Debate night! (It is still “tonight” for me no matter what the date says. It is about 10:30 p.m. California time as I sit down with some thoughts about the debate).
First, my initial reaction to the overall debate for Gov. Romney was that I was stoked! (an odd idiom of great meaning to Southern Californians)
Second, there was a sense of momentum I felt from beginning to end of the debate. I expected the other candidates to gang up on Gov. Romney and they didn’t. Trying to take my bias into account, I thought Gov. Romney fully dominated the debate. No question in my mind AT ALL. He dominated in a gentlemanly way. Following are brief comments made to Gov. Romney by each of the candidates at the breaks or after the debate. [these occurred to Cindy and me as the debate went on]. I’m sure our guesses here were not too far off reality tonight:
Senator McCain: “Hey Mitt, I know people think I hate you. A little straight talk okay? Look, I’m not real fond of you, true. But can I be your VP? Please? I will introduce you to my general buddies in the Marines. By the way, what the heck were you talking about in that one answer you gave about the economy? Run that by me real slow and please use language that any ASU student could understand.”
Governor Huckabee: “Off the record, when my son hanged that dog, it was already dead. Did I tell you he earned the Eagle Scout award? How many of your sons are Eagles? For what it is worth Mitt, every Sunday when I give my sermons to earn a little money, I always tell the pastors and their parishioners to stop the whisper campaigns against you. Yeah, I know I could give a public speech on religious tolerance, like you did, and denounce religious bigotry publicly, I just think that I can be more effective behind the scenes to fight bigotry. What do you think of the Razorbacks? They are right up there with those Cougars! I know you always surround yourself with only the most intelligent and successful people, but do you think you could find a spot for me at the consulate on the western border of Ireland, the home of my ancestors? That would be swell.”
Mayor Giuliani: [looking up at Gov. Romney, simultaneously squinting and looking surprised] — “Hey Mitt, can we have lunch next Wednesday? I have some time open on my calendar that day. I would like to get a few tips from you on a couple of my companies that are struggling right now. But more importantly, I ran out of money today and I will be bowing out of the race. I want to get your thoughts on how best to convey that message to maximize my long-term speaking engagement value and preserve the legacy I have as Hero #1 of September 11th. I think I might be able to help deliver New Jersey for you in the primaries and general — I have some connections. What d’ya say?”
Congressman Paul: “Mitt, do you think anybody listened to me tonight? I wish I were you”
In all seriousness, how great was Governor Romney tonight? I realize it may now sound a little trite to say this, as everyone has been saying it for weeks, but Gov. Romney really seemed presidential. All the others on that stage almost appeared to be in his shadow.
Since I have seen Gov. Romney speak so often, I have a habit now of looking at the others around him when he speaks. Again, trying to eliminate my bias, the others seemed in awe of Gov. Romney tonight. I kept thinking to myself, each of the candidates were telling themselves things like, “Wow, he has this thing nailed…” — “I wish I knew half what he knows!” — Etc.
By the way, none of this above is gloating. Absolutely not. There is a long road ahead. Gov. Romney has a long way to go to the nomination and a lot of hard work. He has not won Florida and it might be very tight. We all need to do what we can to help get the vote out and influence fence-sitters, FredHeads, and Huck’s followers that are just now awakening to the reality he has no message and no broad-based support.
It is a little bit of celebration — INDEED.
~ Vic
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