Ahh, South Carolina. From its racist, lionized politicians to its well-informed citizenry, the Palmetto State is a bastion of a bygone era many of us are happy to have never lived in. At last night's GOP debate in Myrtle Beach, sponsored by FOX News, the candidates pandered mightily to the raucous audience to give them what they wanted: blood. Specifically, sweet, sweet Mormon blood.
The first questions were about Romney's Bain record, and Perry, using his most adorably flawed grammar, attacked Romney for not releasing his tax returns.
Romney would dodge Perry's question, but when asked later by a moderator if he would release the tax returns, he gave a long, uncomfortable answer about "tradition" dictating that he release them in April, presumably after he has sewn up the nomination. By then, people won't really mind a few overseas bank accounts.
Rick Santorum then cornered Romney into a Super PAC corner, forcing him to hilariously deny any knowledge of his Super PAC's goals, and claiming he hasn't spoken with them in months.
Out of Romney's two main rivals in South Carolina, Gingrich and Santorum, it was Gingrich who stood out and brought the loudest cheers. Spurned former NPR corresponded Juan Williams asked Newt if he thought some of his comments about making black children janitors could be perceived as insensitive. "Can't you see that this is viewed, at a minimum, as insulting to all Americans, particularly to black Americans?" Gingrich, seeing the opportunity to stand up to the "liberal" African American on the panel, replies, "No, I don't see that."
Williams pressed him further, mentioning Gingrich's recent chilly reception at a black church, and is booed. "The suggestion you made was about a lack of work ethic…You've called Obama the 'food stamp president.' It sounds as if you are seeking to belittle people."
When in doubt, it never hurts to invoke South Carolina's history of defying the federal government on matters of race. Rick Perry is fantastic at flirting with secession, and fires up the crowd by again deflecting a question from Juan Williams regarding the state's fight to force voters to present a drivers license at the polls. "Are you suggesting on this Martin Luther King, Jr. day that the federal government has no business scrutinizing the voting laws of states where minorities were once denied a right to vote?" Not if they're "at war" with the federal government!
Ron Paul had his usual decent debate performance, Rick Santorum failed to gain any traction with the audience on revised drug sentencing to benefit African Americans, and Romney mistook moose for elk. The mere mention of Mexico was booed. Will one of the candidates bite the head off a bat in the next debate before Saturday's primary? We'll find out on Thursday.
