REPUBLICAN DEBATE — Blogging on the Bloggers — The Left, The Right, and the LIVE — Who do you think won? (with YouTube videos)
Posted by Catherine Morgan on June 6, 2007
Bloggers are changing the face of politics and the debates. Tonights GOP Debate is no exception. Let’s see what the Bloggers are saying – The Left, The Right, and the LIVE.
Update at 7:39 p.m. ET: Tancredo is asked about an immigration bill in Congress and repeats an earlier vow to “go after any Republican that votes for it because the Republicans can stop this.”
Giuliani calls the bill “a typical Washington mess. Everybody compromises.” He sais it’s “quite possible” the bill will make things worse instead of better. He says everybody in the country should have a tamperproof ID card and the U.S. should “throw out the ones who are not in that database.”
Romney is asked to comment on what McCain said Monday in Miami — “pandering for votes on this issue while offering no solutions amounts to doing nothing, and doing nothing is silent amnesty.”
Candidates blogging…
The John McCain site has an open forum
The Rudy Giuliani site — has a live feed
Mike Huckabee did Live Blogging on his site.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney (L), former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani (C), and Arizona Senator John McCain (R) stand together on stage prior to the start of the Republican Presidential Candidates Debate at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire. Republican presidential hopefuls hammered Democrats over Iraq Tuesday and denied the United States had been wrong to go to war, in a hawkish start to their third presidential debate.(AFP/Stan Honda)
The Chris Dodd site is doing another Talk Clock
From the CNN Political Ticker
When former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani was asked to respond to recent comments from a religious leader likening him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who condemned Jesus to be crucified, lightning from outside the debate site briefly cut off his microphone.
Giuliani couldn’t pass up commenting on the strange coincidence, joking, “For someone who went to parochial schools all his life, this is a frightening thing that’s happening right now.”
Lightning takes out all the microphones at the Presidential Debate as Rudy talks about abortion. Is it a sign from God?
Conservative Blogger is doing a Live-Blogging of the Debate…
I’m watching the debate with my fellow WMUR/Gather.com bloggers. This posting is the live blog of the debate live from St. Anselm College in Manchester, NH.
8:38pm: Romney gets a flip-flop question on immigration. He’s for English as the official language but is airing ads in Spanish. Romney clarifies that he’s for legal immigration and loves people who come here through legal means. I think he missed on this answer, personally. I’m waiting for Blitzer to redirect him.
GOP Hopefuls Fault Bush on Iraq – for the Huffington Post…
MANCHESTER, N.H. — President Bush drew sporadic, startling criticism Tuesday night from Republican White House hopefuls unhappy with his handling of the Iraq war, his diplomatic style and his approach to immigration.
“I would certainly not send him to the United Nations” to represent the United States, said Tommy Thompson, the former Wisconsin governor and one-time member of Bush’s Cabinet, midway through a spirited campaign debate.
Arizona Sen. John McCain criticized the administration for its handling of the Iraq War, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said, “I think we were underprepared and underplanned for what came after we knocked down Saddam Hussein.”
Rep. Duncan Hunter of California said the current administration “has the slows” when it comes to building a security fence along the border with Mexico.
Informed Students – Live Blogging…
McCain–Evolution in school–”I believe g-d love us”–Curricula is up to the individual school districs.
Romney–Faith–Envokes Kennedy’s name–”I am an American running for President.”–Stands by his Church
Paul–Church vs. State–We don’t need more laws affecting religion, these are things left to the states or local levels–I always thought that their was a separation of Church and State.
Giuliani–Climate Change–We contribute to global warming, and there is a way to address it–We need a project similar to putting a man on the moon–bipartisan project.
Romney–GOP and Big Oil–Big Oil is making a lot of money now, these companies should be reinvesting profits in the companies. The oil companies are not the only profiting, but the countries who sell the oil are making the money.
McCain–GOP and Big Oil–These companies should be looking into creating nuclear power and other alternate energy sources. This is a national security issue–Can everything be linked to national security?
Paul–Our foreign policy is dictated by foreign oil.
Hunter–Gays in the Military–Would not change existing policy, it is already covered.
