Domestic Issues Dominate 1st Hour of GOP Debate
Domestic issues dominated the first hour of tonight's GOP debate, a focus that put frontrunner John McCain on defense on issues like illegal immigration and tax cuts.
On immigration, McCain was asked by Los Angeles Times reporter Janet Hook whether he would now vote for his comprehensive reform plan that included a path to citizenship. McCain dodged the direct question, insisting that such a scenario would never come to pass because the legislation was dead. He reiterated his now familiar line that "people want the border secured first" before arguing that all four Republicans generally agreed on how to handle immigration.
Pressed on his vote against President Bush's tax cuts in 2001, McCain again dodged the direct question about his motives for that vote -- instead noting his credentials as a "footsoldier" in the Reagan revolution and the support he enjoys from a number of noted fiscal conservatives.
Mitt Romney, McCain's main rival for the Republican nomination, sought to draw contrasts on both issues. On immigration, Romney said he is opposed to any form of "amnesty," adding: "Those who have come here illegally should not be given a better deal."
On tax cuts, Romney said he supported the Bush tax cuts from the start and made sure to note that McCain was one of only two Republicans to cast a vote against the legislation.
While McCain came under serious scrutiny from the moderators as well as Romney, he sustained no serious self-inflicted wounds in the first half hour of the debate. He largely repeated reliable lines from his stump speech, adopting a low-risk strategy that is a tacit acknowledgment of his belief that he is the frontrunner for his party's nomination.
Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul, meanwhile, have faded into the background of this debate, struggling to break through amid the scrap between McCain and Romney.
By Chris Cillizza |
January 30, 2008; 9:09 PM ET
| Category:
Eye on 2008
Previous: Romney, McCain and Who's the 'Real' Conservative |
Next: McCain, Romney Clash in Personal Terms

