Top O’ the Briefing
Happy Thursday, dear Kruiser Morning Briefing friends. Haggaria was intent on making tie-dyed culottes the official tournament wear of her Jenga and Jell-O club.
I like to take a different approach to my primary debate analysis that will make some of you reject everything I write, and others think that I am the sanest man in the room for doing it this way. Rather than watch and concentrate on the debates, I prefer to monitor the people watching it.
My friend Stephen Green does his famous VodkaPundit Drunkblog for every one of these things, and it’s always more fun paying attention to that than the debate itself. In addition to live tweeting the debates (much of which is shared on the Drunkblog), my colleagues keep a lively back-channel discussion going on Slack. Then there’s Twitter/X itself, where the reaction of conservatives provides a wealth of information about how the debates are actually going.
I do, of course, watch some clips from each debate. Then I judge.
What I concluded after last night was that some of that oft-joked about Trump 4-D chess may be happening here.
Once again, a GOP primary debate was designed to be an ongoing game of “Gotcha!” These dog-and-pony shows have never been designed to highlight differences between the candidates regarding issues that matter to Republican voters, and they seem to be getting worse. The questions are awful, and many seem as if they were scripted by the DNC, even when Fox News hosts the debate.
Fox News has historically been awful at these things. It’s as if the FNC moderators are determined to pretend to be MSNBC Lite in an effort to prove that they don’t actually lean right.
As for the FNC cohost — Univision had ZERO business being at a Republican primary debate. There was absolutely nothing to be gained by including a hostile network.
(Just as I was about to publish the Briefing, Paula posted her column on the utter awfulness of Fox News at the debate.)
The big question then is: Why is the GOP still letting this crap happen?
Let’s look at that. This is all GOP Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel’s doing. The woman with perhaps the worst track record of any GOP chair in history. The party has hemorrhaged governorships and seats in Congress since she’s been in charge.
Who was her most prominent supporter when she was running for a fourth term after presiding over three elections that were unmitigated disasters for the GOP?
Oh yeah, Donald Trump.
At this point, I’m beginning to think that this is all by design. Trump and McDaniel struck a deal: he’d help her reelection bid; she’d set up some of the worst debates in GOP primary history and he’d avoid them. Yes, I believe that he would be opting out even if he didn’t have a big lead in the polls.
This way, the other candidates can endure the pontificating and inane questions from the moderators, none of which will make them look good, and Trump can hit the tanning bed, unscathed.
As conspiracy theories go, this one has merit.
It’s also the only way to make sense of this debate mess without coming to the conclusion that Ronna McDaniel is just ignorant and incompetent.
OK, that theory does have merit too.
Those are my thoughts. We’ll finish with some of VodkaPundit’s Drunkblog thoughts at the end of the debate:
Click the button below to get the Morning Briefing emailed to you every weekday. Have your coffee with me, people. It’s free and it supports conservative media!
The Mailbag of Magnificence contributions can be sent to [email protected].
Everything Isn’t Awful
Siblings.. 😂
🎥 IG: limbewildlifecentre pic.twitter.com/3klw6AbgvW
— Buitengebieden (@buitengebieden) September 27, 2023
PJ Media
Me. Senate Forces Fetterman to Wear Big Boy Pants, Passing a Formal Dress Code
I blame DOCTOR Mama Jill. CCP Propaganda Has Infected Hundreds of U.S. K-12 Classrooms
After Perfecting Plan to Avoid Falling UP the Stairs, Old Joe Biden Nearly Tumbles DOWN the Stairs
North Korea ‘Expels’ U.S. Soldier Who ‘Defected’
Biden Joined UAW Picket Line Even Though He Himself Crippled the Auto Industry
Violent Repeat Offender Released From Prison Early Is Suspected of Murdering Young Female CEO
James Carville Goes Nuclear on the Radical Woke Left
Don’t Look Now, but a Rebellious NYC Borough Is Winning the Fight Against Biden’s Illegal Hordes
HI-YA! Karate Guys Thwart Would-Be Carjackers in Oakland
Steve Schmidt molests ferrets. Steve Schmidt Finds a New ‘Nazi Dog Whistle’ for Trump
Will Russell Brand Drag Down Rumble in the UK?
Nigerian Bishops Say Anti-Christian Insurgents Have Taken Over Their Country
Democrats Are Evil: 95-Year-Old War Vet Gets the Boot to Make Room for Illegal Immigrants
Sen. Menendez’s Dirty Money Taints Entire Democrat Party
Joe Biden Is About to Be Let Off the Hook for Mishandling Classified Docs
School District Shows Videos Depicting Whites as Mosquitoes
Townhall Mothership
Schlichter. A Nation That Won’t Take Risks Risks Everything
Pump the Brakes! Scientists Say There’s Something Off With These ‘Long COVID’ Studies
Does This Mean Matt Gaetz Will Replace DeSantis As Governor of Florida?
The Devastating Effects Border Patrol Agents Have to Endure Because of Joe Biden’s Border Crisis
New York governor swings and misses at Clarence Thomas over ammo background checks
Cam&Co. California gun owners take aim at new carry crackdown
The commies who oppose gun control…at least for now
Awesome. Bus number sixteen arrives in Los Angeles, courtesy of Governor Abbott in Texas
Ruh-Roh. Newly revealed Hunter Biden message describes ‘family’s brand’ as his ‘only asset’
What can you do if the government declares you dead?
WATCH: Ron DeSantis Absolutely Destroys Univision Debate Moderator for Pushing Kamala Harris Hoax
Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth Commences After Elon Musk Fires Half of His ‘Election Integrity’ Team
WaPo makes startling discovery: Texas has a lot of guns
Harry Sisson’s birthday wish goes HILARIOUSLY awry
Pillow talk screenshot with Matt Gaetz seems to prove Cassidy Hutchinson lied … AGAIN
VIP
Become part of the PJ Media VIP party by subscribing here. Use promo code KRUISERMB to receive a 25% discount. Trust me, we’re having fun over here.
VodkaPundit. Insanity Wrap: The Legal Assault on the Trump Organization Is Far Worse Than You Think
Iran Seizes Upon a Chance to Get Even More Money From Biden
Does Long-Term Bacterial or Viral Infection Cause Alzheimer’s?
You Won’t Believe How Much Shoplifters Cost Retailers Last Year
Will the GOP Debate Tonight Change Anything?
Is Gavin Newsom Being Groomed to Replace Biden on the Ballot?
Around the Interwebz
The Replacements’ ‘Tim: Let It Bleed Edition’ Was Worth the Can’t-Hardly-Waiting: Album Review
Helpful. 8 Historical Methods for Keeping the Dead in their Graves
Bee Me
Looters Completely Ignore Foot Locker Referee Blowing His Whistle https://t.co/Wk6ucPHVG7 pic.twitter.com/ogywpx4oA6
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) September 27, 2023
The Kruiser Kabana
Kabana Gallery
Landscape, 1881 https://t.co/dldv1lMjFj pic.twitter.com/HhEzwenDNx
— Paul Cezanne (@cezanneart) September 27, 2023
Join the conversation as a VIP Member