Giuliani–Gays in the Military–We should not be tackling this during a time of war.
Romney–Gays in the Military–The policy is working and this is not the time to have a social experiment in the middle of a war, we have bigger issues to talk about.
McCain–Gays in the Military–I think it would be a mistake to repoen the issue, it is working we should not tamper.
Gays in the Military–No one believes they should do so openly!
The Granite Grok is also Live Blogging the debate…
Question- What is the most important moral issue faced by the country. Huckabee. Respect life. Not acceptable to treat ANY people as expendable. We celebrate life. Big applause. Giuliani- Great gifts from God. Get our enemies to see the value of our ideas. Ron Paul dissed the threat of a nuclear bomb for Iran, saying they have done nothing to us. Hello? Iran? There is a sizeable contingent clapping for him, though. Lots of libertarians in the audience, I guess. Brownback- the life issue is number one.
David Weigel did an interesting live blogging of the debate…
6:57: The sound of Wolf Blitzer clearing his throat could be easily mistaken for a swarm of locusts, mating.
7:29: Hand it to Wolf Blitzer: He knows how to let John McCain talk. He sounds arrogant, like he knows no one else has reckoned with immigration (or the current bill), and dares them to come on and bring a better idea. Giuliani and Romney know just enough for this strategy to fail, although Rudy sounds like he’s pored over the bill and Romney sounds like he’s read a memo.
Some Post Debate Blogging…
Fred Thompson is not in the debate, but he landed a spot on FOX News – where he may have just made an extremely damaging mistake. Fred Thompson, when running for Senator, apparently checked the box that said “I believe abortion should always be legal in the first three months.” Hannity asked him if he accidentally checked the wrong box. Thompson replied that he did not remember the form or who filled it out. He then made his mistake, saying that he has always been against abortion.
Another debate? Yup. This one’s kinda fun, actually has some noteworthy moments.
Wolff Blitzer, note to self. Never ask a Minister whether he believes in evolution or creation. Minister Huckabee’s answer was unexpectedly direct, well spoken and powerfully well done.
Thoughts on Republican Debate – Patrick Britton…
Huckabee impressed me. Instead of hiding like most politicians would he laid out what he believes in. I commend him for saying it plain and simple and hope more politicians do so. I don’t feel I learned anything new about the candidates tonight. Ron Paul still makes a point to stand out from the rest, Rudy is still very stern on terrorism and Romney still dances around most questions. Seeing this from an independents point of view I’m not quite sure how I would feel. I’m glad the topics seem a lot more diverse but it’s the same old news, I haven’t learned much.
From a Teenagers Point of View…
President Bush drew sporadic, startling criticism Tuesday Night from Republican White House Hopefuls unhappy with his handling of the Iraq War, his diplomatic style and his approach to immigration. About time someone says something!
“The republican party is a party of life, all life.” “We think that all life is precious.” “We are a party of principle.” Give me a break. Very good examples of quoting prepared, memorized, rehearsed speeches. Just as the democrats did, the republican candidates were speaking out of both sides of their mouths.
A little from the left…
This one is really cute – Republican Debate One-Liners…
“Anything the government takes over gets worse, not better.”
Bush’s biggest mistake: “Ran as a conservative and governed as a liberal.”
Is that why so he’s so popular amongst liberals?
Michael Bloomberg: Don’t Panic…
I’m waiting to see which Republicans attack him (Bloomberg). If so, it would be quite hypocritical considering all the warnings about terrorism which were ignored by Republicans before 9/11. Republicans didn’t care about terrorism until they found that it worked well for them politically, and even then they engaged in far more talk and scare tactics than effective action. As we see the Republican debate tonight, I’m reminded of John Kerry pushing for more action on homeland security in two of his debates with George Bush, and George Bush saying his recommendations were too expensive.
What the BlogHers thought…
But, I did catch about a half hour toward the end and all I can say is we are in so much trouble if Rudy Giuliani gets elected president.
OK, so I’m glad that he is pro-choice. That’s a big one in my book and he’s the only Republican candidate who has the nerve to come out and say it. But after some of the comments he made last night, I have to wonder what’s going on in his head.
