I’ve actually grown rather weary of these ‘presidential debates’. For the most part, they’re not presidential and they’re not really debates. Wait! Now that I think about it, what could be more fitting exercise for those attempting to ascend to the presidency of an American Idol nation?
In Thursday's CNN South Carolina debate, Newt Gingrich really skewered John King for asking about the latest tabloid topic from Gingrich’s past. Yeah, it was somewhat entertaining. I even got the urge to do a little fist pump. Of course, about three seconds later, I was pondering if Newt really thought that asking him a question on this topic was “as close to despicable" as anything that he can imagine”. Hmmm… Really?
Perhaps Newt’s imagination isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Supporters and detractors alike have described him as “an idea a minute” kind of guy. Well, perhaps that says more about them than it does him. If he can’t think of anything more despicable than being asked a question about how he treated his second wife, then perhaps his reputation for intelligence is as inflated as his opinion of himself.
And, come to think of it, what else is John King going to ask him about? Is there anyone who doesn’t already know where Newt stands on everything? I mean he’s the guy who teamed up with Nancy Pelosi to evangelize the dangers of global warming. He’s the guy who said that was the “dumbest single thing he’s done in recent years” (hmmm… I think that there’s a lot of competition for that title). He’s the guy who is all in favor of an individual mandate. He’s the guy who thinks that’s an individual mandate is a bad idea. He’s the guy who said that Paul Ryan’s budget proposal was right-wing social engineering. He’s the guy who said that it wasn’t. Or something like that. All together now, “That Mitt Romney is such a flip-flopper!”
And how about Rick Santorum? Now, my understanding is that this guy is supposed to be a righteous dude – always on the side of the angels, principled, pro-life, conservative, dedicated Catholic. So, taking all of that about him at face value, I had to wonder why he attacked Congressman Paul on the topic of abortion. You know the one – Dr. Ron Paul, OB-GYN, delivered over 4,000 babies. The same Ron Paul that denounces aggressive violence of any kind.
As Dr. Paul accurately explained, they do have different approaches about how to best end or at least impede this scourge of abortion. Santorum could have shown the distinction between his preferred approach (more federal government force) and Dr. Paul’s (removing abortion from federal judicial jurisdiction). But that’s not what Rick Santorum did. He instead tried to paint Dr. Paul as not really pro-life.
So, we have to ask ourselves, does Santorum really believe in the substance of his attack? If so, then he’s a moron. If not, then he’s a slanderer. Yeah, righteous dude!
Another highlight was when the moderator decided to go to the audience for some questions. One guy got the chance to ask a question of the four remaining men competing for the Republican nomination to the presidency. On national television. Millions watching. The best he could come up with was, “When are you going to release your taxes?” Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! On behalf of MTV, I’m proud to present this election’s ‘Boxers or Briefs’ award. And I didn’t think it was possible to make these horrible debate ‘moderators’ look good. What’s even funnier is that Romney couldn’t answer the question.
Move over American Idol.
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