Professor’s grade . . . and so here is quick grade sheet on the Republican debate. I did not grade students auditing the class (no money, not much support), though their parents, I mean handlers, are free to write for my impressions. (To give one example: Brownback remains a great Kansas senator.)
There is one exception to this rule. Mike Huckabee turned in a great performance . . . which he then marred- demonstrating that any student can have a “shining moment” in class followed by a silly one.
Tonight’s debate was a reminder why the B-team gets invited. Sometimes the understudy forces a key debate moment.
Mike Huckabee was doing a great job . . . until he got suckered into discussing religion and politics. By doing so, he turned himself into part of the story about Chris Matthew’s weird attack on Romney’s religion. He is now a talking head in the Romney story, not the story of the evening. First rule of Republican debates: do not answer any question on Chris “I am Going Quite Mad” Matthew’s terms.
I have not decided on a candidate (really!) and was starting to like Huckabee, until he moved back to the B-squad by falling into someone else’s trap. I could vote for Mike Huckabee enthusiastically, but sadly he cannot run for governor of California. Huckabee proves he will not be able to break out of the second tier. (B-)
Romney showed he is a very serious player as the money raised had done already. He loosened up and actually talked about the importance of the American family to our culture. He made no mistakes, but he also has not yet reached the stride that any candidate will reach by the end of the primary season. Tonight (and last night on Leno) I began to believe that I am looking at the next President of the United States. Hugh: is he as good as he seems? (B)
McCain was hard to follow at times, but he makes for great sound bites. I don’t like McCain, but his desire to follow Osama to the “gates of Hell” was magnificent. Romney gave the right answer in technical terms, but McCain had the human answer. If you have to listen to all of McCain, he is a loser . . .but if you see bits of his performance (most of us), then he is a winner. (B+)
Some “A” college students have a term where they do bad work. It never fails to shock me and Rudy did that to me tonight. If I were to vote for Rudy (which would be very hard for me), it would be because of the War. And yet. And yet tonight he showed either appalling ignorance regarding our foes . . . or was weirdly unprepared. Rudy made me sad. He actually looked pathetic and lost.
He looked like a mayor running for President and was not ready for prime time. Like a student with many “A” grades early in the term, Rudy needs only to get decent grades to win a big chunk of Republican voters. However, like many a student too eager for summer break, America’s mayor became the former mayor of New York by coasting and flunking a major test. (F)
