Last night's second Florida GOP debate was the 19th of the campaign season. Excessive? Absolutely. Imagine if the Democrats were in the same situation being asked the same questions? Incompetence and incoherence would be the themes. Understanding that the liberal media will never put Democrats in that position, let's look back at the Florida GOP debate. The clear winner was RIck Santorum, hands down. It was as if he was a new candidate who was able to articulate conservative principles. The main attraction, however, was the relentless assault on Newt Gingrich, which has been part of a coordinated effort by Mitt Romney and his campaign since he embarrassingly lost the South Carolina primary. Folks, it's going to get ugly.
Focusing on the winner, Rick Santorum proved last night that he's capable to go toe to toe with anyone. We take issue with his border-line obsession with social issues (at least of the candidates running), but have and will continue to put that aside. Santorum had some great responses last night, and he didn't come across as bitter in any way. His best moment was attacking Mitt Romney over Romneycare, which is a state-issued version of Obamacare. Romney refuses to admit the error, which is beyond disturbing. Additionally, we don't believe a President Romney will repeal Obamacare. What Mitt says and what he believes are very different things - he doesn't have the ability to admit he was wrong. Santorum was able to pick apart Romneycare piece by piece, which hasn't happened this entire campaign. This will really boost Rick and it will hurt Mitt, as it should.
The debate, as have the last four, started out by giving Romney a layup attack on Newt Gingrich, which continued for the first hour of the debate. Newt did a great job not only defending himself, but also actually offering solutions to the problems. On the other hand, Romney simply used his time to attack Newt. This is troublesome. All week Newt has been under assault, particularly from alleged conservatives. They've been trying to make the claim that Ronald Reagan didn't like Newt and all of that nonsense. That couldn't be farther from the truth and, frankly, these pundits don't know what the hell they're talking about because they weren't in the Reagan administration. Just ask Mark Levin or Jeffery Lord.
The unfortunate part for Newt is that he's raised the bar so high for himself during these debates that he's unlikely to meet expectations. Newt did a great job in the debate, but nothing stood out. Romney on the other hand, lied on multiple occasions. He claimed he didn't know his campaign ran an ad that lied about what Newt said; he claimed he never voted for a Democrat if there was a Republican on the ballet. It was apparent that Romney's new debate coach and consultants have been working with him 24/7 so he can deflect the negatives, just like our current president.
Mitt Romney is a fraud. He is the Republican version of the Obama campaign. Look back to 2008 and hear what his opponents have to say: he spent millions of dollars attacking them, just like he's doing to Newt. If you recall, look back at this campaign season. What happened to each candidate that came close to Romney in the polls? They were crucified, ultimately burying them to the point where they dropped out of the race. Newt has been the only candidate to make a comeback. This is troubling; the GOP establishment has fully vetted Romney and have coordinated to ensure he gets the nomination. The Republican Party is proving they're no better than Democrats.
Remember, everyone was told that if you win South Carolina, you'll get the nomination. Since those who told us this didn't like the outcome, that statement no longer applies. Now, they've turned Florida into that scenario. It will be a close battle between Mitt and Newt. Santorum will do well, but not enough to make an impact. Newt needs to win Florida because it will show the country that the American people still have a voice.
Folks, Mitt Romney is not and will never be a conservative. Everyone talks about Newt's ego, but they fail to mention a guy that's been running for president for six years that has been in and out of politics because he's failed. What does that tell us? It says that, like many celebrities, Mitt's made his impact in the private sector and now he wants a legacy. This is borderline narcissism. And if Mitt loses the nomination, he will look like such a loser in his mind that he'll view himself as a disgrace. Mitt Romney wants to be president for Mitt Romney. And that's why he's assaulting Newt Gingrich, as are his surrogates that you can bet have been promised something for their support.
Darrell Lect is a contributing editor for Habledash.
