[equaviator]

“The sad part; this stuff has zero to do with how someone can govern.”

Absolutely. If I wanted performance art I’d buy tickets to see the Ice Capades. What do people expect of their nominee, a whole lot of image and a little bit of substance? Are we really that shallow? I’m not just talking about Perry either.

An onstage gaffe or awkward moment may cause some of the audience to wince, cringe or feel uncomfortable but since when has the public developed this preference to have a used car salesman give them the business?

[trubolotta]

I must disagree. This stuff has a lot to do with the ability to “lead”. If I want to be “governed”, I can vote for Obama or Romney. It is not shallow to expect a candidate to have firm knowledge of their own platform.

I will agree with you that every candidate, to some extent has allowed themselves to be sucked into a media circus of “show” absent “substance”. People I thought were solid conservatives were baited and took it hook, line and sinker. They have attacked each other for disingenuous reasons other than the opportunity to spit out a “gotcha” and get that on camera.

I'll admit I'm not a Perry supporter but I do think Perry has contributed to the value of these debates. I think he was also unfairly attacked for his Ponzi scheme characterization of Social Security and motivations for requiring HPV vaccinations. I agree with his position on the former but not on the latter. I do hope he stays in the race and that other candidates find the good sense to debate him, not hurl mud that makes everyone look bad.

[af_vet_rr]

An onstage gaffe or awkward moment may cause some of the audience to wince, cringe or feel uncomfortable but since when has the public developed this preference to have a used car salesman give them the business?

I gotta disagree - if you can't walk into the lion's den known as the media, stare the lions down, tell everybody what you believe and why you believe it, you're not going to do a very good job of winning people to your side.

I watched Perry on a couple of different morning shows this morning, and he let the media airheads take control of the conversations. As soon as he starts talking about his campaign or bigger issues, they would steer it right back to last night. If Gingrich, Cain, and Santorum can take control of the narrative in their interviews, Perry should be able to as well.

Whether you like it or not, that's reality. Perry didn't drop in the polls because people liked Herman Cain's 9-9-9 plan or because they liked the zingers that Newt hurled at the media, Perry dropped because of Perry.