Fox News is hosting another one of these stupid Republican debates tonight. I think this one is taking place in Orlando, of all God-forsaken places. The big news is that former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson has qualified for the debate. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-MI) did not qualify and has dropped out of the race. I am sure that they will all say many nasty things about the president, almost none of which will be true, and many of which would land a person on the street in a padded cell. For just one example, they’ll agree that Obama is insufficiently pro-Israel on a day when Obama went to the United Nations and threw a wet blanket on the Palestinians’ aspirations to be recognized as a sovereign member-state.
Enjoy the circus.
Damn straight. Richard Silverstein called it, “possibly the least credible, most irrelevant, and downright disappointing speeches of his career.”
What’s the criteria for qualifying? I can’t understand how Johnson and Huntsman can make the cut when Buddy Roemer can’t. Last I heard he was polling about 1%, and Huntsman is lucky these days if he even shows up in a poll. And Santorum.
Let me modify that part about Huntsman. He hit 10% in the new Suffolk poll, but for the last 2 debates he was an asterisk, but still allowed to participate.
you had to hit one percent in the polls. McCooter couldn’t do that.
been watching X-factor. so did I miss anything interesting?
I don’t know. I gave up after about 40 minutes. I couldn’t take it.
I thought you were supposed to be watching it so we wouldn’t have to
I have to reserve my strength. That shit was depleting me.
may be having all these debates is part of the repub strategy to depress dem vote turnout
I wonder how much Rick Perry has had to drink this evening.
does it seem like an amount competitive with what Boehner would have by this hour? (fascinating)
He just seems to be fumbling badly. Really badly.
Not enough, apparently.
AG
“There are a lot if reasons not to elect me.” Something tells me David Plouffe is smiling.
Larry Sabato caught this too. Not only will you see this in an add and President Obama turning it into an Elizabeth Barrett Browning moment in a debate with Romney, but it shows that Romney can be rattled into saying something really stupid like this. And that was just a feather punch.
https:/mobile.twitter.com#!/LarrySabato/status/117064748335501312
Rick Perry also had a great piece that could be taken out of context where he talked about how much he respects “The President” where he was speaking of Bush. But when I heard him say it I thought wow, he doesn’t realize how this can be used to make him look like an Obama-Lover to his dumb-ass base.
Santorum just called Obama a Kenyan, and Gary Johnson compared Obama to his dog.
Does Gary Johnson give his dog bong-hits?
I’m not sure, but I think Romney implied that Obama is a drug addict. I’m not sure if I heard correctly, but I thought I heard Romney say, “I didn’t inhale” or something.
Anyway, Johnson’s dog comment got the biggest applause line of the night.
“I didn’t inhale” was a reference to Bill Clinton admitting he smoked pot but not admitting that he got high. Not a HIGH moment for his 1992 campaign.
Romney was saying that he only served 4 years as governor and he didn’t get addicted to being in government.
yeah I know the reference is to Bill Clinton. And ah ok, I didn’t hear most of what he was saying because of my own liveblog discussion. Thanks.
Everyone got the reference. It just didn’t make sense, and corny as hell, but I’m black might just be a white thang. 🙂
I thought he said “I DID inhale” and thought that was odd for a Mormon to say something like that. The audience enjoyed it but I was distracted and didn’t think to back up 30 seconds or so to hear it again. It’s recorded on the DVR but I don’t know if I want to go back and find it. That debate was pretty hard to watch but like a NASCAR fan, I just had to watch for the nasty flaming wrecks.
I think it was his neighbors dog and it was something like I think my neighbor’s two dogs have created more shovel-ready jobs than Obama ever has.
I’ll stick to streaming “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” reruns instead of some inane GOP “debate”.
Bachmann just said that Obama has the “lowest public approval ratings of any president in modern times.”
REALLY? REALLY? I seem to remember a guy with a strong 27% approval that she TOTALLY loved just a few years back.
