Expert assessment on debate - Cain won!!!

[GHook93]

He isn't going away he is going up!

Scorecard: November 9, 2011 Republican Debate | Who Won The Nov 9 Debate? | Mr. Media Training

THE TOP TIER

HERMAN CAIN (1st Place, Grade: A-)

With another strong performance, Mr. Cain continues to show why he has soared to the top of the pack. When asked about allegations of sexual harassment, he delivered a short, media-friendly sound bite:

“The American people deserve better than someone being in tried in the court of public opinion based on unfounded accusations.”



Mr. Cain also demonstrated why he was an effective marketer, not only continuing to brand “9-9-9,” but seemingly inventing the phrase “sneak a-taxes” – which I suspect we’ll be hearing again.

His answer regarding Italy’s debt crisis exposed gaps in his knowledge, which could hurt him as he moves closer to the nation’s first votes being cast in January.

Plus, I question his decision to label Nancy Pelosi, “Princess Nancy” during this debate, as it’s probably not the right time to give critics any ammunition to label him a misogynist. Despite the downsides, it was an overall impressive performance.

MITT ROMNEY (2nd Place, Grade: B+)

Gov. Romney’s strategy seems to be to try to win the nomination by remaining steady while other candidates self-immolate, rather than to win by being loved by voters. That strategy may work for him.

Mr. Romney was steady again tonight, although he’s increasingly looking annoyed when answering questions. One humorous (if not telling) moment occurred when Mr. Romney tried to reverse his image as a flip-flopper:

“I think people understand that I’m a man of steadiness and constancy. I don’t think you’re going to find someone who has more of those attributes than I do. I’ve been married to the same woman for 25 – excuse me, I’ll get in trouble – for 42 years.”



As someone on my Twitter feed recently said, Mr. Romney has a glass jaw, but his opponents have yet to find a way to break it. That must say something about his debating skills.

NEWT GINGRICH (3rd Place, tie, Grade: B)

Speaker Gingrich showed his wit time and time again tonight, most notably when moderator John Harwood tried to get him with a “gotcha” question:

John Harwood: “Your firm was paid $300,000 by Freddie Mac in 2006. What did you do for that money?”

Newt Gingrich: “I offered them advice on precisely what they didn’t do.”

Mr. Gingrich is moving up in the polls (perhaps because the other conservative choices – Michele Bachmann and Rick Perry have flamed out, while Herman Cain is busy fighting tough allegations). It’s understandable why voters are attracted to him – he’s witty, knowledgeable, and tough.

But I continue to question his lack of optimism and his discipline. Why waste several seconds fighting the moderators that he only has 30 seconds to answer a question? He agreed to the rules prior to the debate, and his reaction to the rules being enforced was a waste of valuable airtime. It’s okay to attack the media, but he should pick his moments more carefully.

Little has changed. In August 2010, I wrote on this blog:

“If Mr. Gingrich can find a way to remain stubbornly on message (and can begin to exude some optimism), he can become a viable contender. But until he demonstrates he can do so, he is not likely to win a general election, even against an unpopular president.”



MICHELE BACHMANN (3rd Place, tie, Grade: B)

Ms. Bachmann had one of her strongest performances since her first debate tonight. She began by knocking a question about tax rates out of the park, and made a compelling case that every American should pay at least something in federal taxes, even if it’s just $10.

Ms. Bachmann’s solid performance tonight will likely not prop up her flagging campaign, but it might help keep her supporters from moving to a different candidate…for now.

TRAILING THE FIELD

RON PAUL (5th Place, tied, Grade: C)

We know something about the type of person the American people elect. Since the beginning of the 24/7 media age in 1980, the more charismatic candidate has won every general election. Rep. Paul is not that candidate.

Many of this blog’s readers are fans of Dr. Paul, and my analysis is not a referendum on Dr. Paul’s ideas. But style points matter to the electorate, and Dr. Paul too often looks more like a scolding nag than a presidential figure. He’s consistent and steady, but isn’t breaking through to a large-enough base to earn the nomination.

RICK SANTORUM (5th Place, tied, Grade: C)

You know that old saw that voters tend to vote for the candidate they’d most like to drink a beer with? It’s hard to see many people choosing Sen. Santorum as their drinking buddy.

Mr. Santorum looks sour. He spends way too much time talking about his 1990s legislative record instead of focusing like a laser on what he would do if elected. Mr. Santorum has run a campaign without any embarrassing headlines – but unfortunately for him, also one without any headlines at all. He failed to distinguish himself any further tonight, and will almost certainly remain in the “also-ran” category.

Despite that, I’m still giving him a “C” because he’s passionate and clearly believes in his positions. He deserves some credit for that authenticity.

