CNN Mesa, Arizona GOP pres. primary debate **live commentary thread**

[ModerateCoward]

Santorum needs to attack RomneyCare properly.

[5280/East California]

Haha, Romney got back at Santorum saying he endorsed him in 2008.

[Lief]

shut the f**** up and take your goddamn 30 seconds

[Vroke]

Anyone else have trouble loading the forum over the last ten minutes?

Anyways, it was just like old times when Newt blamed the media and Obama about contraception right when the question came up.

[Thomas D]

Arlen Specter? Really?

[King]

Romney and Santorum are both making Nixon's 1960 debate performances look excellent.

[ModerateCoward]

Santorum doing work on RomneyCare?

[You kip if you want to...]

Comparing Mitt Romney to Michael Dukakis! Best attack of the night

[Lief]

BOOM, Rick plays the Dukakis card

[King]

Santorum just destroyed Romney's half-assed Specter attack.

[Mitt Romney's Hair]

That clap looked sarcastic from Romney, although it wasn't. That didn't look good on TV, Mitt......

[ChairmanSanchez]

Santorum: Excuses. Excuses. Excuses. Excuses.

[cavalcade]

Santorum is being way too defensive of Washington politics.

[You kip if you want to...]

Really hoping Mitt Romney's playing to the crowd or else he doesn't understand how Congress works.

[King]

If all of America watched this debate, Obama would be up 25 points on both of these guys tomorrow.

[Vroke]

Rick: 1
Mitt: 0

Rick really beat Mitt there.

[hawkeye59]

DEY TUK ER JERBS

[Reluctant Republican]

This might as well be called the Republican Debate: "Greatest Hits". It's been a nice trip down memory lane.

[realisticidealist]

Paul talking about "the illegal". Racist.

[Governor Scott]

Hey, Perry.

[Ѕenator Αverroës]

You know who also endorsed Specter? RONALD REAGAN.

[Vosem]

Rick throw in the "let Detroit go backrupt" line! Do it, do it now!

Because, in Santorumland (or a certain part of Andy Dick), auto workers are lazy and don't deserve a bailout, but the Banks and Israel does.

Israel sells us military equipment nowadays, dude.

Yes, they do. We buy their equipment that we could (and should) build in order to fund them. T

But my point is that we aren't 'bailing Israel out'. Israel is a developed, secular First World nation with close historic ties to the US, whose economy is doing way better and whose military is much more efficient. What point are you trying to make by saying 'we shouldn't bail Israel out?' If you're saying we shouldn't engage in commerce with them, then a) that's absurd and b) you just contradicted yourself. If you're saying we shouldn't support them diplomatically, then I'd like to remind you the alternative (Hamas) is much worse.

Israel is one of the biggest recipients of foreign aid.

Exactly. 9/11 happened because of our overkill regarding Israel. Im not saying they are bad; they are just controversial. If we over support them, then we end up alienating everyone else in the region.

9/11 happened because of the Gulf War; because we decided to save our ally Kuwait, during which time we put troops in Saudi Arabia, leading Islamic extremists to believe we were about to occupy the Two Holy Cities, a belief which didn't let up because we maintained force in the Persian Gulf (where our energy comes from). Israel had very little to do with it, except that it bombed Saddam's nuclear program in '81, so that Iraq did not nuclear weapons in '91.

I just want to note, on another topic, that the entire conversation about modern society disgusted me. I think our society of sexuality and contraception is a good thing, and would fight to defend it.

[You kip if you want to...]

Rick's in the audience!

[Vroke]

So much is going on in this debate - Rick Perry was even brought up. Wow.

[Senator Snowstalker]

I miss you, Rick.