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n2doc

(47,953 posts) Sun Feb 7, 2016, 10:22 AM Feb 2016

A Panic-Inducing Night for the GOP Establishment

At Saturday night's debate, Republicans wanted Marco Rubio to soar and Donald Trump to stumble. The opposite happened

BY BRIAN BEUTLER
February 6, 2016

The Republican establishment’s fondest hope before Saturday night’s debate was that Marco Rubio would deliver yet another solid (if unmemorable) debate performance, and that Donald Trump would fall on his face—compounding the damage he suffered in Iowa, and surrendering more, if not all, of his lead in New Hampshire over to Rubio, who’s in second place and climbing.

Instead, the establishment got almost exactly the opposite.

The single biggest spoiler wasn’t Trump, or even Ted Cruz, but New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who—let’s not euphemize—humiliated Rubio in an exchange about Rubio’s dearth of experience and accomplishments. Christie became the first Republican presidential candidate this cycle to weaponize Rubio’s grating habit of pivoting to relevant portions of his stump speech rather than answering the questions posed to him.

“I want the people at home to think about this,” Christie said. “That’s what Washington, D.C. does. The drive-by shot at the beginning with incorrect and incomplete information, and then the memorized 25-second speech that is exactly what his advisers gave him.”

Rubio responded to Christie by proving his point, pivoting not just to a portion of his stump speech, but the exact same portion of the stump speech he had just recited.

“There it is,” Christie gloated. “There it is. The memorized 25-second speech. There it is, everybody.”

more

https://newrepublic.com/article/129394/panic-inducing-night-gop-establishment

8 replies

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Highlight:

A Panic-Inducing Night for the GOP Establishment (Original Post) n2doc Feb 2016 OP

It was EdwardBernays Feb 2016 #1

If nothing else, Christie is good at bullying people. Rubio was his target this time. groundloop Feb 2016 #2

Christie is a bully, but a smart one, and he certainly gored Rubio last night brush Feb 2016 #4

Right up there with Reagan's "There you go again" zinger... Wounded Bear Feb 2016 #7

''There it is...There it is, everybody.'' Octafish Feb 2016 #3

The kiss of death was in that dead silence that greeted Rubio's repeated canned sentence. dixiegrrrrl Feb 2016 #5

The thing is, do Republican voters even care??? adigal Feb 2016 #6

I asked my right-wing daughter-in-law who she likes and she said none of them. She said B Calm Feb 2016 #8

EdwardBernays

(3,343 posts)

1. It was

Reply to n2doc (Original post)

Sun Feb 7, 2016, 10:29 AM

Feb 2016

Shocking how badly Rubio damaged himself.

groundloop

(11,519 posts)

2. If nothing else, Christie is good at bullying people. Rubio was his target this time.

Reply to n2doc (Original post)

Sun Feb 7, 2016, 10:39 AM

Feb 2016

And of course I don't imagine for an instant that Christie made up that zinger on the spot, I'm sure one or more of his advisers prepared him and he was just waiting to pounce when the chance presented itself.

It was starting to look like Rubio was the one to rise above the clowns at the top.... now even that is in question.

brush

(53,788 posts)

4. Christie is a bully, but a smart one, and he certainly gored Rubio last night

Reply to groundloop (Reply #2)

Sun Feb 7, 2016, 10:50 AM

Feb 2016

It was laughable to watch Rubio, even after Christie described his stock mannerism, predictably follow the description with the very robotic and memorized performance Christie described.

Talk about not read for prime time, Rubio's like a one-trick automaton.

Just wind him up and watch him go.

Wounded Bear

(58,670 posts)

7. Right up there with Reagan's "There you go again" zinger...

Reply to groundloop (Reply #2)

Mon Feb 8, 2016, 12:13 PM

Feb 2016

Obviously well rehearsed and prepared, but effective for the audience.

Octafish

(55,745 posts)

3. ''There it is...There it is, everybody.''

Reply to n2doc (Original post)

Sun Feb 7, 2016, 10:43 AM

Feb 2016

The memorized 25-second gloat.

You could've been a contender, Tony.

dixiegrrrrl

(60,010 posts)

5. The kiss of death was in that dead silence that greeted Rubio's repeated canned sentence.

Reply to n2doc (Original post)

Mon Feb 8, 2016, 11:27 AM

Feb 2016

Oh man, that was embarrassing to watch.
and yet....I played it over again.

adigal

(7,581 posts)

6. The thing is, do Republican voters even care???

Reply to n2doc (Original post)

Mon Feb 8, 2016, 12:09 PM

Feb 2016

Of course not. May damage him with Independents. He did stand there looking like a lost little boy. I can't imagine he could win - he just looks too young and dumb.

I also like the line about Rubio's truancy. Whoever is the Dem candidate needs to run with both these things. Either Hillary or Sanders would make mincemeat out of this fake Boy Scout. He's just in way over his head - but so was GW Bush, and he got appointed president. We can't underestimate this guy.

B Calm

(28,762 posts)

8. I asked my right-wing daughter-in-law who she likes and she said none of them. She said