Reagan Library Republican Presidential Debate: January 30, 2008 (Official Thread)

CNN ^ | January 30, 2008

[khnyny]

Reagan Library Republican Presidential Debate: January 30, 2008

SIMI VALLEY, California (CNN) -- Republican presidential hopefuls will face off Wednesday night without a familiar face as ex-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani is expected to drop out and endorse front-runner Sen. John McCain.

The remaining candidates will take the stage in a debate -- sponsored by CNN, the Los Angeles Times and Politico -- beginning at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday.

The event at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, follows McCain's Tuesday night win in the Florida primary.

McCain topped former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney 36 percent to 31 percent in the hotly contested race.

Giuliani placed third with 15 percent of the vote, followed closely by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee with 14 percent, and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas was fifth with 3 percent.

Giuliani is expected to end his White House bid and endorse McCain at a campaign event in California later Wednesday, Republican Party sources said.

Minus Giuliani, the debate will be a four-candidate affair -- McCain, Romney, Huckabee and Paul -- with CNN's Anderson Cooper moderating.

[TornadoAlley3]

[CounterCounterCulture]

McCain to Romney: Ronald Reagan would not change his positions depending what year it was.

Pfffffffffffffffft on McCain’s hypocrisy.

[dawn53]

IMHO, the look on his face throughout the debate is one of somebody who’s trying really hard to “keep their cool”...but it comes off as a smirk, or a know it all look.

[rintense]

Wow, McCain dipped to 30 on the Reagan question.

[End Times Crusader]

If it must be done, it must be done.

[Shadow44]

And Ron Paul ends the debate in a snore with the Gold Standard. *yawn*

[McGruff]

McCain scares me. I have this feeling he’d start WWIII because he was having a bad day.

[jwalsh07]

WOW!

It wasn't that profound.

But evidently a bit too profound for you to get a handle on.

[CedarDave]

Mitt approaching 90 on whether he would get RR’s support; McCain went down to 30 hinting Romney a flip-flopper.

[Shortstop7]

Ronald Reagan would endorse me cause I would love to kick McCain in the shins.

[La Enchiladita]

Very well. I’m sure it ticked off some FReepers, too...:)

[TomGuy]

McCain gets about 40 on CNN charting for his response about whether Reagan would endorse him.

[Gator113]

Good choice!!

[advertising guy]

hey pal........I care what she thinks.......back the truck up or dance but get that attitude gone

[STARWISE]

I wanna know if it’s the audience
there or where ...

As soon as McCain started speaking,
the downspike was in the cellar.

[The Pack Knight]

I've noticed a split in rhetoric among the Republican candidates throughout this campaign, between the pro-business Romney, Giuliani, and Thompson, and populists like Huckabee, McCain, and Hunter.

It's not so much that their policies break along those lines, but their rhetoric certainly has. That split in rhetoric has certainly been seen on this forum as well.

I'm worried that this is indicative of a fissure forming within the Republican party and the conservative movement as a whole, one that's much deeper than any split between the three "Reagan coalition" factions.

[Reagan Man]

Not at all. I just don’t support or defend liberals like Willard Myth Romney and never will.

I’ll leave that up to you.

[txhurl]

Well, I was a FredHead and look where that got me.

[allmendream]

Romney’s answers had the meter up to 80. McCain’s answer bottomed out at 30 and only climbed back up to 50 at the conclusion of his remarks.

[littlehouse36]

“I regret that I didn’t serve. I can believe that. I can also believe that he changed his view on abortion, because I did.”

Ditto, and ditto. I am an over-40 mother of youngin’s, but wish I had served in non-combatant role during my wild single years. I became pro-life after reading “See I Told You So!”