There wasn’t much to like in last night’s Republican debate in Greenville, South Carolina. I doubt if many people came away from the two-hour squabble feeling better about the GOP or its presidential candidates.
Perhaps Republicans should consider cancelling the rest of the debates. They aren’t helping the cause of electing a Republican to the White House in November—quite the contrary.
The personal animus that now surfaces is nasty and off-putting. A week ago in New Hampshire, Chris Christie went after Marco Rubio so viciously that it seriously wounded Rubio’s candidacy without boosting Christie’s. Within days, Christie soon dropped out of the race.
Yet the bruising charges of lying and individual weakness continued last night. Trump insisted nearly everything said about him was a lie, including the notion he had declared bankruptcy. He’s splitting hairs here, I think. His companies declared bankruptcy, not Trump personally.
True, a moment or two occurred when a candidate rose above the ruckus. Rubio did in his defense of President George W. Bush for keeping the country safe after the 9/11 attacks and his explanation of why he wants families with children to get a large tax break.
And while John Kasich talked too much about his Ohio record, his description of himself as a unifier gets more compelling with each debate. He also spoke effectively about creating a growing economy that helps the middle class and below. “We want everyone to rise,” he said.
But that just about exhausts my list of good things that happened in the debate. Donald Trump, more than anyone, was responsible for reducing it to a cockfight with unending interruptions, accusations, and a general tone of meanness.
Trump, having been chief honcho of his own TV show, ought to know better than to intervene noisily when someone else is talking. Yet he did so repeatedly, talking over his rivals. People watching chat shows – and debates – hate this. And Trump has a double standard. When he’s yapping, he waves off anyone who tries to butt in.
He makes a mistake, in my view, in acting so obnoxiously. He doesn’t have to prove to anyone that he’s willing to be politically incorrect and that he’s adept at insults. We all know that’s his style.
For his own good, it’s time to calm down. He ought to take the advice that John Riggins, the Redskins running back, gave to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor years ago and “lighten up.” He doesn’t need to start yelling whenever one of the candidates says something he doesn’t like.
Trump rarely answers questions. In fact, it sometimes appears that he doesn’t understand what’s being asked, then wanders off in a unguided way. For instance, he was asked if he still thinks George W. Bush should have been impeached for the Iraq, as he once told Nancy Pelosi. That prompted him to echo the political left’s claim that Bush lied about nuclear weapons in Saddam Hussein’s arsenal. He ignored the matter of impeachment
Trump’s charge isn’t true. But in the same response he said, “I get along with everybody” – which isn’t true either. And along the way, he attacked Jeb Bush over his position on the Iraq war. If there was a path through all this Trump garble, it wasn’t a straight one.
Bush, for what’s it worth, continued to improve his performance as a debater. But he does himself no good by egging Trump on. “I am sick and tired of him going after my family,” Bush said. Okay. We sympathize. Now please move on.
This was not one of Ted Cruz’s best nights. But he didn’t say anything likely to unhinge his supporters. He made a strong case for his tax cut plan, one that some conservatives believe would provide a gateway for raising taxes.
The masterminds behind the Republican debates can’t be happy with the mess they’ve become. Democrats have gained an advantage debate-wise. Nothing is off-limits in questioning Republicans. But in last Thursday’s debate with Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton didn’t get a single question about the burgeoning scandals involving her emails or the Clinton Foundation.
There was one clash I liked. It was when Cruz quoted Rubio of having said something – I forget exactly what – on Spanish language television. “How does he know what I said on Univision when he doesn’t speak Spanish?” Rubio shot back. Good question.
