I watched the Republican debate last night, my first and last debate of the season. I was dumbfounded, to say the least.
I heard a bit of what each candidate stood for and their views, but just a miniscule amount. I heard more backstabbing and bickering than anything else. Here were seven adults and all but one of them acted like children!
There were the he said/she said spats. There was a lot of talking over and arguing with whoever was speaking. There was an incredible amount of “so and so said this and let me tell you why that is wrong/won’t work/is absurd.”
Apparently, politicians don’t think much of the intelligence of the voting public. I would say the public as a whole, but there are so very few people who vote in this country that it is pathetic.
Do they not realize that all of their actions during a debate are scrutinized? Do we really want to elect anyone who will stand in front of millions of Americans and play the “you said this/no I didn’t” game? Why bother fighting about it. Smart voters are going to look it up on the internet anyway.
CNN seemed to egg on the bickering by letting every participant respond to the speakers remark, if they were mentioned in the remark. This, more often than not, added to the already existing childish behavior.
Why have debates anyway? My solution would be to have a set of questions on all the issues the voters feel are important. Ask each candidate the same questions. Have the candidate answer the questions with his views, not being allowed to mention or even refer to the other candidates. Put it all in a video format and let the voters have at it.
But, that would be too boring for most voters. Maybe the next debate should be held at the local playground.
seashell by the seashore 
Shell, I love this!!!
Thanks Sis. Somehow I knew you would!
“The local playground”…great idea. Puts it all in perspective.
My philosophy on our government has always been kind of a “it’s the worst one except for all the others,” but can it really keep going on like this. It all seems so meaningless. There is so much divide on who should be in power, but I don’t see a lot of difference in how things are run.
You’re right, it doesn’t seem to make a difference. Those who wrote the Constitution are probably rolling in their graves watching the mess that has been made of our government. But, we still live in a country that is free and I love it!
I think the two things GOP is struggling with the most this election are one, finding someone serious to run and two, not becoming too polarized and alienating their voters. It’s very frustrating to me that moderate Republicans seem to have entirely disappeared, and we are caught in a web of candidates who are trying to prove that they are more conservative than the rest and who get caught up in single issues. We don’t want someone running for president just because they’re anti-LGBTQ rights or anti-abortion or the best at proving that everyone else is an idiot–we want someone who understands all the issues, can create effective compromises, and represents the diverse members of the Republican party!
And I love the line about the playground, Shell. That’s pure gold. And it made me burst into giggles, which is always nice.
(P.S. Of course, this is all coming from a staunch Democrat and liberal, so I can’t really be counted on to offer the best perspective on who should run for the GOP as I am not a member and won’t be voting for their candidate, whoever it turns out to be. Personally, I was rooting for a Palin, Bachman ticket because that would just be funny. The two of them would make a hilarious team. Also, in all seriousness, a double female ticket would be great. I really think that this country could use a woman at the helm.)
A Palin/Bachman ticket! OMG, that’s IS hilarious. I can’t stop laughing about that one.
What’s even better is imagining what would happen if they got elected!
I think Texas would suceed from the United States and I’d have to move back there! It would be incredibly scary if they were running the nation.
I think I would pack my bags and move to France with Cecelia. It would be SO scary!