There was another GOP presidential debate tonight, this one on NBC. It was a marked contrast to the last two. Mitt Romney came in an tried from the beginning to take shots at Newt Gingrich. Gingrich, however, just brushed off most of the attacks, and they fell with a thud at his feet. Indeed, Romney did the one thing that I believe will hurt him in the days ahead: he made charges against Gingrich that were clearly phony. Specifically, Romney said repeatedly that Gingrich resigned in disgrace supposedly because he had been reprimanded after an ethics investigation. Gingrich pointed out, however, that this was not true. The investigation had been completed two years before he resigned; the two were unconnected. Further, Ron Paul also confirmed that Gingrich's resignation had nothing to do with the ethics matter. It is hard to know how many viewers picked up on the phony charge coming from Romney; my guess is that this will play out further during the upcoming week. So, in summary, Romney was certainly taking shots at Gingrich, but they did not hit their mark and may come back to hurt him.
Once beyond the fighting between Romney and Gingrich, the debate went on much as they have in the past. Romney was back to his usual form. He was quite good except for a rather strained answer on what he has done to advance the conservative cause. (He began by saying that he had 5 children.) Gingrich had some good moments and came off well. Rick Santorum had one of his best debates in my opinion. His indictment of the conservative bona fides of Romney and Gingrich was a lalapalooza of an answer. Unfortunately, it was probably too little and too late. Ron Paul also had some moments of clarity and insight (and that is something that I do not often say.)
In short, I thought all four of the candidates had good nights. I doubt, however, that anything said at the debate will shake up the race in Florida at all. So, to that extent, Gingrich has to be declared the winner.
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