(By the way, would it be considered sexist to say that moderator Maria "The Money Honey" Bartiromo looked great? If so, who cares? She still looked great!)
All of the candidates were guilty of talking past their allotted time at some point. But at the ringing of the "times-up" bell, most of them wrapped up their statements within a reasonable amount of time. However, there was a lot of butting in and talking over each other. But because the subject matter was kept intact, the moderators let it play on.
Ohio Governor, John Kasich seemed to be making a last ditch effort to remain relevant as he routinely threw up his hands and spoke out of turn. Donald Trump, to no one's surprise, took a jab at Kasich by saying that it's good thing that oil (actually natural gas) was discovered in Ohio. In the end, I don't think that Kasich did himself any favors because instead of looking assertive, he appeared to be on the verge of coming unglued.
Jeb Bush continued to look like a fish out of water. He halfheartedly smiles into the camera while totally missing the connection with the audience. To me, Bush been the biggest disappointment of the whole campaign. It's kind of the way the Ravens were picked to got to the Super Bowl this year and fizzled out well before the playoff run started.
Carly Fiorina had a good night but at times she appeared to be lecturing like a high school history teacher. Her aggressiveness prompted none other than Donald Trump to ask, "Why does she keep interrupting everyone?"
I think Ted Cruz picked up a few points. He stayed focused and seemed to have a grasp of the issues. He's moving in the right direction at the right time.
Ben Carson didn't really do himself any harm but he still comes off as being too nice (By the way, doesn't say a lot about our world when being nice is a negative thing?). One of Carson's biggest assets during this campaign has been his integrity. But that is now being called into question with accusations of lying. Of course, "the lie" in this most recent case involves Carson stating that he was offered a full scholarship to West Point when he was a member of the ROTC as a teenager. Does this really have any effect on Carson's ability to become President. Of course, not. But nonetheless, welcome to the dirty world of politics, Dr. Carson.
Over the past few days, Donald Trump has ramped up the personal attacks on Carson. Trump, obviously concerned about the neurosurgeon's ascending poll numbers, has raised questions about Carson's integrity. I predict that this will backfire on Trump as people will view it as a bully antagonizing the nice guy. Trump's bluntness was admirable and quite humorous at times, but it's starting to get old. He is dangerously close to insulting himself right out of the race.
If I had to pick the winner of this debate, I'd have to go with Marco Rubio. He came off looking poised, confident and articulate. Even during a heated exchange with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, Rubio remained calm and while going toe to toe with the Kentucky Senator. Rubio continues to get stronger as this campaign plays out. When the dust settles, I'm thinking that he will get the nomination. Ironically, I have heard that Rubio's youth might be a factor. This didn't seem to be an issue for Barrack Obama, who was just a couple years older, in his first run at the White House.
Almost all of the Republicans at some time, pointed out that he/she would be the best candidate to beat Hillary Clinton in the general election. I think that some of the GOP candidates would give Hillary a run for her PAC's money, but not everyone agrees. When I spoke to some of my liberal friends about this, they seemed to think that Hillary will "eat up and spit out" any of the Republicans in a debate. I highly doubt it. But I guess time will tell...
kw
Ohio Governor, John Kasich seemed to be making a last ditch effort to remain relevant as he routinely threw up his hands and spoke out of turn. Donald Trump, to no one's surprise, took a jab at Kasich by saying that it's good thing that oil (actually natural gas) was discovered in Ohio. In the end, I don't think that Kasich did himself any favors because instead of looking assertive, he appeared to be on the verge of coming unglued.
Jeb Bush continued to look like a fish out of water. He halfheartedly smiles into the camera while totally missing the connection with the audience. To me, Bush been the biggest disappointment of the whole campaign. It's kind of the way the Ravens were picked to got to the Super Bowl this year and fizzled out well before the playoff run started.
Carly Fiorina had a good night but at times she appeared to be lecturing like a high school history teacher. Her aggressiveness prompted none other than Donald Trump to ask, "Why does she keep interrupting everyone?"
I think Ted Cruz picked up a few points. He stayed focused and seemed to have a grasp of the issues. He's moving in the right direction at the right time.
Ben Carson didn't really do himself any harm but he still comes off as being too nice (By the way, doesn't say a lot about our world when being nice is a negative thing?). One of Carson's biggest assets during this campaign has been his integrity. But that is now being called into question with accusations of lying. Of course, "the lie" in this most recent case involves Carson stating that he was offered a full scholarship to West Point when he was a member of the ROTC as a teenager. Does this really have any effect on Carson's ability to become President. Of course, not. But nonetheless, welcome to the dirty world of politics, Dr. Carson.
Over the past few days, Donald Trump has ramped up the personal attacks on Carson. Trump, obviously concerned about the neurosurgeon's ascending poll numbers, has raised questions about Carson's integrity. I predict that this will backfire on Trump as people will view it as a bully antagonizing the nice guy. Trump's bluntness was admirable and quite humorous at times, but it's starting to get old. He is dangerously close to insulting himself right out of the race.
If I had to pick the winner of this debate, I'd have to go with Marco Rubio. He came off looking poised, confident and articulate. Even during a heated exchange with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, Rubio remained calm and while going toe to toe with the Kentucky Senator. Rubio continues to get stronger as this campaign plays out. When the dust settles, I'm thinking that he will get the nomination. Ironically, I have heard that Rubio's youth might be a factor. This didn't seem to be an issue for Barrack Obama, who was just a couple years older, in his first run at the White House.
Almost all of the Republicans at some time, pointed out that he/she would be the best candidate to beat Hillary Clinton in the general election. I think that some of the GOP candidates would give Hillary a run for her PAC's money, but not everyone agrees. When I spoke to some of my liberal friends about this, they seemed to think that Hillary will "eat up and spit out" any of the Republicans in a debate. I highly doubt it. But I guess time will tell...
kw
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