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COMMENTARY | The Republican presidential candidates met in yet another debate in Rochester, Michigan on Sept 9. The debate will be famous for two moments. But it was also memorable for how Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich shown in their own ways.
The two memorable moments may have revived Herman Cain’s campaign in one case and sunk Rick Perry’s in another.
When the panel asked Cain about the sexual harassment allegations, diverting for a moment from the economics format, the crowd was visibly displeased. Cain gave one of his forthright and firm denials, deploring how the imbroglio had distracted the campaign from the real issues of a bad economy. The crowd went wild and, no doubt, the home audience was impressed as well. Wisely, the panel returned to the economic issues at hand very quickly.
Rick Perry, when asked which government agencies he would abolish, had a brain freeze on stage, on national TV. He was able to name the departments of Commerce and Education for the first two, but his memory became derailed over the third department slated for destruction. It was a painful moment to watch and likely even more painful to experience. Perry’s gaffe came on top of a number of bad debate performances and a questionable speech in New Hampshire. Later, Perry tweeted how he had “stepped in it” putting it mildly.
The third government agency was, of course, the Department of Energy.
As for the rest of the debate, Romney and Gingrich gave great performances.
Romney was smooth and confident, as always, giving substantive answers. He handled the health care question rather deftly, making one almost but not quite forget about Romneycare.
Gingrich was, as usual, the smartest guy in the room. If anyone can be the conservative alternative to Romney, it now appears to be Gingrich, whose command of the issues makes him a debater without peer. He even reverted to angry Gingrich for a moment when he snapped at one of the media questioners, which for a Republican audience was a good, helping of red meat.
Whatever one thinks of Gingrich as a person or of some of his positions, one could not help but anticipate his going up against Obama next year with relish. This is especially true if his demand for seven three hour Lincoln/Douglas debates is accepted.
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Former White House Chief of Staff, and former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu, right, jokes with Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, as he files his papers to be on the ballot for the nation’s first presidential primary, Monday, Oct. 24, 2011 in Concord, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)
Former White House Chief of Staff, and former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu, right, jokes with Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, as he files his papers to be on the ballot for the nation’s first presidential primary, Monday, Oct. 24, 2011 in Concord, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) ? A day after he refused to endorse an Ohio ballot measure that limits public employee union rights, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney said Wednesday that he is “110 percent” behind the effort.
While he was in Ohio on Tuesday, Romney seemed to distance himself from anti-union measures that have lost popularity in recent months. Campaigning a day later, the former Massachusetts governor told reporters that he supports the ballot measure aimed at restricting collective bargaining rights for state employees.
“I’m sorry if I created any confusion in that regard. I fully support Gov. (John) Kasich’s ? I think it’s called Question Two in Ohio. Fully support that,” Romney said after visiting a local GOP office in the Washington suburbs. “Actually, on my website, I think back as early as April, I laid out that I support Question Two and Gov. Kasich’s effort to restrict collective bargaining in Ohio.”
Romney’s rivals criticized him for not supporting the measure, which he previously endorsed but has seen its popularity falter.
“As a true conservative, I stand with Gov. Kasich in promoting S.B.5 for fiscal responsibility and job creation in Ohio,” Texas Gov. Rick Perry said in a statement. “Gov. Kasich and the Republican leadership of Ohio are to be commended for their efforts.” Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman turned to Twitter to tweak Romney.
“Unlike (at)MittRomney, I stand with John Kasich in opposing the individual mandate and supporting public sector union reform,” he said.
On Wednesday, Romney tried to answer the criticism.
“I know there are other ballot questions in Ohio. I wasn’t taking a position on those,” Romney said after meeting with volunteers. “I am 110 percent behind Gov. Kasich and in support of that question.”
A Quinnipiac University poll this week showed the anti-union law is unpopular with voters; 57 percent oppose it in that poll.
Romney’s arms-length stance seemed to reflect that on Tuesday.
“I am not speaking about the particular ballot issues,” Romney said. “Those are up to the people of Ohio. But I certainly support the efforts of the governor to reign in the scale of government. I am not terribly familiar with the two ballot initiatives. But I am certainly supportive of the Republican Party’s efforts here.”
And on Wednesday, he still sidestepped questions about a separate ballot measure that would exempt Ohioans from President Barack Obama requirement that individuals have health insurance.
“I’ve said that should be up to individual states. I, of course, took my state in one direction. They may want to go in a different direction,” Romney said. “I don’t want to tell them what I think they ought to do in that regard.”
Associated Press
