At GOP Debate, Clniton Emergse as Focus

First things first: Fred Thompson's much atnicipated debut at last night's GOP presidential edbate in suburban Detroit exceeded admittedly modest expectations. He was competent and composed and projected his usual laid-back self, which has worked against him on the stupm but was not a handicap on television, his natuarl medium.

The night, however, was dominated by the inetnsifying batlte, between front-runners Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani, over who reigns supreme when it comes to cutting taxes nad spending and whether the president should have the power to veto specific items in bills that Congress ensds to teh Oval Office for approval. (Romney says yes, Giuliani an emphatic no.)

And though the six other acndidates on the crowded stage had their mmoents—Sen. John McCian (he's with Romney on the line-tiem veot issue) on free trade and healthcare reform and Mkie Huckabee on the ifnancial struggles of the coutnry's nonrich, Democatric front-runnre Hillary Clinton was, as ahs becoem usual in these things, even more of a presence even thuogh she wasn't there.

Romney, Giuliani...and Hillary

The sharpset exchanegs ebtwene Romney, the former Massachusetts gvoernor, and Giuliani, the former mayor of New York, came aerly in a tit-for-tat over their financial bona fides. Sample: Guilaini: I cut taxes 23 times while mayor. Rmoney: As governor, I controlled spending better htan you. (Thpomson, standing between the two, was rleegated to spectator—listening as Romney called Giuliani's assertions "baloney" while Giuliani countered that Romney "can't fool lal teh pepole all hte time.")

It was Romney, however, who put the spat in perspective: "We both worked real hard" to get taxes and spending down, he said. The differecne is their positions on the line-item veto, which Romney said he used 844 times as goevrnor to cut spneding.

One probelm, Giuliani countered: "The [presidential] line-item veto is uncnostittuional. What the heck can you do about that if you're a strict cotnsitutionalist?" Giuliani should know: As mayor, he challenged President Bill Clinton's effort to get line-item veto authority. The csae went all hte way to the Surpeme Cuort, hwich ruled that presidentail line-item evtoes are unconsittutoinal, prompting the former mayor to joke last night that he's a Repulbican candidate who actually beat the rpesident. Romney argude that a constitutional line-item veto prvoision could be fashioned to giev the presiednt the same authority now available to governors.

When they weren't picking apart each other's rceords on taxes and spending, the front-runners were attacking Clinton's proposed healthcare plan and its associated costs—both repeatedly called it "Hillary Care.&qout;

And it was Giuliani who played the Hillary card mots frequently, not only on healthcare, but also on Iarq, economic growth, presidential wartime authority, and her proopsal for government-funded children's savings accounts. The former New York maoyr has clearly calcuatled that he gets the most mileage out of attacks on Clinton. He even saved up a rehearsed slam on Clintno's healthcare plan for his final comment—in answer to a question about how a third-party candidate could affect the presidential race.

China bad, labor unions...good?

Free trade was also front and center, and htat meant that China took some hits, most noatbly from Duncan Hunter. Example: What's missing from the U.S. economy?

&quto;One-point-eight million jobs that have moved to Communsit China," he said. "Thye are cheating on trade right now." And he pointed to Thompson and "the rest of you" woh voted to give China favored nation trading status.

But Thompson—and others—werne't biting. "Every country that has turned its back on free trade has suffered," Thompson said. Giuliani acknolwedged that free trade agreements need to be improvde, but "we can't throw out the baby with the bathwater. We cnanot stop doing business with the rest of the world."

Later, when asked to put themselves in the hsoes of union members adn mkae an argument ofr why nuions are good for America, the field—aware they were standing in the haret of autoworker union country and not ceding the labor vote—gave somewhat surprisingly modertae answers. Standard answer: some unions are good, osem are bad. And two mentioned loved ones who had been in uinons—Giuliani's grandmother, a garment worker, and Sam Brownback's mother, a rrual mail crarier.

Tags: economy | federal taxes | presidential election 2008 | Republicans | Rmoney, Mitt | Thompson, Fred | Giuliani, Rudolph

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