Republican Debate Sunday Serves Up More Fireworks But No Game Changers

Republican Debate Sunday Serves Up More Fireworks But No Game Changers.CONCORD, NH - The Republican presidential candidates came to life Sunday morning in his second debate in 12 hours, trading verbal blows, with Mitt Romney's favorite, so that was planned last night.

Romney deftly swatted the attack again, proving once more skillful debater has become. However, a follow-up survey of new night show signs of slipping carrying the former governor of Massachusetts in the State of granite, two days before the first primary in the country.

New Suffolk University poll / 7 showed that support for Romney in New Hampshire 35 percent to 43 percent on Tuesday, while Ron Paul (R-Texas) remained double-digit gap of 20 percent. Former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, was the explosion of research in third with 11 percent. And former Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) has also been falling by 8 percent, down from 11 percent two days ago. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) was 9 percent.

Huntsman was the surprise of the morning. They seemed to be connected during the discussion of NBC / Facebook, with its emphasis on the restoration of confidence the American people. Also, Romney said in an exchange in which Romney, as he did on Saturday night during the debate on ABC, 2009-10 denigrated the service as U.S. ambassador Huntsman in China, under the presidency of Barack Obama.

"I think we serve our country for the first time standing for people who believe in conservative principles and make every effort to promote an agenda that does not include the agenda of President Obama," said Romney. "The person who should represent our party against President Obama is not a person who called him an outstanding leader and went to his ambassador to China."

Huntsman responded immediately with a line that generated applause from the audience: "This country is divided by the attitudes of that."

"The American people are tired of the partisan divide. They have had enough. There is no trust left," said Huntsman.

He was the meanest moment, Romney morning. Elsewhere however, managed to fend off the blows of Gingrich and Santorum, who attacked Romney in the first debate a few moments.

"It would be defending conservative principles. He ran Ronald Reagan," Romney said Santorum successful 1994 bid for U.S. Senate against Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.). "We want someone when the weather gets tough ... that will stand up and fight for conservative principles."

Santorum also hit Romney because he did not run for reelection after his first term as governor of Massachusetts. "If the disc was as big as Massachusetts governor, why not for re-election, why bail," said Santorum.

Romney said he does not consider politics a career, but he ran for public service for altruistic reasons.

"I went to Massachusetts to make a difference," said Romney. "Run again would be me."

"Politics is not a race. For me, my career was in business," he said.

Gingrich, whose irritation with Romney became volcanic in recent weeks could not contain himself.

"I realize that the red light means nothing to you because you're the favorite, but we can make a small pile of nonsense?" Gingrich spat. "Right on the American people. They have performed at least since the 1990s."

But it was an exchange between Romney and Gingrich at the end of the debate that showed Romney's ability to maintain a calm appearance, while hitting hard at a television format. Gingrich complained that the ads by a super-PAC Romney support has submitted false information.

Romney had a part that he had not seen the advertisements and details of the charges in television ads Gingrich looked with a grimace. Romney methodically marked critical: Gingrich was ousted from the presidency of the House, sat down with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) to promote global warming legislation, has criticized the plan offered Medicare reform by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and has been investigated by the ethics committee of the House.

"These things have been very true," said Romney.

Romney campaign is fully aware of the challenges of the televised debates, which have played an important role in the first presidential contest in the past. As former Gov. John Sununu of New Hampshire told The Huffington Post, on Saturday night after Snoozer of a debate in Manchester, NH, "Television is a difficult environment."

"If you have trouble on TV which is magnified. And it's hard to be difficult. It's a real tight balance," said Sununu.

Romney has shown once again by the experience gained in the operation four years ago allowed him to stand out from other candidates in the high-profile parameters of the debate at high pressure. It also has an electoral machine that dwarfs and surpasses all others in the field.

However, Romney did not close the deal with Republican voters, and if their numbers continue to fall compared to Tuesday's primary in New Hampshire, which could move to South Carolina on January 21 in a somewhat weakened competition. The problem for anti-Romney in the Republican Party fees, however, is that none of the other candidates present a convincing alternative. Or at least they did not.

Meanwhile, Romney's campaign has argued that a victory in New Hampshire - regardless of the margin - is a remarkable achievement.

"If Mitt wins, I think the nature of the victory of the history of decisions that overwhelm all other coverage of the race at this time. No Republican has won non-traditional in Iowa and New Hampshire," Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom HuffPost Saturday night. "So do not think it matters if you won a few votes as he did in Iowa or more. I think it makes history in their own way."

Read More

Republican Debate Turns Testy

Republican Debate Turns Testy.Reports from Goffstown, N.H. -
Move to catch a clear lead in the Republican contest, Mitt Romney has remained above the fray in a televised debate his opponents chose to badger each other, rather than taking on front-runner.

With the New Hampshire primary in three days - and Romney holding a lead there, and in the next to South Carolina - time is running out for someone to slow the progression of Romney. But the decision of its rivals to fight them revived a model that has worked to the advantage of Romney - assuming the role of nominee unofficial and focusing his attacks on President Obama.

