First Debate

Last night was the "first" debate of potential 2012 GOP presidential nominees. I was glad to have a smaller group of participants, most of them less-known.

I will share some impressions.

1. Rick Santorum: thumbs down. He was arrogant. He clearly thinks he is better than other people because of his positions on families, abortion, etc.

It's fine for a candidate to think his positions are better than those of another candidate. That's the whole point. But his sneering and preening was unattractive.

He was clearly trying to downplay his beliefs about working mothers. Since he clearly believes the world would be better off if more women stayed home, it was disingenuous of him to say otherwise.

Finally, his closing remarks were idiotic. He said people should vote for him because he has beaten Democratic incumbents in the past. It was not inspiring.

2. I enjoyed the cogent way in which Gov Gary Johnson (NM) explained his positions.

3. I don't think libertarianism would work on a large scale unless the society it governed had a fairly strict moral code.

4. Herman Cain's tone was more formal than the last interview I saw with him. I like polish. Points to Cain.

5. I am interested in hearing more from Gov Tim Pawlenty.