Well, my streak was finally broken last night. I’ve watched every nationally televised debate for the presidential candidates in both parties dating back to early last year, and the next morning, I report back. But last night, I skipped it. I’d had my four-hour fill on Saturday night, and I just couldn’t bring myself to give Fox News two more hours on Sunday night. A political junkie has his limits.<\/p>\n
That said, I’ve read quite a bit about it this morning, and there seems to be a broadly held consensus about what transpired. Mitt Romney, who’d been pushed around and beaten in every direction in the ABC debate on Saturday, went on the offensive<\/a> and scored some points at the FNC debate on Sunday.<\/p>\n After being pummeled by his opponents in a debate on Saturday night, Mr. Romney came out swinging Sunday night during the opening minutes of a Republican presidential forum that was broadcast on Fox News.<\/p>\n Right away he took aim at his main rival in New Hampshire, Senator John McCain of Arizona.<\/p>\n “Senator McCain was one of two Republicans who voted against the Bush tax cuts,” he said at the outset. Then, with a pivot, he took the fight to Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas. “Net-net did you raise taxes in your state by half a billion dollars?” he pressed him. He even damned Fred D. Thompson’s Social Security proposal with the faintest of praise, warning that it was not politically viable.<\/p>\n Mr. Huckabee did not deny raising taxes, but offered that he had had a “court order that said that we had to improve education,” adding, “Education is a good thing.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Josh Marshall<\/a> seems to think Romney helped his effort last night; the Fox News focus group was impressed<\/a> with Romney’s performance, and on the right, The Corner seemed duly impressed<\/a> for the former Massachusetts governor, as well.<\/p>\n It’s probably also worth taking a moment to highlight the errors of fact and judgment that tend to dominate any Republican debate. Giuliani blamed the Clinton administration for cuts in military funding that mostly occurred under the Bush administration<\/a>.<\/p>\n These guys made all kinds of claims about Americans lacking health insurance, all of which were false<\/a>.<\/p>\n Huckabee argued that conditions for detainees at Guantanamo are “too darn good<\/a>,” and “amazingly hospitable.” This is, of course, ridiculous<\/a>.<\/p>\n Giuliani, still suffering from 9\/11 Tourette’s, argued<\/a>, “I am the only one here who has had to face an Islamic terrorist attack. I was right at the center of it.” Got that? Giuliani claims experience because he was the mayor of a city attacked by terrorists. That doesn’t make any sense.<\/p>\n
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\nMcCain, for example, said<\/a> that “in 24 years as a member of Congress, I’ve never asked for or received a single earmark or pork barrel project for my state.” That’s completely false<\/a>.<\/p>\n