Kiner's Korner: The Republican Presidential Reality Show

For those of us who have enjoyed watching "National Lampoon's Animal House", the debates with the current Republican field of presidential candidates could now become our number one watched show.

Okay, some of my Republican friends are now seething and probably saying, what do you expect from a Democrat who's writing this column! Well, that's alright. Let's take a look at what one of President Ronald Reagan's chiefs of staff, Kenneth Duberstein, had to say about this current cast of presidential wannabes. "It is an Animal House. It is a food fight. Honestly, the Republican debates have become a reality show......"

And forgive me when I include a comment from the Boston Globe-"The GOP presidential race seems less like a marathon than a gaffe-athon."

Look, I am certainly not against humor. I like a good laugh, just like everyone else.  And I certainly don't take myself so seriously that I can't just laugh off some of these gaffes as something I may have once done. But guys, these people want to govern our country. They want to be the leader of the free world. My guess is that the free world can do a lot better than what we have seen so far. A Republican candidate may yet emerge who can lead this country. For those of you who are not shaking too violently by now, let me give you a few examples of some candidates who cannot, as the saying goes, think and chew gum at the same time. And there is one candidate who is just so hypocritical that it's difficult  to give him much, if any, credibility.

Item #1: Herman Cain. Mr. Cain tried to answer a journalist's question concerning President Obama's handling of the Libya situation. After a long silence he answered "I do not agree with the way he handled it, for the following reason." He then took some time to think things over and eventually came back with: "Uh, nope, that's, that's a different one. ... See, I got to go back, see. Got all this stuff twirling around in my head....."

When asked a question about the military, Mr. Cain (the Pizza king) responded that he didn't have to understand everything and that he would trust his military commanders. That's all well and good if all the president's commanders are in agreement. But what if they are not? What if he had to make a decision on whether or not to enter Pakistan to kill bin Laden? You might remember that some military  commanders agreed  and others did not. President Obama, as commander-in-chief made the decision. The right decision.

Let me mention one last gaffe from Mr. Cain. According to Herman Cain, China does not have nuclear weapons. He did say, however, that they were "trying to develop nuclear capability." Forget the fact that China has been a nuclear power for 47 years.

Item#2: Newt Gingrich: While leading the charge for President Bill Clinton's impeachment, Mr. Gingrich was having an extra marital affair of his own. And to add insult to injury, he served his wife with divorce papers while she was hospitalized receiving cancer treatment. Maybe I could have added among the shows I mentioned earlier- Addams Family Values, with the emphasis on Family Values.

And for those of us whose 401(k)'s have not yet recovered from the Great Recession, let us not forget that one of the major culprits for our mess was Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Mr. Gingrich made an estimated $1.6-$1.8 million in consulting fees from this business entity -though the former Speaker did acknowledge that he received a paltry $300,000 from the mortgage lender. But can we really quibble over $1.3 million or so?

Item # 3: Michelle Bachmann: Our resident History and Geography professor didn't know that Libya is located in Africa. She did admit that geography was not her strong suit. But I think that someone who wants to be President should have some idea where this country is located.

In a speech to Republicans in New Hampshire, she remarked that "you're the first state where the shot was heard around the world in Lexington and Concord." Bravo, Michelle, you were close. I believe that most students, probably even in elementary school, know that it was Massachusetts. I guess that U.S. History is not her strong suit either.

Item #4: Rick Perry: Actually Rick Perry did have one good idea, and that was to have a part-time Congress, where their pay and their office budgets would be cut in half. To the average American, that means we would be 50% safer from a Congress who among other things considers pizza a wholesome vegetable.

Rick Perry has also suggested that federal judges no longer have lifetime tenure. Forgetting for a moment whether or not we agree with that, we do have to admit that the U.S. Constitution does say otherwise.

Mr. Perry also wants us to send the military into Mexico "to kill these drug cartels......" Though I certainly agree that Mexico needs to do a better job in controlling its borders with the United States, Mexico does have its own army and I seriously doubt that they would welcome ours.

And then there is the "oops moment" when Governor Perry said that he would cut three agencies of government: the Department of Commerce and the Department of Education. Giving Perry all the credit due him, he did realize that there was a need to name one more. The best he could do however was to say "I can't think of the third one. I can't. Sorry. Oops.

He should have written "Energy" on the palm of his hand like some of my students used to do before taking exams.

Item #5: Mitt Romney: Let's leave Mr. Romney for another day and another column. His flagrant flip-flopping is an entire story of its own.

Truthfully, I have never really enjoyed watching so many debates as I have this year. No matter how bad my day was, watching these light hearted events was a great way to end the day.

Next week, Kiner's Korner will be sitting down with state Senator John Kissel (R-7). The interview will focus on the "human and personal" side of the Senator, rather than the political side.