JON HUNTSMAN (7th Place, Grade: D+)

If you ask the average American to list the people running for President, I’m betting Gov. Huntsman shows up as little more than an asterisk on the list. Despite national exposure in half a dozen debates, he’s barely made a dent.

He’s trying to run as an intellectual (tonight, he used words and phrases including, “the metastasis effect,” “yield curve,” and “efficacious.” I’m all for big words, but just ask Al Gore and John Kerry how well their intellectualism worked for them.

I’m convinced that Mr. Huntsman is no longer running for President, but rather to boost his chances of a high-profile job post-candidacy. He may be a smart and likeable fella, but it’s hard to see how he’s going to be the Republican nominee.

RICK PERRY (8th Place, Grade: F)

In politics, image is (almost) everything. When Gov. Perry said he wanted to eliminate three government agencies and tried to list them, he couldn’t come up with the third agency. Instead of gracefully moving on, he continued trying to think of the third agency – for almost 45 painful seconds.

 

[rdean]

Kramer won. After the debate, he tore into the Republicans. He asked where all these small minded people came from? He said all economist know the financial meltdown was from lack of regulation. He said he is a capitalist through and through, but what happened was capitalism run amok because of deregulation. It was quite a shellacking. And man, he went after those "Master Debaters" one at a time. Can't wait to watch him again.

 

[Charles_Main]

Kramer won. After the debate, he tore into the Republicans. He asked where all these small minded people came from? He said all economist know the financial meltdown was from lack of regulation. He said he is a capitalist through and through, but what happened was capitalism run amok because of deregulation. It was quite a shellacking. And man, he went after those "Master Debaters" one at a time. Can't wait to watch him again.

Of course you cant. We all know you just love to listen to points of View that Reinforce your own. No matter how completely wrong they are.

You are very possibly the Most Small Minded person I have ever come across.

 

[Political Junky]

Kramer won. After the debate, he tore into the Republicans. He asked where all these small minded people came from? He said all economist know the financial meltdown was from lack of regulation. He said he is a capitalist through and through, but what happened was capitalism run amok because of deregulation. It was quite a shellacking. And man, he went after those "Master Debaters" one at a time. Can't wait to watch him again.

Sorry I missed that deserved scolding.

 

[GHook93]

Cain is in the winner column! Perry whose campaign tried to blindside him is not.

CNBC presidential debate: Winners and losers - The Washington Post
WINNERS

* Mitt Romney: Steady, steady, steady. The former Massachusetts governor was on friendly territory tonight with an economic-themed debate set in the state where he was born. The crowd was very much on his side — cheering virtually anything he said. And Romney was on his game too; his answer on housing versus jobs was that of a confident frontrunner. Romney, again, looked like the person on stage most ready to carry the Republican standard next year against President Obama. Plus, the utter debate collapse of Texas Gov. Rick Perry — the only other candidate with a demonstrated ability to raise tens of millions of dollars — will likely push some on-the-fence major donors Romney’s way.

* Newt Gingrich: The former House speaker has happened onto a winning debate formula. He bashes the media at every turn, says the format of the debate is ridiculous and throws out red meat — fire Bernanke! — that gets the crowd on his side early on. With Cain’s problems and Perry’s brain freeze, Gingrich is likely to be the biggest beneficiary coming out of tonight. The problem for him is that if he does rise, it remains to be seen whether he can withstand the scrutiny that will come his way. Gingrich’s answer on the hundreds of thousands of dollars he took from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was spotty — he said they hired him for his historical knowledge(!) — and he struggled to offer specifics on what he would do after he repealed President Obama’s health care bill. Still, he likely emerges from tonight’s debate with some momentum.

* Herman Cain: Given how the night could have turned out for Cain, he and his team — such as they are — have to be happy. Cain had to answer just a single question on the sexual harassment charges against him and he did so to an audience that repeatedly made its unhappiness with the direction of the question apparent. And not one of his opponents pressed him to say more — or explain better — his role in the allegations against him. (Cain’s decision to refer to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi as “Princess Nancy” should rightly raise questions about his understanding of the depth of the problems he is currently dealing with, however.) Instead Cain spent most of the debate promoting “9-9-9” and touting himself as a “bold”outsider. A good night for the embattled candidate.

.

LOSERS

* Rick Perry: The 43-second-stumble that was Perry’s attempt to name the three federal agencies he would eliminate as president will go into presidential debate folklore as one one of the most awkward moments ever. It’s hard to overemphasize just how damaging this was for Perry. While the moment itself was awkward enough — the Fix felt physically uncomfortable for at least the last half of it — it also played into an existing concern that Republican activists, voters and donors had about whether Perry was ready for primetime. The answer, after tonight, seems to be a resounding “no”. Moments like this have consequences for candidates. Perry’s fundraising is likely to slow (stop?) as major donors who either were on board or thinking about getting on board will take a major step back. Ditto voters who were undecided on Perry. We never say never in politics but at first glance it’s hard to see how Perry recovers from what happened on the Michigan debate stage tonight.

