# A Trump debate? Are you shitting me? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [December 6, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213 "2011-12-06T01:36:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/1 "2011-12-06T01:36:11Z")
My estimation of Huntsman and Paul went up by several notches after their refusal to participate in such an obviously masturbatory exercise by Trump. And it went even further down for Newt with his visit with Trump today to suck up to him. What a couple of tools. People can’t possibly think that Gingrich is a good choice for any office above that of meter maid. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/2 "2011-12-06T01:44:45Z")
When I first heard (I actually skimmed a line or two on Yahoo News) about this, I assumed it was an Onion story. Good ol’ Republican “Family Values” on full display with Donald and Newt… ---
**Author:** ![Untoward\_Parable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/51bf81/32.png) [@Untoward\_Parable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Untoward_Parable)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/3 "2011-12-06T07:42:24Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > When I first heard (I actually skimmed a line or two on Yahoo News) about this, I assumed it was an Onion story. > > Good ol’ Republican “Family Values” on full display with Donald and Newt… You can do whatever you want with women as long as you’re a white male Christian republican. We understand that good white Christian republican men work hard, and of course the stress causes them to falter on occasion, and then pull back from it, and falter again and pull back… ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/4 "2011-12-06T18:05:20Z")
It’s shit, but no, they’re not shitting you. EDIT: The main issue here is that Trump has a book to sell and needs the publicity. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/5 "2011-12-06T18:09:56Z")
What about his TeeVee show? He’s basically turning the Republican debates into _The Apprentice II: Who Wants to be the President?_ ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/6 "2011-12-06T18:11:53Z")
And, he says he might run as an independent. I know he’s just a publicity whore, and probably won’t run, but still. Just when one ring of the circus (Cain) exists, another one shows up to take its place! I wish the World Cup was on or something so the rest of the world would be too distracted to see this nonsense. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/7 "2011-12-06T18:28:28Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > What a couple of tools. People can’t possibly think that Gingrich is a good choice for any office above that of meter maid. I’ve been told that Gingrich is no joke candidate so who am I to exercise my judgement and say that he is. ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/8 "2011-12-06T21:40:19Z")
They also said that about Palin, Trump, Bachmann, Perry, and Cain. Just more proof that conservatives don’t get humor and can’t identify a joke. See: Miller, Dennis. ---
**Author:** ![Damuri\_Ajashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/9 "2011-12-06T22:09:59Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > And, he says he might run as an independent. I know he’s just a publicity whore, and probably won’t run, but still. Just when one ring of the circus (Cain) exists, another one shows up to take its place! > > I wish the World Cup was on or something so the rest of the world would be too distracted to see this nonsense. 🙂 I have family all over the world and they are comparing this years Republican nomination process to the 2008 Democratic nomination process and they think there is a difference in the quality of the candidates fielded by the two parties. Yeah and I wish they were all paying attention to something else. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/10 "2011-12-06T22:47:01Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > It’s shit, but no, they’re not shitting you. EDIT: The main issue here is that Trump has a book to sell and needs the publicity. Trump’s motives I can understand. What’s Gingrich’s excuse for agreeing to join the circus and GIVE Trump the publicity he craves? Maybe Trump will make the candidates paint his house. That would be fun. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/11 "2011-12-06T23:07:03Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Trump’s motives I can understand. What’s Gingrich’s excuse for agreeing to join the circus and GIVE Trump the publicity he craves? He’s desperate for votes and money and he has no sense of shame, so it’s a very natural fit. You almost have to admire the brazenness with which he proposed apprenticeships for poor children - you know, the kind Charles Dickens might’ve written about. Mitt Romney turned the debate down, and I don’t say this kind of thing often, but good for Mitt Romney. ---
**Author:** ![CJJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecc23a/32.png) [@CJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/12 "2011-12-06T23:33:23Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Trump’s motives I can understand. What’s Gingrich’s excuse for agreeing to join the circus and GIVE Trump the publicity he craves? Unlike nearly every other candidate in the field, these two guys have culture-war cred that the base just loves. Specifically, they say things out loud that really piss off your average liberal (or at least the hardcore Tea Party’s impression of what a liberal is). This is what the base wants. They aren’t really motivated by policy, and they support free-market capitalism only inasmuch as they believe liberals are all communists/socialists (i.e. like wearing your favorite team jersey). Having Newt and The Donald sped a couple of hours riffing on liberals and delivering a bounty of well-constructed zingers will be pure gold for Newt’s campaign–he should make it a touring event. Sure it’s a joke, but the base doesn’t know that; having Jon Stewart go apoplectic over this isn’t taken as legitimate criticism–it’s proof they’re “getting under the skin” of the eeeeeeeeevil libruls. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/13 "2011-12-06T23:42:18Z")
> [@](#): > > I’ve been told that Gingrich is no joke candidate so who am I to exercise my judgement and say that he is. Gingrich is not a joke candidate. He’s a serious candidate who just happens to be seriously terrible. A joke candidate would be someone who’s never held any public position who draws his deepest inspirations from children’s cartoons and bases his tax policies on video games. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2011, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/14 "2011-12-06T23:47:35Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Mitt Romney turned the debate down, and I don’t say this kind of thing often, but good for Mitt Romney. Ah, that’s a new twist. So no Romney, no Huntsman, no Paul. So it will be Gingrich, Santorum, Bachman? What about heavy hitters like Vern Wuensche, Fred Karger or Tom Miller? Any work on their attendance? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/15 "2011-12-07T00:14:18Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Ah, that’s a new twist. So no Romney, no Huntsman, no Paul. > > So it will be Gingrich, Santorum, Bachman? > > What about heavy hitters like Vern Wuensche, Fred Karger or Tom Miller? Any work on their attendance? Maybe Joe The Plumber and Joe Miller (Idiot-AK) also. Perhaps they could dig up Harold Stassen and prop him up behind a podium. He could be the front runner in no time. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/16 "2011-12-07T00:22:32Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > So it will be Gingrich, Santorum, Bachman? > > What about heavy hitters like Vern Wuensche, Fred Karger or Tom Miller? Any work on their attendance? Man, what do Buddy Roemer and Gary Johnson have to do to get noticed? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/17 "2011-12-07T01:47:50Z")
Last I checked, Gingrich’s campaign war chest had negative money in it. When you got nuthin’, you got nuthin’ to lose. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/18 "2011-12-07T01:55:06Z")
It’s really nothing but a glorified episode of _The Apprentice_; except this time Trump is choosing the “winner” of the debate to be his choice for endorsement for the Republican nomination. Trump says he will choose a candidate to endorse _after_ the “debate”. So these fools that are taking part in this reality show must suck up and kiss as much Trump-ass as possible, in order to secure his _at best_ worthless, potentially detrimental endorsement. Yeah, that seems like a win-win. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/19 "2011-12-07T02:39:46Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Trump says he will choose a candidate to endorse _after_ the “debate”. Oh, no. No, not really. No. This is my country they’re humiliating, damn it. This is worse than a zombie apocalypse. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2011, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213/20 "2011-12-07T03:23:25Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > It’s really nothing but a glorified episode of _The Apprentice_; except this time Trump is choosing the “winner” of the debate to be his choice for endorsement for the Republican nomination. Trump says he will choose a candidate to endorse _after_ the “debate”. Just like Dick Cheney chose a running mate for Bush the Younger. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-trump-debate-are-you-shitting-me/605213.md?page=2)