GOP debate

The WEEKLY STANDARD Podcast with senior writer John McCormack on Thursday's CNN GOP Debate.

As I watched the last few Republican debates, I was distracted, not for the first time, by a most nonpolitical thought: Don't they feel silly all wearing blue suits, white shirts, and red ties?

Should women be required to register for the Selective Service in case there’s ever a draft again? It's an obvious question now that the Obama administration has ruled—over the objections of the Marine Corps—that all combat roles must be open to women.

Carly Fiorina's super PAC is out with a new web ad today mocking ABC for excluding her from tonight's GOP debate in New Hampshire.

Thank heavens for Ctrl+F, a reader's best friend in times of memory lapse and abject laziness. While scouring a transcript of about 19,000 words, it's also a legitimate research tool—particularly when the researcher has a hunch that the word he's looking for isn't mentioned too often.

This morning on CNN, Alisyn Camerota said that journalists are scared to criticize Donald Trump.

The WEEKLY STANDARD Podcast with editor William Kristol on tonight's Fox News GOP debate.

One of the big problems with media "fact checkers" is the presumption of expertise that the reporter doesn't actually have. Sitting around googling whenever a politician opens his or her mouth often means a rush to judgment, and the results can be embarassing. Last night, Politico Pro sent out the…

Milwaukee

At last, a debate that lived up to its billing. The Fox Business Network promised this would be about economic policy, and not about fantasy football, or personalities, and its panelists delivered. Despite an occasional barb, including a neat put-down of Donald Trump by Carly Fiorina, we actually…

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with senior writer Jonathan V. Last on how last night's debate was a disaster for Jeb Bush.

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with senior writer John McCormack on the CNBC GOP Debate.

Earlier tonight moderator John Harwood, of CNBC and the New York Times, attacked Senator Marco Rubio's tax plan on the grounds that it disproportionately benefited the top one percent of earners. Rubio insisted the premise of his question was wrong, but Harwood stuck to his guns. Here's the…

In this week's edition of the boss's email newsletter -- Kristol Clear (sign up here!) -- he writes about the conundrum of being a Mets fan conflicting with the next GOP debate.

Over at the Free Beacon, our old colleague Matthew Continetti is already up with his thoughts about the debate. He's reached the conclusion that "debates basically serve to propel second-tier candidates to the top. That’s what happened with Ben Carson last time. And it’s what’s going to happen to…

A reader sends in this image from the streets outside tonight's GOP Debate. It's the symbol from the Hunger Games -- a symbol of rebellion from the YA novel where kids fight to overthrow a dystopian cociety run by elites. The unorthodox street art campaign for Cruz has been seen in other parts of…

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with executive editor Fred Barnes on the upcoming GOP debate.

Tonight's debate was full of fireworks. And somewhat surprisingly, Donald Trump was arguably not the most confrontational candidate on stage. Senator Rand Paul provided some of the more memorable moments of the night by challenging the other candidates on stage. Here is a transcript of Paul's…

THE WEEKLY STANDARD podcast with senior editor Lee Smith on the Iran Deal, how the voters are reacting to it, and why GOP candidates should own opposition to it in Thursday's debates.

Jonah Goldberg: "Most Boring Guy Wins Most Boring Debate?"

A lot of fair-minded Republicans and conservatives are saying that the GOP candidates should avoid the presidential debate moderated by Donald Trump.

General Wesley Clark, a liberal advocate who eventually endorsed Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, praised the Republican candidates for an "excellent debate" in an appearance on MSNBC this morning:

Spartanburg, South Carolina

The Hill: "Immigration sparks war of words between Romney, Perry at debate"

This afternoon, Congressman Ron Paul released his “Plan to Restore America,” which would cut $1 trillion in spending during the first year of the Paul administration.

Another Republican presidential debate, another forceful performance by Mitt Romney. The subject was the economy, jobs, and finance—Romney’s strong suits—and he made the most of it, having more to say on those subjects and saying it more cogently than the other seven candidates.

Lots of interesting e-mails on the boss’s “Yikes.” This one, from a Republican who has held high elective office, is worth noting:

THE WEEKLY STANDARD’s official reaction to last night’s Republican presidential debate: Yikes.

In the Wall Street Journal, Karl Rove previews tonight’s debate, saying that it “presents opportunities and dangers for each candidate.”  Rove writes that Rick Perry “has had two okay-to-mediocre debate performances,” which “is dangerous.”  He says that Perry needs to convey that he would be a good…

If Monday night's GOP presidential debate is any indication, Romneycare may not be the liability it once was for Mitt Romney. The former Bay State governor took fewer punches on the issue than before and seemed to have absorbed most of the blows.

If a debate more than four months before the first vote is cast can influence the outcome of a presidential nomination race, the debate last night among eight Republicans should aid Mitt Romney’s candidacy. Seldom has there been as clear a winner.

Campaign events tend not to be the first place to look for nuanced constitutional debate; the Lincoln-Douglas encounters are the exception that proves the rule. So what are the odds that a thoughtful debate would occur not just between candidates of rival parties, or even rival wings of the same…

An adviser to presidential candidate Mitt Romney tells the Washington Post's Jen Rubin:

At last night's debate, one audience member raised the issue of energy infrastructure:

During the first Republican presidential debate last night, two people who were not in the room were nevertheless clearly on the minds of the GOP candidates: Barack Obama and Paul Ryan.  The former, the sitting president, was not at all surprising; the latter, not having yet entered the…

The seven candidates on stage performed creditably last night, with two pretty clearly helping themselves—Mitt Romney and Michele Bachmann. But since the stage at St. Anselm didn't feature all of the eventual candidates, one can also ask, which potential candidates who aren't yet in the race were…

"President Barack Obama has signed a secret order authorizing covert U.S. government support for rebel forces seeking to oust Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, government officials told Reuters on Wednesday."