GOB Debate Highlights

 It's primary season and the Republican party has yet to really narrow down candidates, a move which splits up the party significantly. However, all of this divide makes for an entertaining debate.

One of the most consistent things I observed from the entire debate was that every single candidate felt the need to a) seriously bash on Obama, b) say "when I become President of the United States...," to show off their confidence and c) practically ignore the question asked to bash on someone or endorse themselves for the first minute. I guess this is what it takes to be a Presidential candidate.

The main debate last night was between Trump and Cruz. After claiming that Cruz's "poll numbers have changed, but the constitution has not," he attacked Crux's eligibility to run due to his birth in Canada to an American mother, saying that if he gets the nomination, he may not even be able to run since the Democrats would sue. A little later on, Cruz attacked Trump on his "New York values," claiming that not many Republicans come out of liberal New York. This took a hard hit on Trump, who then went into a story about the strength of the people in New York after the 9/11 terrorists attacks.

After the debate, Trump said: he guesses the "bromance is over" between him and Senator Cruz.

Many minor battles also took the stage last night. Rubio accused Christie of being too liberal by donating to Planned Parenthood and restricting gun control laws, to which Christie claimed was all false. Later into the debate, Rubio swung at Cruz with claims concerning his immigration and trade policies. It seems Rubio is doing his best to put himself out there in the chance that one of his competitor's polls drops. 

In class, we are currently learning about primaries, party conventions, and Presidential campaigning. The debates are a good way for a candidate to publicize themselves and their viewpoints to a vast amount of people at once. Also, polls usually raise or drop after an appearance such as this, which spices things up. However, many of these events have turned almost superficial, especially since they take the questions from facebook, which just doesn't seem professional to me. The content discussed seemed much more personal than political, but I guess much of this is a popularity contest.

Questions:
1)What do you think about these debates in general? Do they accurately represent the policies and personality of the Presidential candidates?
2) Do you think debates help or hurt most participants? Why or why not?
3) Can we blame the media for this "shift" from focusing on politics to bashing on competitors in events such as debates? Or has politics always been like this?