Bob McCarty Writes

Republican presidential candidates gathered at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., for the CNN Republican Debate tonight. Below is a quickly-transcribed recap of the first 45 minutes of the debate:

The debate began with the question, “Are Americans better off now than they were eight years ago?”

Mitt Romney refused to fall into Anderson Cooper’s trap by defending the Bush Administration’s record.

John McCain acknowledged that Americans are facing challenges and pretended to be knowledgeable about economics.

Mike Huckabee said, “I don’t think we are,” and went on to blame Congress before describing how ordinary Americans are feeling economic pressures.

Ron Paul asserted that Republicans, elected to bring about change in 1994 and on a non-interventionist foreign policy in 2000, have failed to fulfill their promises.

Romney was asked to describe why he thinks McCain is liberal. In response, he cited a litany of positions the Arizona senator has held (i.e., against drilling in ANWAR, legislation he has supported (i.e., McCain-Feingold and McCain-Lieberman) and endorsements he has received (i.e., New York Times).

McCain countered with comments about Romney’s record on health care, taxes and budget in Massachusetts, all of which were countered — convincingly, I might add — by Romney.

The next question addressed the ongoing public dispute between Rush Limbaugh and Huckabee, who responded by saying he wished Rush loved him as much as he loved Rush. In addition, he chided the moderator by saying he was the genuine conservative on the platform and should be included in any discussion about conservatives in the race.

Romney was asked to reconcile his claim that he is a conservative with his record as governor of Massachusetts. He replied by explaining the process his administration used to define and tackle issues related to the oft-debated state-mandated health care plan.

McCain was asked if he would oppose California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s request to have tougher environmental rules. He responded by talking about climate change and the many ways that doing nothing was much worse than erring on the side of caution — in case climate change is real, rather than a myth.

Romney said he sides with states when it comes to them wanting to protect the environment. At the same time, however, he pointed out that extreme environmental regulation can, when implemented, have the effect of putting a huge tax on all Americans.

Huckabee said he believes Schwarzenegger ought to be able to carry out his plan, explaining that, if it works, other states will copy it and, if it doesn’t work, they won’t — and they’ll appreciate the influx of new jobs and companies moving to their states from California.

Ron Paul started to chime in, said something brief, and was cut off by moderator Cooper. Paul objected, saying he wanted to comment on the issue of conservatism. In reply, Cooper said he would return to Paul for a response on that subject after he tackled two other questions first.

Huckabee was asked to explain his proposal to spend federal highway money to improve interstates differs from big government as epitomized by the Bush Administration’s economic stimulus package. He explained that funds “handed out” via the stimulus package would probably end up purchasing goods from China while funds used to build roads result in tens of thousands of new jobs per mile.

Romney agreed that infrastructure improvements help, but clarified that road programs aren’t the answer. Returning to the stimulus package, he said it has to happen “now” to work while road programs take years to yield an impact.

Ron Paul offered a different view — surprise — saying that either approach (stimulus package or road programs) involves spending money on things the country can’t afford.

McCain was asked about how he would deal with the housing issue (i.e., to help people with bad credit get lower interest rates). His response ignored the fact that most home mortgage borrowers simply took a chance and got bitten in the wallet when the economy changed and they found out their gamble didn’t work. Ending his comments, he said he agreed with Ron Paul that spending must be reigned in. Apparently, they have more in common than just white hair.

Asked why he opposed President George W. Bush’s original tax cut plan, he reverted to the issue of government overspending, ignoring the fact that a tax cut was worthwhile whether or not spending was cut.

Romney countered by saying he thought Ronald Reagan would have backed the Bush tax cut (so much for McCain and his work as a foot soldier in the “Reagan Revolution.” He also said we have to reign in the explosive growth in entitlement programs before being cut off by Cooper.

Huckabee was asked if he would support making changes in the law that would prevent children born in the United States to illegal immigrant parents (a.k.a., “anchor babies”) from becoming citizens automatically. He said the issue is securing the border quickly — within 18 months — and sending people who are here illegally to the “back of the line” so that, when they do get here, they can live “with their heads up” in a dignified manner.

Romney was asked to explain his plan for dealing with illegal immigrants. He said, “No amnesty,” for all and explained how individuals with families would still have to go, but, for instance, some wouldn’t leave until their children finished a school year. His emphasis was upon having people come here legally.

Two more questions followed — one on Sandra Day O’Connor, the other on (something else I can’t recall). Neither was very interesting or impactful; therefore, they aren’t covered here.