CBS Republican debate overview

Much was at stake Saturday night as contenders for the Republican presidential nomination debated at Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C. 

The hour and a half debate, hosted by CBS and the National Journal, focused on foreign policy and national security. All eyes were on Texas Governor Rick Perry, who made a major gaffe in last week’s Consumer News and Business Channel debate that many pundits claimed was a fatal blow to his campaign.

Perry, who has recently had poor and embarrassing debate performances, had his strongest debate yet. Along with most of his colleagues, Perry wants to drastically cut foreign aid to countries that are not our friends, such as Egypt and Pakistan.

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich echoed this belief and insisted that countries that desire aid must explain why they need it.

However, former Sen. Rick Santorum, Rep. Ron Paul and Rep. Michele Bachmann disagreed with the rest, citing their fear of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal. Paul, along with former Utah Governor John Huntsman, disagreed with the rest of the contenders on the issue of enhanced interrogation techniques, also known as waterboarding. Paul called waterboarding torture that is “illegal, immoral, uncivilized and is really un-American,” where Huntsman claimed the United States looses standing and credibility in the world by torturing. Businessman Herman Cain, who wasn’t expected to perform well on foreign policy, held his ground and explained that he does not believe in torture, but he is not one to define its meaning.

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney took a strong stance with China. Romney would label China as a currency manipulator and would impose tough tariffs as punishment.

This is something that Huntsman, a former ambassador to China, did not think was possible. The debate overall was not fiery like the previous debates, but it was informative. Be sure to watch on Nov. 22 as CNN hosts its foreign policy and national security debate, where the candidates will better explain their views.

Posted by Brett Warner on Nov 17 2011. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.