But when you expand the argument (as Santorum did) and say that you are giving tuition brakes to illegal aliens that you are denying to your fellow American citizens from other states... that’s a losing issue, because your basically insulting everyone else in the nation.
Yep Perry blew that response badly.
He should have poitned out to Santorum that in fact the Texas legislature made it so that an out of state student could get instate tuition in only one year rather than three. All they have to do is move to Texas set up residency for one year, apply, get accepted in a college and they get instate tuition as a Texas resident.
but ... I think it's just too complicated to try and explain. Face it, most people are about as smart as a doorknob, you have to keep it simple.
And right now the issue is being framed very simply against Perry, even the average scooter fat moron zipping around walmart can grasp that Perry wants to give illegal aliens instate tuition that he wont give them (if they don't live in Texas)
When your forced to respond with a essay to a one sentence attack, you lose in a debate. It's not fair, but it's just the way it is. The debate format doesn't lend itself to nuanced explanations, and neither does the intellect of the average American.