Review of Monday Night's GOP Debate

On Monday night, the four candidates remaining in the race for the GOP nomination took the stage in Florida, home of the next primary. After a big, somewhat shocking victory for Newt Gingrich in South Carolina, it was clear that he was going to be targeted strongly, along with the rest of the shots which we've all grown accustomed to over the course of this campaign season. The following is a brief summary of how I felt each candidate performed in this debate, in random order.

Ron Paul: Congressman Paul, I felt, performed very well tonight. His strict following and interpretation of the Constitution, which he is well known for, played well in tonight's debate and the topics which were covered, especially when the topic of Federalism was discussed, specifically the need to defend States' rights and investing more power and authority in the States.]. In addition, foreign policy answers on Iran and Cuba from Paul seemed well thought-out and reasonable. Paul performed well tonight, although his chance to be elected remains in my eyes virtually nonexistent.

Rick Santorum: Santorum seems to me to be on the down turn. Don't get me wrong, Santorum at times seemed very strong, firm, and confident, strongly attacking both Gingrich and Romney for being too similar to Obama in his last answer of the night. However, I feel as if his momentum has reached its peak. Had Gingrich not won South Carolina I would feel differently; however, with Gingrich's reemergence and Romney's consistency, I see no room for a jump for Santorum. Regardless, I felt as if Santorum was concise when needed, well-spoken and well thought out when needed, and overall put in a strong performance despite perhaps less attention than the two debates last week leading up to South Carolina's primary.

Mitt Romney: This race seems to be wearing on Romney. My first thought when I first saw him was that he looked weary, tired, and in need of a break. Maybe he was fine, but to me, he just seems tired. In addition, I didn't feel as if he performed particularly well in this debate. His "self deportation" answer on foreign policy was the "what?" moment of the night, one which he had to struggle to explain, but never really successfully made sense of. Although he had some good moments, Romney was unimpressive tonight and did not do enough to stop what could be a continued flow of support towards Newt Gingrich after his surprising finish in South Carolina.

Newt Gingrich: If I had to choose one word to summarize the debate of Newt Gingrich tonight, it would be logical. He didn't try to say anything groundbreaking or innovative; rather, he tried to make himself out to be a practical, thoughtful, and wise individual who looks at situations and does what makes sense. His answers about unifying the nation around English, and his answer on space, are examples of his practicality which he illustrated tonight, and seemed reasonable. While not a stunning performance for Gingrich, it was a consistent performance without blips which he needed to continue his strong support from South Carolina and keep people wanting to know what else he has to offer.