The drive down to Panama City wasn’t something I’d been looking forward to after a long school day, but I found it somewhat invigorating. Even the thundertsorm I passed through served somehow as an energizing commune with nature. Sustained with classic rock and a bag of goodies from McDonald’s, I was refreshed when I arrived in old downtown Panama City.
Parking was easy to find behind the Martin Theatre. Supporters of Barbara Olschner and Steve Southerland greeted people with stickers. I accepeted all stickers and put them on my program. I politely tried to say that I was, um, non-partisan for the evening.
I ventured into the small room where the Bay County GOP had sent up meet and greets. Some local candidates had also set up along with the congressional hopefuls making the room hard to navigate at times.
David Scholl and his wife, Shelley greeted well wishers at one corner of the room. They both looked at home in a public setting – something that will be a positive on the campaign trail.
I looked for Eddie Hendry, but the people at his table said that he’d left to prepare for the debate. I told them to say hello for me as I’ve spoken with Eddie on the phone before.
Steve Southerland never stopped smiling during the entire evening. It’s not faked nor contrived. Southerland is the happy warrior. His entire family was there and met him together after the debate was over at the stage.
It looked like there wasn’t room for Barabara Olschner to put up a table, but this didn’t seem to hinder her as she easily worked the room. Olschner conveyed genuine warmth and was approachable. She took lots took of photos with people. She had many supporters there wearing white “Barbara for Congress” stickers.
Ron McNeil, I did not know. He didn’t have a table. He doesn’t have a web site. I had no idea that the tall, friendly fellow that was going around to shake everyone’s hand was McNeil. That would change.
This was my first live debate and I found it much easier to make observations about candidates than I ever have before. When making the decision to go to the debate, I had no preconceived notions about how I’d blog about it. But I came away wanting to write about my impressions of each candidate. Some of it will be good. Some critical. The order they come is not meant to imply anything.
Eddie Hendry: I saw two Eddie Hendry for Congress signs on US 98 on the way to the debate. His were the only ones. Along with his TV ad buys throughout the district, Hendry is using traditional media to advance his campaign. The Taylor county native has an advantage of name notoriety as he was the last candidate to run against Boyd and has likely been preparing for the run since his 2008 defeat at the hands of Boyd. Hendry had many supporters in attendance, was prepared, and clearly wants this badly. Maybe too badly. Of the five candidates, Hendry seemed least at ease. Perhaps it was unfortunate to have the center podium. His passion certainly appeals to some voters and likely scored points with some as he nearly broke down when he spoke of his own child in responding to a question about Roe v. Wade. Hendry had one of the best lines of the evening when he said “the greatest threat to our national security is Barack Obama.” Still, I would have liked to have seen Hendry pressing the flesh a little more. For voters that look for an unyielding conviction of conservative principles, Hendry is appealing. He cleverly invoked his Citadel Bulldogs into a statement at the end. More than any other candidate though, Hendry seems best equipped to play political hardball. The race could come to that at some point.
Ron McNeil: Talk about a throw back. The oldest of the candidates and least tech savvy…… Check that. McNeil probably couldn’t care less about technology. No web site either. He ended his evening telling the audience that they can probably tell he doesn’t need a teleprompter or a poll to do anything. The only candidate to speak off-the cuff, his responses were choppy. But was McNeil was clearly the evening’s entertainment. A delightful combination of Fred Thompson, Jerry Clower and Robert D. Raiford, McNeil was a hoot. He had a down home southern colloquialism for everything. Like everyone else in the room – including the other candidates – I couldn’t wait for McNeil’s takes. While McNeil is sadly a candidate of days gone by and won’t be winning the primary, his appearances on the stump will be worthy of admission.
Barbara Olschner: I felt going in that Olschner was the candidate that had the best opportunity last night to gain some ground. She did. As compared to the rest of the candidates, Olschner did not need to engage in hyperbole and conservative platitudes to be effective. When the other candidates responded to a question about whether or not Roe v Wade was wrong with passionate Christian values, Olschner simply said, “yes.” This may not be emphatic enough for some pro-life voters in the district, but her one-word response might have provided the evening’s one moment of distinction between the candidates. She was at ease responding to questions and stayed consitent to her message of keeping priorities to the economy and national security. She came back to that theme more than once. Her response to a question about “don’t ask, don’t tell” was to say that the issue was “silly” in a manner which highlighted her ability to see the big picture.
Steve Southerland: Southerlands ads convey that clear “likability factor” that is always a winner with voters. And he is likable and may have a leg up in this area. It’s genuine and his success thus far is justified. Southerland was at his best in his opening and closing remarks. He’s able to energize voters and might prove be the race’s best stump speaker. Southerland, though, did not do as well with some of the questions. He didn’t seem as prepared as he should have on health care and stumbled on a question about immigtration. But Southerlands unique people skills were on display and he was clearly at ease on stage. Southerland wasn’t affraid to let everyone see how funny he felt McNeil was.
David Scholl: Scholl’s an extremely bright and passionate candidate. Scholl was prepared to respond to anything and was armed with facts and particulars. There is no doubting his conservative bonifides, but may have gone over the top a bit with his comments about Barack Obama being an American. It brought some shudders in the audience. This could hurt him later on. Scholl often appeared to be trying to get as many things as he could into his responses to win debate points. If we were scoring this as a debate, he would have. But beacuse there were no rebuttals during the evening, scoring debate points last night is irrelevant. During future debates, however, when candidates are attempting to distinguish themselves, Scholl will be effective. The Air Force Academy graduate smiled easily during the evening, enjoyed being with the other candidates and liked meeting voters.
The night did not serve as a debate. Moderator Doc Washburn did an excellent job and had estanblished 30 second response rules. They weren’t needed last night. There were no rebuttals or disagreements among candidates. Lots of red meat for the partisan republican crowd was served up by all. I think that Hendry, Scholl and Olschner were willing and had prepared to go more give and take, but the evening never went in that direction. Southerland benefited by not having to take on other candidates as he is the perceived frontrunner. McNeil, we can only hope, has a future as a conservative commentator. Can’t wait to hear him with on the radio with Rick and Bubba.
Posted under FLORIDA #2
This post was written by bobsikes on May 19, 2010
