I’ve made it a point to watch every single Republican candidate debate this season, generally time-shifting with the DVR, but still managing to view it the same evening. I wasn’t able to do so for the GOP CNN Florida debate on Thursday January 23, 2012, but had allotted time on Friday evening for the entire program.
I wanted to watch the debate fresh, but the desire to learn of the latest buzz on the was too great. Most reports focused on the tense “Yes you did” / “No I didn’t” sparring between Romney and Gingrich. Many didn’t mention Ron Paul at all other than to say he attended. It was implied that he was a non-factor and should be ignored.
The media did it to me again.
I was deflated - utterly letdown by the lack of coverage. I had hoped that this would be the day when all of America woke up to the common sense lessons in liberty from Dr. Paul. But, there was nothing. I didn’t even feel like watching the debate. It just sounded like more bickering about whether a quote in a television advertisement was correct, taken out-of-context or completely false.
But, after intensely following the political season over the past year, I realized I had stepped directly into their trap. This has been the playbook: ignore, attack, ignore. The media blackout is back on. Supporters need to realize that the media will never warm to Ron Paul. They have their choice of several “status quo” candidates, which is enough to fill their sites with new material.
As one should whenever possible, go to the source material and decide for yourself. I almost missed out on another excellent debate performance. Please watch for yourself and make your own conclusions.