HANOVER, N.H. — A newly invigorated Mitt Romney was the central focus of the Republican presidential debate in New Hampshire on Tuesday, hours after the former Massachusetts governor received a major endorsement from New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
While Romney has maintained his position as the frontrunner, Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, jumped into second place in several recent polls. Cain’s rise followed several shaky debate performances by Texas Gov. Rick Perry, which led to doubts about his position as the Romney alternative.
Reflecting that shift, Cain was seated next to Romney at the debate table, while Perry was moved to one side.
Romney was the first to hit out at President Barack Obama during the debate, echoing comments made during his appearance with Christie earlier in the day, in which he said the president was too inexperienced when he took office.
“I’d be prepared to be a leader,” Romney said. “You can’t get the country to go in the right direction and get Washington to work if you don’t have a president who is a leader.”
Romney also fielded sharp questions about his position on the US financial bailout of 2008.
“No one likes the idea of a Wall Street bailout,” Romney said. And while Romney said he disagreed with propping up the US auto industry or bailouts of individual institutions, he said action was necessary to prevent an economic meltdown.
“My experience tells me that we were on the precipice” of a complete financial collapse, Romney said, although he said the action taken was not perfect or implemented well.
Cain agreed with Romney, adding, “The way it was administered was where it got off track.”
Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman was the first to criticize Cain’s so-called 9-9-9 tax plan — a nine percent tax on income, corporate profits and sales.
“I think it’s a catchy phrase — I thought it was the price of a pizza when I first heard it,” Huntsman said, getting a laugh from the audience. “We need something that’s doable, doable, doable.”
“9-9-9 will pass,” Cain retorted. “It didn’t come off a pizza box, no. It was well studied and well developed.”
Later, Romney also appeared to make a dismissive reference to his rival’s tax plan.
“Simple answers are always very helpful but oftentimes inadequate,” Romney said.
The topic of China elicited some sharp differences between Romney and Huntsman.
Romney pointedly accused China of currency manipulation, saying past US leaders were “played like a fiddle by the Chinese.”
“We’ve got to call cheating for what it is,” he said.
“If you start slapping penalties on them … you’re going to get the same thing in return,” Huntsman responded. “You’re going to find yourself in a trade war very, very quickly.”
“We have no choice. We need to find common ground,” Huntsman added.
They spoke just hours after the US Senate voted to pass a bill hitting back at Beijing for its alleged currency manipulation — sparking a furious reaction from China, AFP reported. China said the move broke World Trade Organisation and could set off a trade war.
Perry played a less prominent role in Tuesday’s debate than in his previous appearances. During the debate, he teased the release of an energy plan he said he will be unveiled over the next three days. He defended not releasing the details during the debate, saying, “Mitt has had six years to be working on a plan,” Perry said. “I’ve been in this for about eight weeks.”
Unlike previous debates, where the White House contenders were lined up behind podiums, this most recent debate at Dartmouth College in Hanover featured the eight candidates seated around a table, which moderator Charlie Rose hoped would foster more in-depth conversation.
Meanwhile, on the campus lawn outside the debate center, an eclectic group of protesters offered a reminder of the “Occupy Wall Street” demonstrations taking place in New York City and elsewhere throughout the country — which was another early topic of questioning at the event.
“Virtually every American has a reason to be angry,” Gingrich said, when asked about the protests. He went on, however, to argue sharply that politicians should be the target of anger rather than the business community.
He had harsh words for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who he claimed was making bailout decisions in secret. “Bernanke has in secret spent hundreds of billions of dollars bailing out one group and not bailing out another group,” Gingrich said. “It is corrupt and it is wrong for one man to have that kind of secret power,” he said.
The debate was co-sponsored by Bloomberg News, The Washington Post and WBIN-TV.