GOP Pounded It Out @Myrtle Beach, SC

Last night many of us watched a fiery and entertaining SCGOP debate held in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Many of the TV talking heads labeled last night's affair the best yet. Of the debates I've seen, I agree completely. The candidates went at it, and the moderators let them. The crowd was full of hard-core Republicans who were proud to be there, and even prouder that their state was in the national spotlight. Well done, Myrtle Beach and SCGOP.

The theme of the night was to pounce on front-runner, Mitt Romney... and pounce they did. For instance, Santorum had Romney in a steel-spiked trap regarding the voting rights of felons relating to an ad Romney is running. Santorum had him right where he wanted him, and you could see it in the body language. However, just as Santorum was about to throw a knock-out blow, Gov. Perry belted in loudly, interrupting... and stole the moment. It was a lukewarm topic, for sure, but awesome to watch unfold nonetheless.

Newt went off during the entire night, and played to the crowd in large fashion. He oddly but powerfully captures moments, and audiences continue to soak him up.

Ron Paul probably lost votes last night. Meat-eating Republicans don't want to hear his 'Squeeze the Charmin' foreign policy preachings, and when he stated we should all pay a 0% tax rate, that was "it." This might sound good on a microphone to some folks, but it's just not real. It was a, "C'mon, man" moment.

I'd love to throw my spin on the two hours, and would have a big time showcasing some of the VERY funny Tweets that flowed through the feed, but this would lead to an overwhelmingly long post. In short, if you like politics and policy, and a nice spar, last night's debate was good TV.

Did any of the candidates offer anything new? Not really. Conversely, they continued to talk about past accomplishments and pointed out their opponent's failures. Given the gravity of the situation and atmosphere, this was ok, and better than hearing the mind numbing/time wasting, "I'm conservative. I'm more Reagan." This theater was better than that, and I think we're all glad for it.

Oddly, I began this post fully intending to type about Romney's income tax disclosure situation. Oh well!... I suppose this leaves me with another blog opportunity. I'll take it!

Once again... well done, SCGOP. South Carolina was on a national stage last night, and it turned out to be a hit.