Long-time GOP consultant saw debate as back alley brawl

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Ed Rollins, long-time Republican campaign consultant who has worked for a number of presidents throughout the years, wrote his thoughts on Thursday night’s debate, as he does each time. He was pretty much spot on in his assessment that he posted on Facebook of the candidates:

My thoughts on last night’s debate:

This wasn’t a debate! It was a back alley brawl! If you want tough guys, the Republicans brought the whole gang. Trump as the leader of the pack had one of his better nights. He was forceful and did not flinch. I assume if you started the night a Trump supporter, you still are and may be even reinforced by his strong performance.

GOP debate night

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Like a moth to flame, I am parked in front of the television with my husband and parents watching the 7:00 Republican debate — Tier 2 candidates consisting of Chris Christie, Mike Huckabee, Bobby Jindal, and Rick Santorum — on Fox Business Channel. This early debate is only one hour long so these guys have a short amount of time to get out their messages. It’s disappointing that S.C. Senator Lindsey Graham is not there — I really like his humor and knowledge of national security, and former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore should be in there for his experience with national security and gubernatorial leadership experience.

At 9:00, the Tier 1 candidates will have two hours to debate: Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Carly Fiorina, and John Kasich. The Hill writes:

Will the media be the story as it was in the CNBC debate? Will non-politician frontrunners Donald Trump and Ben Carson be able to compete in a wonky discussion about the economy? Will rising senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio attempt to take down each other, or the two outsiders currently ahead of them? Will Jeb Bush’s media training pay off?

All these and surely many more unexpected stories to come. Keep your browser open all night at TheHill.com and come back to the site tomorrow to see who we picked as the Winners and Losers.

My living room focus group likes Chris Christie the most in the first debate. We all will be pulling for Governor Jeb Bush in the Tier 1 debate.

Gilmore: ‘The Republican debate process is a fraud on the American people’

[Editor’s note: Republican debates number 2 and 3 excluded former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore. Since there were only four participants during the “early” debate on Wednesday, it was difficult to understand why Governor Gilmore had been omitted, and I wrote that at the time. After a dysfunctional “debate” that made a debacle of the event, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus notified NBC that the scheduled February GOP debate would not take place. This is Governor Gilmore’s response.]

By Jim Gilmore
Former Virginia Governor and candidate for President of the United States

Recently Reince Priebus, Chairman of the Republican National Committee, issued a statement denouncing CNBC for their conduct of the Denver GOP Presidential debate.

“CNBC should be ashamed of themselves. … the questioning by the CNBC moderators was extremely disappointing and did a disservice to their network, our candidates and you — the voters.”

2016 GOP, Democratic presidential debate schedule

By Lynn R. Mitchell

The third Republican debate — titled “Your Money, Your Vote” —  is Wednesday night, October 28, 2015, at 8:00 Eastern Time, from the University of Colorado in Boulder (CNBC).

Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, John Kasich, Marco Rubio, Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Carly Fiorina, and Rand Paul will participate in the two-hour debate.

At 6:00, four additional Republican candidates — Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal, George Pataki, and Lindsey Graham — will debate. They have polled at lower than 2.5 percent so are not allowed to debate with the Top 10. I am surprised once again that Virginia’s former governor Jim Gilmore has been excluded from this group.

Warner, Gillespie in U.S. Senate debate in July

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Virginia Democratic U.S. Senator Mark Warner and Republican candidate Ed Gillespie will debate on July 26 during the Virginia Bar Association’s 124th annual summer meeting at the Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.

The debate will be moderated by Judy Woodruff, PBS NewsHour co-anchor and managing editor, and PBS will livestream the debate. The candidate campaigns have agree to the debate format: it will consist of opening and closing statements, candidate-to-candidate questions, and moderator questions.

Ed Gillespie accepts invite to ‘The People’s Debate’

By Lynn R. Mitchell

Ed Gillespie has accepted an invitation to participate in “The People’s Debate,” sponsored by The League of Women Voters of Virginia and AARP Virginia on Oct. 13 in Richmond. The debate will be held at the WCVE/PBS studio in Richmond and be televised across the Commonwealth.