Gingrich: 2008 Race Like 'Idol' and 'Survivor'

Newsmax ^ | 5-10-07

[pissant]

Got it.

[RebekahT]

I totally agree with what Newt is saying. Our elections have become too much of a sound bite war.

[RebekahT]

Huckabee is soft on everything except guns and abortion. He’s a big nanny-stater.

[common tater]

I think Robin Williams explained it best when he opined that nature gave man a penis and a brain but only enough blood to use one at a time.

[hosepipe]

[.. Gingrich said recent candidate debates "were ludicrous." ..]

Exactly the right word.. ludicrous.. Political RAP..
The truth is America is so dumbed down its not stupid to be ludicrous..

[familyop]

Yes. Election campaigns for choosing our next President should not be guided solely by intuitions from prepared and remote appearances. We must choose much more analytically, but I doubt that we’ll be allowed to do so.

Sadly, we are now ruled by emotional Henry Beechers and Moses Hulls.

[napscoordinator]

“In the debate the other night, the Republicans averaged seven minutes and 20 seconds apiece, split up into 25- to 30-second answers,”

What do they expect? Fox News brought up perhaps having just people over 1 percent or something like that and they all complained so when you have ten or more candidates debating they are not going to get a heck of a lot of time to answer the question or expand on other issues. You must be precise with your answers which to me is a good thing. No BS! I love the format, but did not particularly love the questions. As President, you can be indecisive and full of baloney.

[napscoordinator]

you can be indecisive and full of baloney.

you can’t be indecisive and full of baloney.

[The Pack Knight]

"In the debate the other night, the Republicans averaged seven minutes and 20 seconds apiece, split up into 25- to 30-second answers," he said. "The television celebrities dominate these things. They cut people off. They treat them with disrespect.

"The potential president of the United States, the most powerful governing office in the world, shrinks with each appearance in these shows, and we don't have a national discussion."

While I can't think of a better way to get all of the candidates out of their respective comfort zones, I do have to agree with Newt here.

Chris Matthews and politico.com turned that debate into a joke, and Olberman provided the punchline with his pre- and post-debate commentaries. While some of the candidates helped themselves against other Republicans in that debate, one potential result not many people are talking about is that the entire Republican field was probably hurt vis a vis the Democrats.

When the Democrats get to field softballs that let them outline their "agendas", such as they are, while Republicans get ambushed with moonbat "gotcha" questions, the only thing you can say about the whole affair is, cui bono? Or, to paraphrase what someone else said, the big winners were Fred Thompson and Newt Gingrich, for not participating in that joke.

Hell, Newt got about an hour of face time on FNC during and immediately after that debate. Anyone who fled to Fox from Olberman's smug face got a load of Newt by himself. Now, whether or not that was good for Newt is subject to interpretation....

[Tolik]

One of the striking similarities with Idol et al is that once people develop their sympathies, after a while they cheer for their guy/gal regardless of the performance. Only something very dramatic can move them away. Its like cheering for your home team. It may be full of problems, but its your team.

I admit that I am impartial to Newt. I like the fact that he comes up with agenda all by himself and can articulate it and persuade and win in a debate, and can lead (and I agree with his agenda for 80%+). His recent greening was painful for me, because I disagree with the skies are falling hysteria. His triangulating on it with market solutions is not strong enough stance for me. Also, I am willing to overlook his fallibility with the affair\remarriage because I don’t think the President must be a saint. I doubt there ever was one. I’d always prefer drinking, smoking philandering Churchill to any Chamberlain (I have no idea about Chamberlain faults, but you know what I mean...).