Tuesday’s Republican debate will save Perry’s campaign, or end it

Yahoo! News' The Ticket ^ | October 10, 2011 | Holly Bailey

[2ndDivisionVet]

The Republican presidential candidates will gather for their second televised debate in New Hampshire on Tuesday night, when Bloomberg and the Washington Post host a forum centered entirely on the economy.

The back and forth on policy at the debate could be overshadowed by a bigger storyline: Can Rick Perry use the event to turn his turn his campaign around?

Perry, the governor of Texas, has lost his position as the front-runner in 2012 polls in recent weeks, amid criticism over his uneven debate performances. His position on Social Security, which he's described as a "Ponzi scheme" and a "monstrous lie" that ought to be administered by the 50 states instead of the federal government, will almost certainly come under scrutiny at the debate. His support for allowing illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition at Texas public universities is also likely to come up, as his rivals have cast the policy as fiscally unwise.

At the last three debates, Perry has struggled to defend his policies, and he has also had trouble delivering scripted attacks against Mitt Romney, his leading opponent for the Republican presidential nomination. Will Perry be better prepared Tuesday night?

The answer could determine the fate of his campaign for the White House. While Perry raised $17 million in his first weeks as a presidential candidate, money alone won't allow the Texas governor to overcome skepticism among Republican voters and party insiders about his ability to defeat President Barack Obama. Only a strong debate showing and a steady grasp of issues can do that.

If Perry can't regain momentum now, he will not be able to recover.....

[grey_whiskers]

Thatch, huh? Oh well. Cheers to you too.

"Thatch" is short for M.Thatcher, to whom that post was also addressed.

Cheers!