On Oct. 28, the third Republican Debate will be hosted in Boulder, Colo. Yes, you read that correctly. The debate that will include the likes of the thoughtful Donald John Trump and the tactful preacher, Mike Huckabee, will be, appropriately, held in Boulder (where registered democrats outnumber republicans five to one).
As a conscious conservative, I am dumbfounded as to why the GOP would choose to host what is supposed to be an opportunity for American conservatives to determine who they want representing them come next fall, in a liberal part of Colorado.
They need to stop trying to appeal to the liberal youth, or at least the socialist, Bernie-ist youth. Regarding the latter group, the GOP needs to give up and move on. Does the GOP think that hosting a GOP event in a wildly liberal town will spark new interest? Generate new members? Or perhaps act as an olive branch of understanding in America’s bipartisan war? I can provide no insight. None of the aforementioned will happen, and whoever is in charge of debate organization within the GOP needs an “Apprentice”-like talking to from Donnie.
My criticism of the debate continues with the Boulder reactions to the event. The New York Times printed, “College students who could not get one of these scarce tickets into the debate arena are writing indignant letters and waging protests for a louder voice at the event.”
The purpose and even the nature of a debate, specifically a debate between numerous presidential candidates, is for the voice of those speaking to be heard, not that of the audience. In addition, the article mentions the numerous protests that are going to be going on throughout the day of GOP media invasion—the number of Boulder students and others that will be marching around the streets in search of a camera that will televise their respective moral lessons.
The GOP and its candidates are travelling, perhaps blindly, to a warzone where they will be publically ridiculed and embarrassed. I again fail to comprehend the logic behind this terrible debate placement decision. Youth political positions at this point in the race seem to be dead-set conservatives (that will vote right regardless), informed and intelligent independents (that will probably not be won over in any debate that includes Donald), liberals that have come to terms with Hilary, and liberals that think Bernie has a chance.
Strategically speaking, given the circumstances, why would they enter unchartered territory with the unpinned grenade that is Donald Trump? Perhaps they want to slowly break down the barrier between the liberals and conservatives or expose the Boulder liberals first-hand to the rationale behind conservatism (which, again, will explode in the form of Trump and Huckabee). Whatever the reason for risking independent votes and furthering the gap between the conservatives and liberals, perhaps conservatives will be surprised and finally get a fair representation on the national stage.