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The GOP presidential candidates faced off last night in a national security debate. Here are the winners and losers:

BIG WINNER: Newt Gingrich:?He had strong answers on Iran and the Patriot Act ? and managed a strong defense of his position on illegal immigration.

On Amnesty, he provided an answer that appeals to moderates, and invoked Reagan to temper any qualms that the Tea Party and others may have. It will be an issue with some of the base, but it’s a way for Gingrich to pick up some of Romney’s moderate supporters.

Winner: Jon Huntsman: He had his best debate to date. He landed a big blow to Mitt Romney on Afghanistan, showing how much damage he can do if he is taken seriously in these debates.

Even:?Mitt Romney: Yet again, he didn’t seal the deal. He had a rough time on the immigration question ? going to the right of Gingrich, but trying to avoid his scenario of grandmothers being separated from their grandchildren. He also had trouble with Afghanistan, allowing Huntsman to fluster him. While by no means fatal, tonight was one big missed opportunity.

Even:?Michele Bachmann: She schooled Rick Perry on Pakistan, but didn’t do nearly enough to change the trajectory of her campaign.

Even: Rick Perry: Expectations were absurdly low after his “oops” moment, and he managed to avoid another major gaffe. That said, out of nowhere he called on Leon Panetta to resign as Secretary of Defense. His Pakistan answer needed a lot more work.

Loser: Herman Cain: He missed an opportunity to bounce back from his Libya gaffe, but had a strong answer on immigration and the threat of terrorists on the Mexican border. But on Iran, he seemed unprepared yet again, repeating that the country is in a “very mountainous region,” and saying that is why a military strike on the country’s nukes would not work.

Loser: Ron Paul: He brought up Timothy McVeigh, but seemed to forget that he killed 168 Americans, and he also confused al-Shabab and al-Qaeda. He had some strong answers that will appeal to libertarians ? but he only lessened his appeal to everyone else.

Loser:?Rick Santorum:?He called Africa a country. Enough said.?

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/winners-and-losers-of-tonights-gop-national-security-debate-2011-11

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SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? Republican candidates will challenge President Barack Obama on foreign policy, an issue they have given scant attention in recent weeks, in a debate Saturday night.

Consumed by events on the home front, two contenders are fighting to mend damaged campaigns. Texas Gov. Rick Perry blundered in a debate Wednesday, when he couldn’t remember one of the Cabinet departments he has proposed to abolish. Rival Herman Cain is battling a series of sexual harassment allegations.

Their troubles leave Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, in a stronger position. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has also seen his fortunes improve, reflected in a CBS News poll released Friday that had him tied with Romney for No. 2 behind Cain.

Also onstage will be Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman. The volatile GOP field has seen contenders surge ahead in national polls only to fall behind.

When they have confronted foreign policy, Republicans have criticized President Barack Obama over his efforts to close out the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, his support for NATO’s intervention in Libya and his treatment of China’s currency, among other issues.

The Obama camp believes foreign policy offers a strong platform for the president, who left Friday on a nine-day tour of the Asia-Pacific region.

Perry, an early leader in national polls, had been struggling to prove to supporters he could still win the nomination. Then he froze onstage Wednesday, when he drew a blank on the third federal agency he would kill as president.

“The third agency of government I would do away with ? the Education, the Commerce. And let’s see. I can’t. The third one, I can’t,” Perry said. “Oops.”

He spent the time since doing damage control with a blitz of interviews and a cameo on David Letterman’s show, where he delivered a Top 10 list of excuses for his mistake. (“One was the nerves, two was the headache and three was, and three, uh, uh. Oops.”)

Cain, in his home state of Georgia early Saturday, has struggled to explain a joke about Anita Hill he made in reference to the sexual harassment allegations that have rocked his campaign. During a stop Thursday in Michigan, Cain asked, “Is she going to endorse me?” when a supporter mentioned Hill, who accused Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment during his confirmation hearings.

The quip drew criticism from Gingrich, who said Friday on Laura Ingraham’s radio show that Cain shouldn’t joke about harassment.

Gingrich was campaigning Saturday at nearby Furman University and opening his campaign’s South Carolina headquarters. The latest to benefit from party conservatives’ quest for an alternative to Romney, Gingrich is rebuilding his campaign after his top aides quit in the spring and now has nine paid staffers in South Carolina.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111112/ap_on_el_pr/us_republicans_debate

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COMMENTARY | Tonight was Newt Gingrich’s night in the GOP presidential debate. He often glowered severely from the stage toward his questioners like a frustrated schoolmaster throughout the evening and at one point sarcastically retorted “Really?” when asked to explain how the media gets economic issues wrong.

He made quick, energetic points that addressed issues and questions in a clear and understandable manner. Gingrich also did so in such a way that gave the reddest of meat to the base. The strategy of questioning the questioners and their premises continues to work for him and tonight it pushed him close to, if not into, the top tier.

The rest of the field essentially maintained the status quo … except for Rick Perry. When asked to name the three federal departments he would cut, he could only name two. The silence and his blank expression probably only lasted 4 seconds — but it felt like four years. I think tonight was the beginning of the end of the Perry campaign. Regardless of competence, this is not the man Republicans want debating Barack Obama.

Mitt Romney was Mitt Romney — poised, in control of the facts, firm and professional. He is still the front-runner and still almost certain to decisively win the GOP primary here in New Hampshire in January. At one point I had to chuckle when he spoke to the blustering Jim Cramer (whose shtick is better suited to pro wrestling) as if he were a parent dealing with an emotional teenager. “Well, Jim, we can have profits AND help people get jobs. Here’s how profits work …”

The much-anticipated moment where Herman Cain was confronted regarding the sexual harassment allegations was very brief and worked well for him this evening. The crowd was clearly behind him and even booed the questioners (as did I) for attempting to prolong the topic by trying to drag Romney through the sludge.

The rest of the candidates did not have any breakthrough moments either way — although Rick Santorum is notably more appealing when he is not beating to death the morality angle. Apparently solid economic policy discussions don’t lend themselves well to a whiny tone and it’s too bad he didn’t use this persona from the start of the campaign.

Line of the night goes to Cain: “Tax codes do not raise taxes — politicians do.”

This is still clearly Romney’s race to lose.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111109/us_ac/10403787_gingrich_surges_romney_maintains_perry_fumbles

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