PolitiFact gave her a Pants on Fire rating for that comment.
http://tinyurl.com/3vbt9eq
Bush’s low during his tenure was 25% according to Gallup.
Job approval and personal approval are different, and Obama still has public opinion on his side regarding his personal qualities. The most obvious caveat to any approval rating metric is the fact that Congress (and not just other members, the generic rating, which is always low), is regarded at historic lows (as I recall). Incessant attacks on the legitimacy of government by Republicans have depressed approval rating across the board.
http://people-press.org/2009/09/17/obama-approval-ratings-steady-personal-image-remains-positive/
I saw an AP Fact Check piece this morning. I like their response.
In this debate, the clowns in the audience booed a gay soldier.
they continue to be disgusting.
this was someone who chose to PUT THEIR LIFE ON THE LINE IN SERVICE TO THIS COUNTRY AND THEY HAVE THE NERVE TO BOO THEM?
FUCK THEM , THE HORSE THEY RODE IN ON , AND THAT VERMIN ON STAGE WHO WAS TOO GUTLESS TO TELL THOSE CLOWNS TO STFU AND RESPECT THE UNIFORM.
I think that was a Santorum question, wasn’t it? He said he would somehow allow those people who have come out stay in the military but reject future homo applicants. Yeah, right. But the audience was disgusting, as they usually are at these Republican debates.
It was only yesterday that Republicans were passing resolutions giving all the credit for killing Osama Bin Laden to the military and not to the commander-in-chief who ordered the hit. Now they’re bashing an active duty soldier for being gay with the tacit consent of every GOP presidential contender. Nice. I hope all of the LGBT firebaggers who believe they forced repeal of DADT by defaming Obama are taking notes.
I watched the last 20 minutes. What a yuck fest Obama bash. They were having a blast amusing each other.
This is going to be an ugly 14 months. I’m not sure I can hang in there.
How long until the first primary?
We won’t know until Florida gets its act together and picks a date.
January.
Did the Gary Johnson remind anyone else of the Public Defender character for My Cousin Vinnie?
http://cdn5.movieclips.com/fox/m/my-cousin-vinny-1992/0343555_16800_MC_Tx360.jpg
A little bit. Maybe the shuddering and seeming nervousness, etc. Not looks though.
Obama is the most dishonest President in the history of the United States of America.
Rich don’t pay their “fair share”? Are you f…king kidding me?
The top .1…that’s right…point one percent…that’s one tenth of one percent…pay sixteen percent of all federal income taxes, while the bottom 80…that’s right…EIGHTY percent of all income earners pay fifteen percent of all income taxes…
I know Progressives…those evil Millionaires make so much more money than the “Middle Class”…BUT…the bottom eighty percent bring in SIX times the income of the Evil Millionaires who represent the top one tenth of one percent of income earners…which means…the top one tenth of one percent of income earner have SIX TIMES the tax burden of the “Middle Class”…
In reality, the Rich have become the slaves of the “Poor”, or perhapes the “Middle Class”…
How do you guys and gals deal with the factual economic reality?
In case you don’t understand the relevancy of this chart to your question, where do you expect money to come from if the bottom 50% owns 2.5% of the wealth? You’re trying to squeeze blood from a turnip.
Okay, Seabee…
You conflate “Wealth” with “Income”…Income is money you are making now, and Wealth is what you have saved up previously…
But go ahead and take your Wealth and Income conflation…
The top one percent paid 40 percent in Income Taxes…but only own thirty-some percent of Wealth…
They still pay a much higher percentage than Middle Class or Poor Folks…
Sorry…our society punishes the people who create wealth and who create jobs…we really do need to go on strike…after all, according to Progressives, society will be much better off without us…
How ironic…it is the “rich” who are subjugated to the “poor”…
You know what? Fuck it. I WANT to punish these fucks. I want to do it. Obama doesn’t want to, but I do. Go fucking Galt already, and leave us alone.
