CLEVELAND — Ouch.
Here’s how you can sum up the first round of questions to the seven Republicans who didn’t make the cut for the primetime debate here, but participated in a forum earlier in the evening: why the heck are you even running?
“You were in charge of the 12th largest economy in the world,” co-moderator Bill Hemmer said to former Texas Gov. Rick Perry. “And you recently said four years ago, you weren’t ready to for this job. Why should someone vote for you now?”
“After those four years of looking back and being prepared, the preparation to be the most powerful individual in the world requires an extraordinary amount of work,” Perry replied.
Along with Perry, Fox invited six Republicans to debate on-stage four hours before the Republicans polling in the top 10 in national polls debate at the Quicken Loans arena. Some of these candidates aren’t even cracking 1 percent in the polls.
Co-moderator Martha MacCallum asked businesswoman Carly Fiorina: “Carly, you were CEO of Hewlett-Packard. You ran for Senate and lost in California in 2010. This week, you said Margaret Thatcher was not content to manage a great nation in decline, and neither am I. Given your current standings in the polls, is the Iron Lady comparison a stretch?”
“I would begin by reminding people that at this point in previous presidential elections,” Fiorina said, “Jimmy Carter couldn’t win, Ronald Reagan couldn’t win, and neither could have Barack Obama.”
“Sen. Santorum,” Hemmer asked the former Pennsylvania senator, “you won the Iowa caucus and 10 other states. But you failed to meet Mitt Romney for the nomination. And no one here tonight is going to question your conviction or impugn your love for country. But has your moment passed, senator?”
“I would say,” Santorum replied, “the message that got us the win in Iowa and 10 other states against pretty overwhelming odds is the message thats going to deliver us this election.”
Addressing the Louisiana governor, McCallum said: “Bobby Jindal, you’re one of two sitting governors on this stage tonight. But you’re approval numbers at home are in the mid 30s at this point. In a recent poll that showed you in a head to head against Hillary Clinton in Louisiana, she beat you by several points. So if the people of Louisiana are not satisfied, what makes you think the people of this nation would be?”
“I won two record elections,” Jindal responded. “Last time, I was elected governor, won record margin in my state. We got a lot of politicians that will kiss babies, cut ribbons, do whatever it takes to be popular. That’s not why I ran for office.”
“You worked with Democrats and President Obama when it came to climate change,” Hemmer said to Louisiana Sen. Lindsey Graham, “something you know is extremely unpopular with conservative Republicans. How can they trust you based on that record?”
Graham replied: “When I get on the stage with Hillary Clinton, we won’t be debating about the science, we’ll be debating about the solutions.”
McCallum asked former New York Gov. George Pataki: “Gov. Pataki, four years ago this month, you called it quits in a race for the presidency in 2012. But now you’re back. Mitt Romney declined to run because he believed that the party needed new blood. Does he have a point?”
“I think he means somebody who hasn’t been a career politician and has been out of office for a while,” Pataki said.
“You ran for the White House once and lost, you ran for the Senate one time and lost,” Hemmer said to former Virginia Gov. Jim Gilmore. “You haven’t held public office in 13 years. Similar question, is it time for new blood?”
“I think the times are different,” Gilmore said. “I think the times are much more serious because of the Obama-Clinton the United States is moving further and further into a decline. I want to reverse that decline. That’s why I entered this race.”