Leno didn't help the lib cause tonight in any way.
Leno didn't help the lib cause tonight in any way.
Nope, he didn't! I knew once Jay Leno the a-hole Dunce tried to 'get into it' with Ted, he'd be sorry.
Ted Cruz reminds me more and more of Ronald Reagan every day. :-)
I tend to agree.
Unlike many others here, I actually want Leno to attack, spout the lib talking points, etc., and then we can see how Sen. Cruz responds. If TC is indeed a possible candidate for President, then he needs to be able to do well in these situations, and worse.
If our guys can't win the argument in the eyes of the average voter, in just this type situation, we can't win, and the country truly will be lost.
With 20/20 hindsight (it's a lot easier when one is not the person in the hotseat), I'd give Sen. Cruz a B-.
He did well, I think, in coming off as NOT being some crazy, but instead a decent guy who cares about his constituents. And his points about the pressures on the middle class getting worse due to big gov't were good, though they need to be made more strongly, and at every opportunity by all conservatives.
On the down side, I thought Cruz' answer regarding ObamaCare being the law of the land, so why fight about it, was weak. One could first point out that the 18th Amendment (prohibition) was as legal as it gets, but it was a horrible idea and had to be repealed. If a law turns out to be a lousy idea, is "well, it's the law of the land" any reason to not try to end it? Or, note that much of the law was thrown together at the last moment, was, what, over 1000 pages long(?), and very few if any of the legislators who voted on it had read most of it, much less understood all the implications and repercussions. How good an idea is it to press on with such a law, when major flaws become evident to even some of its supporters, or the President has to apologize for some of its consequences?
I also don't quite know why conservative pols don't focus more on the "unfairness" of big business, big labor, etc., getting exemptions from ObamaCare, while the average person has it rammed down their throat, like it or not. Yes, I know, that's a populist argument, but, sometimes, a populist argument is a good way to gain traction when it's hard to get your voice heard fairly. Reagan understood this brilliantly -- sometimes I think his promise to end the 55 mph speed limit was more effective in garnering votes, in 1980, than any other argument he made.
As far as the "arrogant" charge goes, one way to defuse it right away, in addition to demeanor (which came across well), would be to address the audience something to the tune of: "Well, this is the first time most of you have met me -- I'll trust you to make up your own minds rather than be told what to think by some commentator who has a political axe to grind."
All in all, I thought Sen. Cruz did ok for someone in this particular high level "spot" for the first time. With practice, I'll bet he gets better. :-)