Get This Widget >>

Posted by: hannibal81 | January 31, 2008 1:15 PM
Volunteer for Romney!
Help make calls for Romney this big weekend. Call the Romney Campaign at (857) 288-6390 and find out how you can make phone calls, for free, from your home to conservatives across the country. Help Mitt beat McCain's proven pro-AMNESTY, anti-tax cut ideology.
Posted by: ConservativeDan | January 31, 2008 10:42 AM
Responding to bsimon "Check again"
Ok, I said the Reagan would have never spent us into a hole. Reagan was a deficit spender of historical portions during peace time.
However, did you listen to what Ron Paul said ? That Reagan warned him of debt accumulated on paper as opposed to gold ? That really equates to unsecured versus secured credit spending.
At one point in time during the 109th Congress, young Congressmen wanted to liquidate some of our gold reserves. Alan Greenspan had a little chat with Congress in committee discussing the history of gold standard and transactions in a time of war.
You know, no thanks to the Red State/Blue State divide, advice from President Clinton was ignored on scenerios which cause National and international debt to devalue the dollar. Did anyone listen, well look at the value of the dollar today.
Paulson had a few amusing words today trying the ole Bush Adminstration ploy of "talking" the stock market upwards. For over a month now, Whitehouse words and actions are decreasing in effacy on Wall Street. This push to get the stimulus package into law and the prime dropping nearly 2 points rapidly show desparation.
Reagan was certainly not the Savior and all this hype appealing to the Republican base is really going to hurt that party badly as November of 2008 approaches.
You are right though, deficit spending and lowered taxes came from Reagan and deficit spending was dubbed by Bush41 as voodoo economics.
Thanks for correcting me.
Posted by: truthhurts | January 31, 2008 2:35 AM
Posted by: PollM | January 30, 2008 11:05 PM
truthhurts writes
"First, Ronald Reagan would have never spent this country into a hole."
Check again!
Posted by: bsimon | January 30, 2008 10:45 PM
Besides knowing more than the others, and having better ideas and solutions, the only one who isn't nasty is Dr. Ron Paul. He's polite, a gentleman. This man should be president. And he might be. He is targeting delegates and looking forward to a brokered convention. He is winning in states that don't get much attention - like Maine and Alaska. Dr Paul is running a stealth campaign, and this is a game of last man standing. Consider joining us. Do we stand with the Founding Fathers? Are we the Jeffersons, Washingtons, and Patrick Henrys of our age? Go Canvass! And February 1 the new money bomb day: fiftyoneyears.com.
Posted by: washpost3 | January 30, 2008 10:15 PM
First, Ronald Reagan would have never spent this country into a hole. Not sure if Reagan would have advocated for tax cuts in a time of war especially when the debt devalues the dollar. Forecast recently is that subprime damages will hit commercial properties next and that is really really bad news in direct opposition to Whitehouse news today. Do you think we are stupid ?
I pity Huckabee, he is a good man. I don't view him as a Politician, not like I view McCain and Romney, total Politicians losing their sense of focus entirely on issues today. I say that with complete confidence because the issues of the People were ignored as usual by leading Republicans. Public servants huh, not. Seems these two want to continue to serve the Military/Industrial Complex fighting the New Cold War of their own making.
When exactly in the debate did McCain's ears turn bright red ? His ears did not match the phoney laugh or smirk on his face for the last hour I viewed, (McCain pretends to ignore the inference).
Ron Paul is too honest for Republicans, that is ashame. Our enemies are not stupid so stating the obvious is hardly a breach of national security (McCain smirks).
Really unfair to viewers and other candidates to focus on McCain's facial antics while someone else is speaking, that is impolite. When McCain was asked about his economic experience, he went back on his stump speech of being a soldier (McCain laughs).
Couple of things are obvious to me now. McCain, still using Rumsfeld as a scapegoat, dislikes civilians. I guess the Republican old guard wants a continuation of a War Branch instead of Executive Branch and that is contrary to most Americans at this juncture. So Romney and McCain can continue on with a War Cabinet too, ignoring a domestic agenda, I thought so (McCain shakes head while smirking).
I guess those absent from Senate today were entirely focused on an Offensive War ditching the Economic Stimulus package and FISA renewal debates ongoing in Congress (McCain mentions for the fifth time his transitory threat in the 21st century).
Politicians speak with forked tongues and phoney talking head language be careful Chrise, not all that glitters is gold. Again my apologies to Governor Huckabee, it's not your fault and best regards to Ron Paul.
Posted by: truthhurts | January 30, 2008 10:11 PM
Anyone who supports the Born Again, Faith Based, Pro Life Lying War Criminal Mass Murderer Serial Killer in Chief and the VP of Torture should never be in the WH. Anyone who supports wasting a couple of trillion dollars of taxpayers funds in Illegal Invasions of Sovereign States should never be our leader. If one had any courage, one would call for the Axis of Evil to be indicted for War Crimes. People who support Mission Accomplished is equally guilty in the thousands of Murders. These Killers need to face Justice at the International Criminal Court. There is no Statue of Limitations on War Crimes.
Who Would Jesus Kill?
All of these Religious Psychos are Frauds. Only Ignorant Deluded Idiots would believe any of them.
http://www.un.org/law/icc/statute/99_corr/2.htm
Crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court
Posted by: mawt | January 30, 2008 9:54 PM
Even the Soviet Union would have conducated less obviously stage-managed debates. A Los Angeles Times reporter asking McCain about immigration? Does anyone think she would have asked him anything remotely approaching a difficult question? And, in fact she didn't, but that didn't stop McCain from contradicting his claim just last Sunday that, were he president, he'd sign his own bill.
He also misled about the three remaining contenders, none of whom (now) support anything like McCain's bill, and with Ron Paul actually meaning it.
If you're tired of the MSM fluffing the candidates live on TV, go to a McCain appearance and ask him about his staff member who's a former cabinet-level official with the MexicanGovernment:
Posted by: LonewackoDotCom | January 30, 2008 9:53 PM
The comments to this entry are closed.
![[Veepstakes]](http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/interactives/campaign08/images/vpwatch_45x35.gif)
![[Battlegrounds]](http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/interactives/campaign08/images/battleground_45x35.gif)








The debate was dominated by McCain and Romney because of the unfair coverage of CNN/Anderson Cooper.
They dictated how much time each candidate got.
For you not to realize this shows how Neo-conned you are Chris.
The media doesnt want to just report the news - they want to bias it.