"Boring." "Tiring." "Irritating." "Finished." Those are some of the words that GOP pollster Frank Luntz's focus groups of New Hampshire Republicans said on Fox News about Ohio Gov. John Kasich after Tuesday night's GOP presidential debate. Worse for Kasich, Luntz's group gave the governor's qualified support for the 2008 bank bailout (by President George W. Bush) the worst reaction Luntz said he has ever tested since 1996. "He was the biggest liberal on that stage, and that is why everyone was so bothered by that comment," said a woman named Melissa. "That was the most liberal comment I have ever heard on a Republican debate stage."
The bailout comment may have been the moment when Kasich lost the audience, but the focus group had other bones to pick with the Ohio governor. Some called him "contrived," others said he focused on his past accomplishments rather than vision for the future, while many more noted that Kasich kept interrupting other candidates, rudely. When Luntz asked why it was bad for Kasich to interrupt but the debate crowd booed Donald Trump for making the same point about Carly Fiorina, the New Hampshire Republicans said that Trump is a boor and Fiorina has a "target on her head." The focus group also complained that Marco Rubio is talking too much about himself and his family, and Trump attacks other Republicans too much. Luntz's group crowned Rubio and Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) as the night's big winners, and you can watch the spectacle below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How will Trump's megabill affect you?Today's Big Question Republicans have passed the 'big, beautiful bill' through Congress
-
Scientists are the latest 'refugees'In the spotlight Brain drain to brain gain
-
5 dreamy books to dive into this JulyThe Week Recommends A 'politically charged' collection of essays, historical fiction goes sci-fi and more
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US borderSpeed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked callSpeed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side dealThe pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policiesSpeed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities
-
Obama, Bush and Bono eulogize USAID on final daySpeed Read The US Agency for International Development, a humanitarian organization, has been gutted by the Trump administration
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidentsThe Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
Senate advances GOP bill that costs more, cuts moreSpeed Read The bill would make giant cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, leaving 11.8 million fewer people with health coverage
-
Canadian man dies in ICE custodySpeed Read A Canadian citizen with permanent US residency died at a federal detention center in Miami
