposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         oh, you are talking actual issues. uh, well …
         
         
            
         JK no,   I agree here.
         Illegal hiring: Bad.
         But, also …  border protection: Good!

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   PrettyPantherposted 9 years ago

   Interesting that no one has mentioned which candidate they liked based on their specific answers about specific issues.
   
   As a liberal, I will not be voting for any of them.  Our household full of progressives and one moderate got plenty of jolly hoots from the proceedings.  Especially loved that silly pledge at the beginning.  I also felt the moderators (incompetent as they were) had it in for Trump, probably have marching orders from Fox News HQ to take him out (politically speaking).  ;-)

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      promisemposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I don't pay attention to specific answers about specific issues because I think it's a waste of time.
      
      At this point in the campaign, they will say whatever appeals most to the conservative base. Later, the party nominees will say whatever appeals most to the broadest number of people. That's what they need to do to get elected.
      
      Instead, I try to look for strength of character, intelligence and composure under fire. For me, Chris Christie was the clear winner on that point.
      
      As a right of center independent, I try to keep an open mind because no side is all good or all bad. I voted both times for Ronald Reagan and Bush 1. Based on what I saw last night, I am more likely to vote for either Chris Christie or Hillary Clinton.
      
      I agree the moderators were targeting Trump, but I don't agree they were incompetent. Frankly, I was suprised that some of their questions were tough and uncomfortable.

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         PrettyPantherposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Interesting.  While I acknowledge that pretty much everyone will temper what they say in an effort to get elected, I still believe it is important to pay attention to what they say and hold them to their word.  To ignore specific answers to specific issues is to give them what they want, which is no accountability for spouting lies and making empty promises.

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      promisemposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Also, the best way to figure out their beliefs about specific issues is by looking at their voting records on those issues and not what they say about them.

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         PrettyPantherposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, that would be true about those who have voting records.  Quite a few of them don't.

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            rebekahELLEposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            Currently Rubio has the worst voting record in the Senate.  He's basically not doing his job that Foridians sent him to Washington to perform. (I'm not one of them.) He's missed important hearings, briefings, etc.  The work.  But not many voters actually look at voting records.  They look at character, strength of convictions. Actually, I'm not sure about that either!  Who knows..  I think character shows clearly in voting records, attendance, showing up for work.  Most of them can talk the talk.
            http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/s … in/2240440
            
            I got through 45 minutes of the debate and turned it off.

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               PrettyPantherposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               LOL, I viewed it as a comedy show.  I have to view it that way, or I will cry.  It is sad that Donald Trump, who is attempting to buy his way to the presidency (okay, I get it, that's what everyone does) is leading the polls.  What are those Trumpeters thinking?

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                  gmwilliamsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  It seems that some Americans view Trump as a breath of political fresh air.  They contend that Mr. Trump is saying what needs to be said and they feel that as a businessman, he has better leadership skills and is more capable of running the country than any politician can.  They furthermore believe that Mr. Trump will turn America around for the better.

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                     PrettyPantherposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                     Breath of fresh air?  More like outhouse fumes.
                     
                     Re Megyn Kelly:   "you could see there was blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever"
                     
                     The man can't even take a tough question from a woman without resorting to misogynistic name calling, and some people think that's presidential material?
                     
                     Unbelievable.

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                        Credence2posted 9 years agoin reply to this

                        Yes, and inspite of this, Trump, in his Archie Bunker style, is at the top of the pack. What does that say about the fundamental nature of the GOP? We all have to do better.

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      Dr Billy Kiddposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      So it was entertaining for progressives! Like I mentioned, politics has become entertainment because of Trump.

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   Superkevposted 9 years ago

   In the main tier, I thought Cruz and Rubio did well, Kaisich was good but I don't think he is dynamic enough, plenty competent but just not an exciting speaker.
   
   Really, the star of the night for me was Carly Fiorina, and I think it is a travesty she was not at the big kids stage. She also took Chris Matthews to the wood shed after the early debate during his interview.

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      rhamsonposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      She may come off as quite the success but her past may catch up to her. She takes great risks at the expense of many others.
      
      "Fiorina tried to jump-start the company's growth in the PC market by acquiring rival Compaq in 2002 for $19 billion.
      That deal is now considered one of the worst in the history of the tech sector. And HP wound up laying off 30,000 workers during her nearly six-year tenure.
      By the time of Fiorina's ouster in February 2005, HP's stock had lost nearly half its value. The tech-heavy Nasdaq index had fallen 27% during the same time frame." [1]
      
      [1] http://money.cnn.com/2015/08/07/news/ca … index.html

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   Alternative Primeposted 9 years ago

   With the exception of Trump, they're all losers ~ When you have 10 individuals discussing options regarding how they plan on extracting as much wealth as possible from Working Americans, Senior Citizens, Minoroties etc. and then transfering it to Wall Street Corporate Criminals, you are an absolute LOSER ~
   
   One standout ~ Mike Huckabee, whom I'm certainly no big fan of, mentioned the fact that Medicare & Social Security must remain as a senior citizen's bedrock source of income and he actually proposed a new tax to strengthen the programs just as I have ~ Rather shocking from a conservative but nevertheless worth noting ~ Not word one about this from Fox-Snooze though ~

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