Left in the West: "It seemed like just a few weeks ago when MoveOn.org was taken to task for a bad pun. In an ad. In a newspaper. Much hysteria ensued over MoveOn's little joke, apologies were demanded, condemnations passed in the Senate. I mean, if a general's reputation is at stake, you've got to act![...]
"Kerr apparently had the audacity to ask the Republican candidates why they supported a ban on gay service personnel. Each gave their answer, which ranged from gays are bad for morale to the offense that gays would mean to good, conservative Christians who apparently make up the bulk of our military. Asked if he were satisfied with the answers, Kerr, who was in the audience, said 'no.'[...]
"Steve Benen: 'At which point, the Republican audience began booing the 43-year military veteran. It was an interesting contrast - at Democratic debates, veterans get standing ovations. At Republican debates, veterans get booed if they're gay.'"
From The Washington Post, "Winners: Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Chuck Norris."
The Right's Field: "Booman offers the best roundup of the Republican YouTube debate that I've seen. I have only seen parts of it. But as far as I can gather, it was a lightning round of immigrant-bashing, historical revisionism (public opinion lost the Vietnam War), Jesus praise (apparently, there is a religious test for office on the Republican side), and anti-tax rhetoric."
Pollster.com "Additional results from the recent Rasmussen Reports statewide survey of 1,156 likely Democratic caucus goers in Iowa (conducted 11/26 through 11/27) finds Sen. Hillary Clinton (at 27%) narrowly leading Sen. Barack Obama (25%) and former Sen. John Edwards (24%) in a statewide caucus; Gov. Bill Richardson trails at 10%. All other candidates receive less than five percent each."
Four years ago this week on Coyote Gulch: "NHPrimary.com: 'Democrat Dick Gephardt and rival Howard Dean intensified their war of words in the party's presidential debate Monday, squabbling over Iraq, Medicare and the front-runner's record as governor of Vermont. Although the eight Democratic hopefuls participating in debate agreed they did not like a GOP-pushed Medicare prescription drug bill pending in Congress and found much to criticize in President Bush's foreign policy, Dean found himself on the defensive.'
"Howard Dean is in the lead nationally according to a recent Ipsos-Reid/Cook Political Report Poll."
Joel Achebach (via The Washington Post): "Which brings us to Mitt Romney. He appeared to need GPS to find his core beliefs."
Josh Marshall: "Missed last night's GOP YouTube debate? We've got all the ugly highlights -- just be sure you're wearing a bib and a bulletproof vest ..."
Paul Krugman (via The New York Times): "So CNN chose which questions would be asked in the Republican debate last night. And guess what: not one question about health care, the central domestic issue for this election. They did, however, include a question about putting a man on Mars."
Now a little power to the people from Mike Gravel."
Politics West: "Republican presidential rivals Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney scornfully debated immigration Wednesday in a provocative, no-holds-barred CNN/YouTube debate just over a month before the first votes are cast."
Oliver Willis: "On the CNN/Youtube debate, Mitt Romney said he believed everything in the King James Bible. He was clearly pandering to the conservative 'Christian' base of the Republican party. But I think it is a fair follow up question to ask Romney if he believes everything in The Book of Mormon as well, which is a foundational text of his faith.
"As a side note I think it's funny that Mike Huckabee, a former minister, clearly said he doesn't think everything in the bible is literal truth (an obvious point to anyone who has ever cracked it open - even if you're the most devout Christian the Bible is not exactly a clear recitation of fact) but Romney couldn't stop his pander gene from kicking in."
Andrew Sullivan: "...it's clear that today's Dixie-based, pro-torture, anti-immigrant GOP will find it very hard to accept the bipartisan, anti-torture supporter of comprehensive immigration reform as its candidate. Romney really is a tool. Giuliani is just too urban for the party Rove has built. So you can see why Huckabee is rising. I bet he's on a roll now. As 'Richelieu' puts it, he does have the most important qualification of anyone on stage: 'A degree in Bible Studies from Ouachita Baptist University of Arkadelphia, Arkansas.'"
Daily Kos: "kos: What a debate. Eight white guys all arguing over who hates immigrants and their children the most."
Blogs for Victory:
Well, that was a rather disappointing debate. Not because of the answers (though some were better than others) but many of the questions selected were awful. So many were loaded questions or presumptuous. I got the impression that there were some that weren't even submitted by Republican voters (the target audience) and that was annoying. Still, the Republican candidates certainly demonstrated once again that they can handle a debate in unfriendly territory, with some lousy questions, and a crappy moderator. Meanwhile, Democrats are still too chicken to participate in a debate on FOX News.
I didn't see the Democrats' CNN/YouTube debate, so I can't compare the two...
The most ridiculous moment of the debate was when the openly gay retired Army Colonel asked his question about the Republicans' positions on gays in the military and lo and behold, after the candidate gave their answers, we learned the guy was actually in the audience, were he was given the chance to say whether or not he was satisfied with the answers. Of course he wasn't. And we know why[sigma]
Apparently he is connected to Hillary Clinton's campaign.
"2008 pres"
8:16:01 PM 
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