I love your passion…I’ll hire you!
You could be rich!
Quote: “The top .1…that’s right…point one percent…that’s one tenth of one percent…pay sixteen percent of all federal income taxes,”
This statistic is meaningless without a little context… like what percent of income does the top .1% make? You got that figure handy? Cuz without it, you’re just babbling.
The people who create wealth and who create jobs in this country are not the rich. They merely benefit the most from the labor of the lower classes and their purchase of goods and services.
Rick Perry did absolutely terrible tonight. He couldn’t respond to anything in a way that made sense (probably even to this audience.) He got in no good one-liners, he showed that he has no clue about foreign policy.
Mitt Romney really shined. He did.
Bachmann said nothing truthful the whole night but that doesn’t matter at Republican debates.
Cain said he would have died under “Obamacare” with his cancer because a “Government Bureaucrat” would have made him wait to get care, which is absolute nonsense because “Obamacare” is PRIVATE insurance. But everyone believed it.
Santorum was really frothy, slimy and nasty.
Ron Paul was entertaining but he’s a joke.
Gingrich probably had the most interesting responses (not that I agree) but he’s not going anywhere.
Anyone else who was there really didn’t matter and probably should have stayed home.
The only relevant consideration for Republicans is who can defeat the Holy One (Obama)
I’d rather have Perry be President, but I do not think he can win…
Go Romney Go, Go!
As much as I love the sport of politics and I respect the fans of the opposing team, I don’t see good odds of any of these clowns getting elected. Maybe Romney could do it but it’s a reeeal long-shot even for him against Obama.
People are upset with the economy, but they still remember how we got into this mess. It all happened before Obama was elected. We’re trying to recover from it but the whole world is plunging into the economic abyss right now as a result of what happened several years back. They DO understand that. And they “like” Obama and know what he stands for. Romney’s a plastic man. He’ll bend and stretch and contort himself into whatever shape he’s expected to be today.
Just my opinion anyway. Nothing personal. I do respect the opposing view though (even though I don’t agree with them/you.)
Sounds a lot like Preznit Butch II, doesn’t it?
W/a little vote juggling, he’s got a Butch’s chance.
Bet on it.
No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American voter.
Bet on that as well.
AG
He’s only a joke because you have been repeatedly told that he is a joke, Randy.
Over and over and over again Ron Paul is polling almost neck and neck w/Romney and Perry. If those two asses split the RatPub knucklehead vote Paul is liable to win the nomination in the primaries.
Watch.
If he does…the current Perry fade argues against this scenario, of course…he will wipe the foor with Obama.
Watch.
AG
P.S. The current Perry fade…media-driven as is all big-time, big-money political action in the U.S. He is being attacked as “unintelligible” by the same forces who supported that bumbling fool George W. Butch through two terms as Preznit.
C’mon.
The fix is beginning to shape up now.
Obama has proven that he is controllable.
Romney is most obviously controllable.
Win/win for the controllers no matter who becomes Preznit.
Ron Paul? Uncontrollable.
UH oh!!!
If Romney and Perry split the party and Paul wins?
UH oh!!!
A big loss for the controllers.
What to do?
Tank Perry now.
Watch.
He’ll be gone in less that a month.
Watch.
AG
I think what we learned tonight is that the only people republicans hate more than the sick and dying (sooo last week) is active duty soldiers who happen to be gay.
Ding ding ding. I think we have a winner.
I just watched the re-run of the Frank Luntz focus group session for the debate and they were NOT happy with Rick Perry. Not at all.
I think these folks are all absolutely racist xenophobic freaks, but I think they got this part somewhat right.
But when it came to the “Obamacare” nonsense, none of them had a clue about what they were talking about. They seem to think we’re switching to some communist form of healthcare when nothing could be further from the truth.
I was impressed that they thought that the EPA is actually necessary to keep our water and air, etc clean and they thought that eliminating it would be stupid.