On September 27th all the Republican candidates except Donald Trump, got together for a debate. The candidates mostly agreed on the big issues, so it was tough for them to separate themselves from one another. Trying too hard to stand out had the effect of sometimes making things come across as a little silly.
But I was fascinated by the questions. I realized how different these questions were compared to those asked of Kennedy and Nixon in 1960, or Ford and Reagan in 1980. These 2023 questions were tinged with desperation. The questions were different because America is different.
In the setup to one question, Fox News host Dana Perino said, âToday, our nation is drowning in division and incivility.â In another, she said, âCrime⊠has been a horrendous problem in our country.â In asking a question of Governor Nikki Haley, she said, âAmerican students⊠are in academic trouble. They have lower scores in math and reading. Thereâs chronic absenteeism. Thatâs at record highs. And this has even been called âeducation homicide.ââ In another education question, she said, âOver 10.7 million students in over 18,000 public schools nationwide have the ability to change their identity without parental notification…