* Rick Perry: So bad, we named him twice.

 

[WatertheTree]

Kramer won. After the debate, he tore into the Republicans. He asked where all these small minded people came from? He said all economist know the financial meltdown was from lack of regulation. He said he is a capitalist through and through, but what happened was capitalism run amok because of deregulation. It was quite a shellacking. And man, he went after those "Master Debaters" one at a time. Can't wait to watch him again.

Would very much like to see this.

 

[techieny]

Cain was good
Newt will gain more traction
Perry will fall further

 

[Liberty]

ron paul again easily the most knowledgeable and knows what the root problem is and how to fix it.

 

[Baruch Menachem]

It sounds like Newt did well enough to deserve multiple attack threads from BdBoop and Ravi tomorrow.

 

[MarcATL]

Yes, Cain will continue "winning" in the eyes of the rabid RWers of USBM and their ilk until Herb finally steps down in shame from his flailing campaign.

 

[GHook93]

You're as blind as you are stupid! Cain is setting personal records for raising cash. Details around the accusers and their accusations are falling apart on them and polls still show Cain at the top. Cain isn't going anywhere but to the generals. When he gets to the generals he will tear teleprompter in chief a new one. Running on "Hope and Change" isn't going to cut it. He is going to have to explain his record and way the last four years are four years of misery!

Yes, Cain will continue "winning" in the eyes of the rabid RWers of USBM and their ilk until Herb finally steps down in shame from his flailing campaign.

 

[Unkotare]

ron paul again easily the most knowledgeable and knows what the root problem is and how to fix it.

Let it go.

 

[MarcATL]

You're as blind as you are stupid! Cain is setting personal records for raising cash. Details around the accusers and their accusations are falling apart on them and polls still show Cain at the top. Cain isn't going anywhere but to the generals. When he gets to the generals he will tear teleprompter in chief a new one. Running on "Hope and Change" isn't going to cut it. He is going to have to explain his record and way the last four years are four years of misery!

Yes, Cain will continue "winning" in the eyes of the rabid RWers of USBM and their ilk until Herb finally steps down in shame from his flailing campaign.

lol...you seem quite upset, not to mention highly delusional, and perhaps slightly brain damaged to boot.

What I do know is that Herb has a lot of explaining to do. His lies and attacks just doesn't cut it. He has to answer to the American people, to women everywhere why he's such a lecherous pervert.

 

[MikeK]

Kramer won. After the debate, he tore into the Republicans. He asked where all these small minded people came from? He said all economist know the financial meltdown was from lack of regulation. He said he is a capitalist through and through, but what happened was capitalism run amok because of deregulation. It was quite a shellacking. And man, he went after those "Master Debaters" one at a time. Can't wait to watch him again.

I tuned away in the middle of the debate because I'd had enough of those characters but I regret missing Kramer's assessment of their collective performance. Based on your report he really told it like it is. And those who can't understand that easily researched fact are either brainwashed or pathetically ignorant.

Those who would like to know the truth are urged to obtain the documentary video, Inside Job, which provides quite an education in just two hours. It's available here:
Inside Job - Movie Website for the Documentary Film

Those who would prefer to watch just the last 40 minutes of Inside Job free can do so here: Inside Job, Oscar-Winning Documentary, Now Online (Free)

Either way the truth is available. So there is no excuse to remain ignorant -- unless one wishes to.

 

[Liberty]

ron paul again easily the most knowledgeable and knows what the root problem is and how to fix it.

Let it go.

I would rather die than let the flame of liberty perish.

 

[Flopper]

Being a Democrat, my fondest hope is that Cain is nominated.

 

[Unkotare]

ron paul again easily the most knowledgeable and knows what the root problem is and how to fix it.

Let it go.

I would rather die than let the flame of liberty perish.

Very dramatic.


Now, get over yourself a little, accept that Ron Paul will never be president, and start being a practical, responsible ciitzen.

 

[The Infidel]

lol...you seem quite upset, not to mention highly delusional, and perhaps slightly brain damaged to boot.
.

Must you always insult people here?

Let the merit of your arguement speak for itself.

 

[The Infidel]

Being a Democrat, my fondest hope is that Cain is nominated.

Liar...

 

[Chris]

Being a Democrat, my fondest hope is that Cain is nominated.

No shit.

But I can't wish that for America.