McCain clinches debate:

shows himself as most competent GOP contender

While the ProConPundit is on location in Dallas, the GOP hopefuls convened in Columbia, South Carolina for a Fox News/USC sponsored debate. The real winner, first of all, was Fox News over MSNBC. Although the ProConPundit is a big fan of MSNBC, Fox News put together a much more substantiative debate forum than did MSNBC in their recent debates. Fox moderators Brit Hume, Chris Wallace and Wendell Goler were much better than Chris Wallace and Brian Williams. The questions were less biased and they had more time for candidates to respond.

Also FYI the ProConPundit obtained the religious identification of these candidates:
McCain is Episcopalian, Giuliani, Thompson and Brownback are Catholic, Romney is a Mormon, Huckabee and Hunter are Baptists, Tancredo is Presbyterian, Gillmore is a Methodist, and Paul is generic Protestant.

The major news about the debate is that the top tier of McCain, Giuliani and Romney is in tact but Romney’s performance fell short of McCain and Giuliani, with McCain the winner. (Bias alert: the ProConPundit’s endorsement is with McCain). Romney is a better looking John Kerry with a hotter, saner wife. Translation: slick flip-flopper. Go away.

Significant events in the debate:

1) Ron Paul provoked Rudy’s greatest moment of the night when he asked Paul to recant his remarks about how the US should consider the causes of hatred of Americans by the middle east. The ProConPundit CLEARLY and ABSOLUTELY does not believe that America deserved or provoked the 911 attacks. Ron Paul never said we did. He did say that we have built an embassy in Iraq that rivals the Vatican in size. He said that if China built such an edifice here, we would be concerned and distressed. He also pointed out the "blowback" to the US installation of the Shah of Iran in the 1970's which provoked the taking of American hostages. Those are valid points, Rudy overacted and was idiotic in using an intelligent, but *debatable* point as an opportunity to act like the only person who cares about the 911 victims. That is getting old, Rudy. You need more to be prez.

2) Another significant topic was about enhanced interrogation techniques. McCain, once again and clearly on top of his game, was the voice of statesmanship and American ideals when he denounced torture. As an American hero and a victim of torture himself, he was the sole voice of reason on this topic. McCain pointed out that water boarding was invented at the Spanish Inquisition and suggested America is capable of better forms of interrogation and stated the obvious that torture does not provide reliable information. Rudy once again was a boob endorsing torture. Romney took a duck on the question by saying that as president he would avoid circumstances that would cause attacks like 911 and hence the reason to interrogate people. Go away Romney, please!

3) Giuliani was grilled again on his pro-choice position. I think the pro-lifers who cannot vote for Giuliani should do as they must but the issue is resolved. He has answered where he stands. Whatever you think of him and of his position he is correct on this much: he is preferable to Hillary Rodham Clinton, we should unite on our common areas, and even given his pro-choice stand, abortions decreased and adoptions increased in New York while he was mayor. What the mayor has to do with that—the ProConPundit hasn’t got a clue!

Second Tier: As for the second tier, they were all more impressive than in the first debate with Mike Huckabee at the top of the pack, in my view. He also won the quip of the night saying that congress "spent money like John Edwards at a beauty parlor." Huckabee clearly held his own and had persuasive responses to his critics. Other great quips came as slams to Romney by Tancredo who trusts conversions that occur "on the road to Damascus not Des Moines." McCain threw a great line that was no joke: "I don’t change my positions in even numbered years or depending on which office I seek."

Of the rest of the second tier, Gillmore and Hunter were much better than the last debate but are still going nowhere–not even VP hopefuls. Thompson and Brownback were better than last time but unimpressive. Thompson won the contest for the most number of times he mentioned Reagan.

On Kucinich-Sharpton Tier: Tom Tancredo continues to be the GOP answer to Kucinich in trying to hold the party accountable. For Kucinich, it is on the war and Tancredo, immigration. He’s going nowhere but doing the country and the process a service to be in the race and give voice to this key issue that the top contenders would prefer to duck. Ron Paul, like Sharpton, is part prophet, part wacky.
Its McCain, folks.