The Official CNN/Tea Party Express Debate Discussion Thread

[Torie]

A lot of naivete and simplistic BS was offered up tonight by many, with nobody even breathing the notion that maybe we have some tough choices down the road to make. The list I had was long of nonsensical, dumb, errant, only half the story, and why didn't you say this was the real choice I had to make and it was tough, but why didn't you just say that here is the reason why to me it was prudentially and morally compelling to the point that I took the left fork in the road (, e.g., God I wish I could have helped Perry defend better his Hobson's choice about giving in-state college tuition to illegals).  

The thing I most remember was that terrible off-key rendition of the national anthem. It was one of the worst I have ever had to endure.

Romney was really good. He just gets better and better. It is clear that he just knows more than the rest. He has an organized mind. He was really good this time at neutralizing Mass Romneycare. He really shredded Perry on SS, who just got deeper and deeper into his tarbaby. Perry seems to be saying he is willing to carry on this unconstitutional ponzi scheme for a couple of decades, and then do something unspecified. If he thinks its unconstitutional, why doesn't he just file a lawsuit? Romney just gutted him on that. And why didn't Perry take Bachmann out when she kept calling this teen female vaccination a mandate and coercion and so forth? Santorum sort of almost helped Perry out when he said that the problem was the opt out as opposed to opt in, but then realized he was giving Perry a lifeboat, and shut up before really explaining what he meant. That would have  helped remind Perry to say, hey it is not a mandate, it is a service offered that anyone can refuse. Perry is rather pathetic really. I feel sorry for him almost. He's a masochist for getting into this fray.

Bachmann was given a free ride tonight because she has been written off. Thus she did really well (she is really quite smart and crisp even though I disagree with her on so many levels), and I think maybe gave her maybe about a 1% chance of getting the silver now, if Mitt gets caught in a gay tryst or something.

What is "NGO" about Huntsman?  Stop it!  Huntsman is beginning to persuade me that he is just not as smart and knowledgable as Romney. He just can't offer up some descriptive specifics to embroider his generalized claims, which claims may well be true. Candidates need to learn to offer up descriptive specifics that seem compelling in a very pithy way, when pressed for time. The best debaters do that. Clinton did that. Mitt is getting much better at that. I am concerned that Huntsman just doesn't have a sufficiently disciplined mind. Dubya was no genius, and not very intellectually curious, but made up for it some by being disciplined. I don't see it so far with Huntsman. I do with Mittens.

It is more and more clear to me that Mitt will be the nominee. Drip, drip.