COMMENTARY | Monday's GOP debate, hosted by CNN, was broadcast from Saint Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. Moderator John King announced the event would take a different approach by allowing questions to come directly from voters in the audience as well as from town meetings throughout the state via a closed circuit television feed. The roster of candidates included former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Minnesota Rep. Michelle Bachmann, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and businessman Herman Cain.
Initially, my favorite candidate was Herman Cain. However, his answers consisted more of campaign slogans than presidential policy specifics. His struggle to untangle his verbal knots regarding past comments of considering a Muslim for his staff was disappointing. Overall, in the experienced presence of Romney, Gingrich and Bachmann -- who didn't participate in the first debate -- Cain failed to conjure the same impressive level of charisma.
The first significant surprise was Bachmann's official candidacy announcement. She spent much of her time familiarizing people with her record and quickly put to rest the rumors that she lacked knowledge and experience. She gave crisp, confident answers, and the loud applause received from her blunt promise that Obama was a "one-term president" was surely heard all the way in the White House.
Although not my pre-debate favorite, Romney was consistent, on-message and presented himself as the most presidential of the seven candidates. However, while he said he would repeal Obamcare, he didn't make his case in clarifying significant differences between Romneycare and Obamacare. Still, where Romney lost to McCain in 2008 and was unable to challenge the enigma dressed in a rock-star persona, an ABC/Washington Post poll showed Romney was already a threat before the debate. With Romney's commanding presence at the debate and the clear solutions he offered for Obama's economic disasters, he represents an even more serious change in the president's hope for re-election.
My least favorite candidate was Rick Santorum. While saying he would cut capital gains, phase out ethanol subsidies and tariffs and claimed that unions were the ones who benefited from TARP, he was otherwise an ancillary character in the event.
Newt Gingrich managed to pull off a good show, primarily in his sharp, articulate attacks of Obama and the damage his policies have caused to the nation's economy. Gingrich vowed to lower income and capital gains taxes, improve the job market and repeal the Dodd-Frank bill. Still, considering his offensive Ryan plan missteps and the recent exodus of his campaign staff, this may be Newt's last hurrah.
Tim Pawlenty scored minor points with reiterations of his opposition to abortion, gay marriage and ethanol subsidies. However, he fumbled when confronted about his "Obomneycare" commentary made on Fox News Sunday. "We now have essentially the same features"of "what happened in Massachusetts,"he said the day before the debate. But rather than taking the opportunity to make his case, Pawlenty tucked tail and demonstrated his weakness as a leader.
Where Ron Paul rambled a lot, as if struggling to condense an encyclopedia of ideas into each 30-second response, he was quite clear when articulating his thoughts on immigration reform and how we should protect our own borders rather than those between Iraq and Afghanistan. While he was originally not among my favorites, his love for his country blazed as bright as Liberty's torch and his passionate sermon regarding current government restrictions of Christian religious expression instantly warmed my heart:
" Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof" -- applause.
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