SO WHO WON THE DEBATE LAST NIGHT?

Yes, I stayed up for it

By Victor M Adamus

The four remaining candidates for president held their last debate before the primary election in South Carolina last night and it’s much easier for viewers to follow four candidates than the many that started a pitch for the oval office weeks ago in Iowa.  The four standing Republicans are Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Ron Paul.

Gingrich got the most applause, in fact two standing ovations for answering his ex-wife charges on open marriage, and was right on when he said the show started with a tabloid question which has no place in the debates.  He put CNN in its’ place as a news organization that is better than the tabs people look through at check-out counters across the nation.  A low blow for sure to CNN.  Go Newt!

Mitt Romney showed us a humorous side when he spontaneously answered a question on censorship on the internet, pointing out the internet didn’t help him in Iowa, now that is was made known Santorum won that primary hands down.  But I still think Romney’s stiffness is a weak point should he have to face off against Obama.

Ron Paul, in my opinion, looked like it was past his bedtime.  At one point wondering if the questioner was ever going to come back to him.  It was an embarrassment and the crowd could feel it.  I did.

But the adult in the room and winner in my opinion was Rick Santorum who held steady throughout the two hour debate.  He had a plan for kick starting America’s work engine and although ragged on Gingrich for his past lack of leadership as House Speaker, managed it with kid gloves rather than bring up the fact that old Newt was fined $300,000 for an ethics violation.  Corruption in Congress is as bad as it gets when folks get married to corporate dollars and get caught manipulating the system.

My guess is that the primary election will be a squeaker and Gingrich will have his first win.  Even though it’s popular for Republicans to vote for the person who waits in line and in this case it would be Romney who lost to McCann in 2008.  Voters on the Republican side still want someone who can beat Obama and although I do not see any of the four doing that, Gingrich has a better handle on history than anyone running so far.

I also reasoned that if there were a time in U.S. history to field a third party candidate, now would be that time.  A third party candidate that leans a little to the left but can pull votes from the middle would be an ideal person to challenge Obama.  I don’t see a Ronald Reagan, Ross Perot, or even a Paul Tsongas type on the horizon.  But I do see the Republicans stuck with a self-destruction that plays into the hands of the Democrats quite nicely.  In fact, it will be unheard of if we didn’t see the same ads running now, created by Republicans against Republicans running against the Republican candidate who wins this Fall.

That’s my two cents.