GOP debates -- enter The Donald
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich, right, waves after meeting with Donald Trump (Dec. 5, 2011) Credit: AP
Voters who lament what seem to have been hundreds of Republican presidential debates in recent months have something new to complain about: not just another debate, but one hosted by Donald Trump.
Yet a funny thing happened on the way to The Donald: The protracted GOP race, complete with all those wearisome debates, endless interviews and overblown speeches, has been pretty effective so far at weeding out candidates who have no business in the White House.
Like Icarus, one hopeful after another has soared into the polling stratosphere, only to melt under the blazing sun of public scrutiny. And the process isn't finished yet. The Donald may even help.
First there was Rep. Michele Bachmann, with her ridiculous comment about vaccination against human papillomavirus causing mental retardation.
Then there was Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who all but called Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke a traitor to his country. During one of the debates -- was it the 83rd? -- Perry could only recall two of the three federal agencies he wants to abolish.
Next to fly high on wings of wax was pizza magnate Herman Cain, who somehow survived his ridiculous 9-9-9 tax plan (which would have radically shifted the tax burden to the shoulders of those least able to bear it) and his foreign-policy gaffes only to succumb to multiple charges of sexual transgression. Cain adamantly denied every allegation, but there were so many accusers that he might have nabbed the nomination had he found a way to win all their votes.
That's not to overlook the presidential flight of The Donald himself, which was so brief and insignificant it might have qualified as a stealth mission but for the clamor he raised over the question of President Barack Obama's nativity.
Now Trump can play a more useful role, by helping voters decide whether Newt Gingrich is another Icarus, flying high on wings of wax, or something else altogether.
Thankfully, nobody is required to watch. And while we might prefer a panel of sober journalists to moderate on Dec. 27, having Donald Trump running a debate sure beats having him running for office.