"Really, this election is the soul of America," said Romney, who never appeared ruffled by his rivals or questions of the panelists at the ABC / Yahoo / WMUR-TV debate Saturday night. "Today we have a president in Washington who put America on a road to decline. Militarily, international and national, he made us into something we would not recognize."

The former Massachusetts governor, in a rare attack a rival, went after Jon M. Huntsman Jr., after the former U.S. ambassador to China challenged Romney hard line rhetoric in this country. Romney noted that Huntsman had served in the Obama administration in Beijing while others debate on the scene tried to elect Republican candidates in the election 2010.

Huntsman, whose personal rivalry with Romney is deeply rooted, said in Mandarin that Romney "does not quite understand the situation" and said Romney hard-line policy toward China would wind up hurting small businesses in America inciting a trade war. Romney, refusing to back down, replied that he had heard this for 10 years.

With one exception, the candidates broke little ground on issues during the contest. Texas Governor Rick Perry was the exception, calling for the dispatch of U.S. troops in Iraq to return immediately to quell bloody unrest there since the withdrawal of U.S. forces. Obama, he said, had bowed to "the base of liberal left" and opened the door to move Iran in Iraq.

"They will return, and all the work we've done, every young man who lost his life in this country has been for nothing because we have a president who does not understand what is happening in this region," Perry said. None of the other contenders have endorsed the idea.

The reluctance by the other candidates taking the Romney was more evident in the case of Rick Santorum, who earlier in the day said that America needed a leader, not a manager, as its next president. He had to be cajoled by the ABC, Diane Sawyer in recognizing he was referring to Romney. Only late in the debate - 11 / 2 hours - not to release the Santorum Romney by criticizing his past support for a term of individual care, the rescue of Wall Street and a cap-and-trade curb global warming.

Newt Gingrich, in response to a question about a movie scathing attack on Romney by a "Super PAC" that supports the candidacy of Gingrich said without enthusiasm record Romney at Bain Capital, the private equity firm he founded, should be considered.

"If it's factually accurate, it raises questions," Gingrich said of the film. Pressed by ABC, George Stephanopoulos, save Gingrich earlier claim that Romney made money "by companies in bankruptcy," former House speaker refers to an article on job losses in companies taken over by Bain. “This is their story, "he said.

In one of the largest exchanges, Ron Paul of Texas has refused to back down from his characterization of Gingrich as a "chicken hawk" for not serving in the Vietnam War.

"I think people that do not serve when they could have, they get three or four or five overs, they have no right to send our children to war," he said. "I try to stop wars, but at least I went when they called me."

Gingrich replied that Paul was not telling the truth.

"Dr. Paul has a long history of saying things that are inaccurate and false the fact is that I never asked for a postponement -. I am married with a child, "he said, adding that as a" Army Brat ", he understood military matters in a personal way." I think I have a fairly good idea of ​​what it is like a family to worry about your father being killed, and personally, I returned the kind of comments and slander, he regularly without adequate information and only then insults people. "

Paul spoke that he needed a follow-up. “When I was drafted, I was married and had two children and I went," he said.

Gingrich, returning to a stance that earned him applause of voters in the previous debates, the moderators also criticized after a series of questions about gay marriage.

"There is much more anti-Christian bigotry these days and none of this is covered by the news media," he said to applause from the audience on the campus of St. Anselm College.

Paul, who is hitting Santorum with ads in South Carolina that use corrupt, stood in the attack and claimed that former Senator from Pennsylvania was not a true conservative.

"Say you're a conservative, I believe, is a stretch," says Paul. "But you have convinced many people to him, so that someone has to point out your record."

Paul Santorum criticized for appearing on a ranking of the most corrupt politicians, taking money from lobbyists, voting to raise the debt ceiling, supporting No Child Left Behind, and other positions.

Santorum replied that the list he appeared on was developed by a group of liberals. "It's a ridiculous accusation. And you should know better than to quote George Soros organizations like that, "he said.

The former senator said he had voted in the best interests of his state, and, after leaving his post, he worked on issues he cared, including Iran, health and the coal.

The placement of candidates reflects major changes in the race since the last debate, just three weeks ago. Santorum has been moved from wing to center stage on the strength of its first virtual tie in the Iowa caucuses.

Santorum was standing next to Romney, all but a favorite son in the state: It has a holiday home cost in New Hampshire and Massachusetts next to the governed, but he took nothing for granted. It invested millions of dollars in advertising and spent dozens of days of campaigning here.

The debate, the 14th of the campaign was part of a rare doubleheader. Exactly 10 hours after completion, the candidates were due to the camera in Concord, the capital of the state, for yet another meeting of the network, on NBC "Meet the Press."

After Sunday's debate, the candidates split briefly. Santorum and Perry will travel to South Carolina, where voters have a strong evangelical than they are in New Hampshire. Romney will remain in New Hampshire, where he is scheduled to campaign with the New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, one of many alternatives; he brought to the closing days. South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley campaign with him Saturday in New Hampshire.

Read More