Newt Gingrich in New Hampshire speech: I'm best debater in GOP field

Politico ^ | November 21, 2011 | JONATHAN MARTIN

[Cincinatus' Wife]

You are probably right, but Newt will have a good come back and will remember all three of his counterpoints.

Then why didn't he use it on Mitt?

[Dr. Sivana]

Absolute rubbish. I watched that debate and to me Buckley's team won (George Will was Buckley's partner) that debate. You could have interpreted it as a Reagan win but nobody could have believed that Reagan cleaned Buckley's clock.

You must have seen a different debate. The one I saw was a special Firing Line edition, and a one on one, no George Will. Perhaps cleaning his clock was a little over the top, but that was because I was taking into consideration Buckley's ordinary prowess ... againstthe point spread, if you will. The fact that the the Buckley side prevailed under Jimmy Carter (and Ford) is a negative indicator for most Freepers. Had it not been for that one issue, Reagan might not have won North Carolina in '76, nor cleaned up in Texas, and '80 would have been a tougher climb than it was.

For the record, I am an experienced parliamentary debater and judge, and served on the Executive Committee of the Chicago Debating Society and as Secretary.

In fact, many years ago, my team beat Chris Coons' team, knocking them out of the finals.

[LibFreeUSA]

Here is some wisdom from my college days. Never trust a good debater. They have one suspicious quality.

What makes a good debater to begin with, is that they can effectively argue both sides of an issue.

[Gator113]

You are spot on.

I trust Newt more that the rest. However, I don’t trust anybody beyond my dog.

God is going to need to bless our country again, because it seems the last blessing is starting to wear off.

[Confab]

It is amazing isn’t it? The most ardent Newt bashers post most of their material from liberal organizations. On FR? It boggles the mind.

[truthguy]

Buckley's closing remarks

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Did they lie about what Newt said?

[af_vet_rr]

Great debaters do not good presidents make -

debating skills are not the requisite talents of a good leader

No, but it sure helps when you are trying to sell yourself during a campaign.

Heck, Newt managed to bring back some of his campaign staffers that had left, including one of the top folks behind a Perry super-PAC. Pulling people over from supporting Perry to Newt's side is impressive when that person originally left your campaign because they didn't think you were a contender.

[truthguy]

You must have seen a different debate. The one I saw was a special Firing Line edition, and a one on one, no George Will.

Buckley's Team


See the following:
Feauturing a Screening of Resolved: That the Senate Should Ratify the Proposed Panama Canal Treaties A “Firing Line” debate featuring Ronald Reagan, William F. Buckley Jr., George Will, Patrick Buchanan, and others

[stars & stripes forever]

Pride comes before the fall.

[so_real]

I agree. Gingrich has won all the debates thus far save for one which Cain picked up. However this election We the People are not looking for the best debater or negotiator. We are looking for a man or woman of character who will stop the debate and refuse to negotiate where the Constitution is at stake. This is our one opportunity to refuse to vote for the lesser of two evils. We have a group of genuine conservative candidates to select from. I'm not about to settle -- most especially not during the primary for Pete's sake.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

...We are looking for a man or woman of character who will stop the debate and refuse to negotiate where the Constitution is at stake...

What a great line!

[PoloSec]

“but he didn't hesitate to lay out why he thinks he's a superior candidate”

A foolish nonsensical statement.

I am not a supporter of Newt, but why would he not layout why he thinks he's a superior candidate...he is after all running for president?

[lonestar]

To: Cincinatus' Wife

Oh, so you're a ROMNEY FAN?!?

Surely you jest! Or, you are terribly ignorant.

[PeskyOne]

Speak for yourself...not all South Carolinians agree with you. You should know by now that not all good debaters are leaders. Do you consider Obama a good leader? I don’t!! You can have your “brilliant debaters”, but some of us prefer sincere, honest persons with common sense and character. Ronald Reagan wasn’t considered brilliant, but he did possess character and common sense - and he had a sense of humor which seems to be lacking in some of the candidates today. Gingrich appears to have an abundance of arrogance and a little trait of mean-spiritedness to go along with his boasts of being the best debater!

[NakedRampage]

"Surely you jest! Or, you are terribly ignorant."

Oh, both. :)

[lonestar]

LOL!

[EDINVA]

Does everyone think Newt got to be Speaker because he was so cute? No, it’s because he exhibited leadership while the then-GOP “leaders” dithered. He used every tool at his disposal to achieve major change in Congress and in Washington.

Newt formulated and executed a plan to give us the first GOP House majority in 40 years; he made a promise to the American people, and he kept it. 9 of 10 points in the “Contract with America” were passed within the first 100 days of the GOP majority under Newt’s leadership.

He’s winning the debates because he knows, in depth, exactly what he is talking about. He’s not parroting words fed to him by advisors with expertise in a given area. He’s “been there, done that.” The debates reflect that first-hand experience.

He’s suffered the slings and arrows of our MSM. Remember “The Gingrich who Stole Christmas?” After the amazing GOP takeover he engineered, every major publication had covers and endless articles portraying him as the most evil person on earth. And they never relented. By now he has developed a pretty thick hide and won’t be taken in by the MSM.

Newt certainly has his negatives, which have been documented over and over, and I have a few ‘issues’ with and reservations about him, but it is hard at this point in time to think of anyone with better qualifications to sit in the Oval Office. He’s not pretty and presidential looking like Romney or Perry, nor is he charming like Cain, but when you get down to the nitty gritty, he really is the best qualified. He’d have legislation enacted before any of the others could find the keys to the men’s room.

I’m not a Cardinal voting for the Pope, just an American citizen voting for a president who can steer us away from the morass we’ve been driven into.

[presently no screen name]

Committment to the conservative cause?

Ever hear of commitment to truth? That thought never crossed your mind. Anyone saying Newt is not the best debater with the most knowledge is speaking from bias since they are committed to one candidate and it ain't Newt. That's ALL I see anymore - everyone's bias for their candidate and smears against anyone else. And we speak about the liberal media and their bias!

I don't care who you agree with - what a ridiculous statement! Save for angst for Mitt.

[Lib-Lickers 2]

what does this have to do with South Carolina you idiot?