I’m a negligent voter and Republican … and a very bad judge of time. I thought I could grab dinner and still make it back to both clean up some “paying job” tasks and watch the Republican debate. Wrong. By the time I tuned in, the main show was over and I was left with five or so minutes of Larry King interviewing Mitt Romney. (It may be difficult to gag and yawn at the same time, but clearly not impossible.)
I’m waiting for Gore.
Thompson: The Great Web Hope of GOP Techies?
From a tech perspective it’s relishing to have a candidate who not only supports web activities but seems to actually understand them. Thompson plans on blogging and has already used video successfully. He’s the first candidate to truly embrace the web and not simply put up with YouTube because it’s a good campaign tactic. He’s also the first candidate to build an e-campaign that actually gives him a shot at the nomination.
Let’s check out some of the YouTube video clips…
McCain on fences…
On Iraq (too many words not enough answer)…
The flip-flopper?
Should we bomb Iran?
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Also see: GOP Debate in Pictures from the last debate.
and Sundays Democratic Debate.
Patrick Britton said
I think tonight wasn’t much of a firecracker but the more debates that come along the more you can really learn who people are. Ron Paul still feels like he doesn’t fit and Romney feels fake to me, like he’s putting on a show. Either way good job on another diverse collection of opinion.
Catherine Morgan said
Thanks for your contribution to the post Patrick.
I have to say I got a little annoyed with the sound/storm problems they were having. Otherwise, it wasn’t much different from what I expected.
I guess I’ll check in on you for the next debate. Take care.
Patrick Britton said
Wasn’t it weird when Rudy’s sound kept going out? Either way I look forward to contributing. Good day.
Catherine Morgan said
That Rudy thing was really weird.
tortuca said
Great site; extremely fun to read after the debate. Linked here.
informedstudents said
Thanks for linking to me, the Rudy thing was weird I can’t wait to here the conspiracy theories that come out of that.
I think despite Rudy’s technical problems he more so set himself apart in this debate then the earlier ones. He spoke eloquently and direct to the people in the audience asking question. He was the first candidate to stand up and answer questions during the seated portion of the debate. I did not really like the format of these debates until he did that.
Read my blog @ http://www.InformedStudents.net
Catherine Morgan said
Hi Tortuca — I’m glad you liked the post, and I am happy I was able to link with your site.
Catherine Morgan said
Hi “Informedstudents” – The thing with Rudy was weird, but I agree that he did well overall. I’ll look forward to your coverage of the next debate.
kayinmaine said
Wow Catherine! Great post. Very thorough. You must have a vicious headache today after watching the debate last night!
I know I would.
hjs said
funniest moment – when THOMPSON: said ” Bush has tremendous characteristics. He’s very honest. He’s very straightforward. I would put him out on a lecture series, talking to the youth of America about honesty, integrity, perseverance, passion, and serving the public.”
I’m not sure if America’s youth is ready for that lesson
and this “I’m Rudy Giuliani. I agree with the motto of your state, “Live free or die.” And I think it would be a pretty good one for our time.”
I think I heard the audience groan.
Catherine Morgan said
Thanks Kay – I’m glad you liked the post. I didn’t actually watch the debate as much as I had it on while surfing all the blogs to get this post done. I think the Democrats and the Republicans are really not debating, it’s more like pandering to their base. I’m more interested in the little quips, mess ups, and lighting strikes at this point. And it fun to hear other bloggers takes on it too.
Catherine Morgan said
Hi “Hjs” – The “Live free or die” comment rubbed me the wrong way too. I don’t think Giuliani won any votes with that one. Thanks for the comment.
Ham said
I’m still trying to understand why they call it a debate. There were no sides, no point, counter point. Where was the rational argument, supported by facts?
Isn’t it more accurate to call it a Q&A?
Catherine Morgan said
Hi “Ham” — I agree, it’s a bit of a stretch to refer to these things as debates. But, it’s still better than the around-the-clock attack ads we can all look forward to as the election gets closer.
Thanks for your comment, and your contribution to both my Republican and Democratic “debate” coverage. I look forward to hearing more of your prospective as the “hoop-la” continues.