No question—Rubio won Nova Southeastern debate on Tuesday
Wednesday, October 20, 2010 at 12:01AM 
US Senate candidate Marco Rubio (R) debated US Rep. Kendrick Meek (D) and Gov. Charlie Crist (NPA) on Tuesday, and there’s no question Rubio won the debate. It’s true I support Rubio for the Senate. But it’s also true that I am harder on him than a candidate I don’t care about.
Rubio responded to every question in Rubio rapid fire mode, not mincing words and under absolutely no circumstances backing down.
The former speaker of the Florida House is well-spoken, an unapologetic believer in America and a man who understands what his opponents as well as Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and President Barack Obama fail to see.
Rubio knows government does not create jobs. He also knows at the moment government is impeding the creation of jobs. He knows government cannot spend more than government takes in. He understands the people’s money is not a never-ending fount for congressmen to endow institutes to deceased congressmen, to build skateboard parks or to build bridges to nowhere.
Besides that, Rubio sees the error of past Republican and current Democrat ways. He pointed out that as Democrats have projected tax increases, they have projected spending increases.
Rubio is one of the many lessons the national Republican leadership can appreciate, having refused to initially appreciate him when Crist was raising campaign money as a Republican.
Each candidate had his moment.
Crist often sounded like a 7th grader. I can sum up his remarks quickly in a series of creative assessments. Rubio is a ‘right-wing extremist.’ It’s easy to govern when money is flowing. But it’s harder to govern when there’s an economic downturn. Rubio is an extreme right winger. Perhaps the most insane moment for Florida’s governor came when he said Congress has been in a ‘gridlock’ and can’t get anything done. Most Americans wish that was true—in fact, Congress has outdone itself by hyper-acts such as ObamaCare, Cap and Trade and the ridiculous sinkhole called the GIVE Act as well as the failed Stimulus. Did I mention Rubio was a right-winger?
It’s comical if you think about it—how today’s progressive views basic conservatism.
Speaking of ObamaCare, Meek took issue with that term. With a suggestion of indignation, Meek interrupted, saying he wondered if Crist “said that [ObamaCare] to the president when they were walking on the beach together.” I almost expected Meek to look at the camera and say, “Mr. President, I have your back!”
When Meek mentioned the Obama-Crist beach stroll, the governor chirped, “We were talking about the oil spill.”
Meek’s responses were politically driven. ObamaCare is the divine answer to healthcare. Meek is satisfied his votes on different issues matched those of Pelosi. People making more than $200k are wealthy and they should pay more taxes so more middle class people can work. There appears to be a Democrat belief that taxes create jobs. And Meek didn’t know about his mom’s consulting fee and a certain developer though he thought he might have paid closer attention.
At some point between a spontaneous exchange with Crist, Meek tossed in mention of Sarah Palin, touchstone for leftwing angst and ire in part because Palin is a very conservative Christian, a top priority among the political class for demonizing.
Nobody said these candidates had to make sense, by the way. That is not a requirement for a senatorial debate.
Rubio took it all in stride. He cited specific examples from his campaign website where his platform and policies are posted. He batted Crist’s character assassinations aside. He disregarded Meek’s claims to status of near divine public servant.
At one point when Crist was doing another tantrum over Rubio’s character, Rubio took the floor and refused to yield it until time ran out. Deft oratorical skill, that. The reporter from The Miami Herald chuckled and said she could see he was, “practicing on the filibuster.”
Rubio took the Tuesday debate at Nova Southeastern. He looked like a US Senator preparing to one day become a US president. A good one on both accounts. [Analysis by Kay B. Day/Oct. 20, 2010]