GOP debate: Five things that won't happen, but should
It seems as if every pundit in America does a 鈥淔ive Things to Watch For鈥� story before Republican and Democratic presidential debates. Do those things actually happen? Sometimes. But sometimes not 鈥� stories after the debates often focus on unpredicted events, such as Carly Fiorina ripping Donald Trump for talking about her looks, or Bernie Sanders saying he鈥檚 tired of hearing about Hillary Clinton鈥檚 e-mails.
So we鈥檙e trying to subvert the genre. For Tuesday night鈥檚 GOP debate in Las Vegas here鈥檚 our take on Five Things That Should Happen But Probably Won鈥檛. You don鈥檛 have to watch for them, so that pressure is off. Whew! Maybe they鈥檒l give some context to what does happen, though. That鈥檚 our hope.
Donald Trump asks Ted Cruz about his tax plan. Yes, The Donald is widely expected to go after the senator from Texas, who鈥檚 creeping up behind him in Iowa polls. If that happens the slams are likely to be short, and personal. That鈥檚 Mr. Trump鈥檚 style. He鈥檚 already labeled Senator Cruz a 鈥渕aniac鈥� for his relations with fellow senators.
What we鈥檇 like to see instead is businessman Trump asking Cruz about his (Cruz鈥檚) tax plan. Economists have noted that this plan eliminates business income taxes, but includes a version of a value-added tax, which hits products at many steps on their road to consumers. They鈥檙e widely used in Europe but companies aren鈥檛 fond of them. Does Trump think a US VAT a yuuuge mistake?
Lindsey Graham rushes the stage. Senator Graham is not invited to the main GOP debate. He鈥檚 relegated to the kiddie table debate, along with Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and George Pataki. But he鈥檚 been both funny and substantive in past undercards. And at a recent appearance at the Republican Jewish Coalition, Graham delivered something of a primal scream of the GOP establishment, hitting out at Trump鈥檚 tough rhetoric about undocumented immigrants, among other things.
So maybe he should just stand up in the audience and rush the stage to try and grab the mike and denounce whatever policies he thinks are hurting the party. He鈥檚 got little to lose, given he鈥檚 polling at less than 1 percent. And it would get lots of coverage.
Jeb Bush and Rand Paul talk about dads. Both Mr. Bush and Senator Paul are dangerously close to falling into irrelevance in the 2016 GOP race. Both also began with heavy expectations: Jeb Bush for obvious familial reasons; and Rand Paul for being Ron Paul鈥檚 son, and the 鈥渕ost interesting man in politics,鈥� .
Before they fall into the undercard it would be really interesting to hear these two scions talk about the burdens and joys of being the sons of successful politicians. What did they learn from them? What aspects of their legacy have they tried to escape? For Bush, this could be a way of sidestepping the issue of brother George W.鈥檚 presidency. For Paul, it could be a way to be interesting again.
Chris Christie steals somebody's podium. New Jersey Governor Christie has languished for much of the campaign, but recently he鈥檚 showed signs of life, particularly in the key early voting state of New Hampshire. He won the coveted endorsement of the New Hampshire Union Leader, and he鈥檚 rising in state polls.
But he鈥檚 got to do something dramatic to get attention on the national stage and showcase his tough-guy image, which could play well at a time when terrorism has become a top voter concern. What better way than to just take somebody鈥檚 better-positioned podium during a commercial break, so he鈥檚 closer to the center and Donald Trump? He鈥檒l be standing next to Jeb Bush, so there鈥檚 one target. Or he could cross over the stage and commandeer Ben Carson鈥檚. That would put him in the top three.
Everybody thanks Wolf Blitzer. Usually the media is a target at Republican debates. Newt Gingrich ripped into moderators in 2012. Ted Cruz has done so this cycle. Come on 鈥� would it kill them, for once, to thank the mainstream media for providing them free exposure to voters? Most people thank hosts at parties, whether they had a good time or not. CNN veteran Blitzer is the anchor for Tuesday night鈥檚 debate. They could acknowledge his contributions on stage 鈥� then rip him afterward in the spin room, if they feel they must.
