Thursday's South Carolina GOP Presidential Candidates Debate

I dutifully watched some of last Thursday night's Fox News South Carolina GOP presidential candidates' debate. To be honest, those events tend to be better viewed in retrospect, or through the comments of pundits in attendance.

Most of the time, the candidates you know say pretty much what you expect, so there aren't any surprises. For me, there was some value in quickly getting a measure of some lesser-known candidates, such as Gary Johnson. I know he's a former governor. But hearing some of his views, as he packed them, off-point, into his rushed response to some question, I immediately dismissed him as too lightweight and fringe in his views.

Ron Paul was, well, Ron Paul. What more do you need to say? If you want a modern reincarnation of George Washington, well, you know who to vote for.

Of course, the major story looming over the debates was the missing potential, undeclared candidates- Gingrich, Palin and Trump. And Romney, who is declared, but evidently taking a page, of sorts, from Ronald Reagan's playbook.

Rick Santorum, from what I heard of his remarks, reinforced my pre-existing opinion. He's a nice guy who seems to be running primarily on a right-of-center "family values" agenda. I'm not particularly trusting of either party telling me what social values to espouse, outside of generally keeping government out of legislating any more of them. So while Santorum seems intelligent, earnest and honest, I just don't see what he offers that I would want, and can't find in another, more marketable candidate.

Besides, there's a strong whiff of religiosity in Santorum's remarks that always leaves me suspicious.

The guy who I actually found pretty interesting was Herman Cain. Granted, he, too, has some annoying quirks. Some of his reactions were a little stiff and out of touch. But his good attributes include business accomplishments, a lack of professional political careerism, and being black.

How incredible would it be to see Wonderboy facing a black GOP presidential candidate?

Meanwhile, I'm quickly coming to the view that, no matter who the GOP nominates, I'll vote for her/him, simply because s/he can't be worse than what we've got. Little as I think of Romney for his Massachusetts healthcare plan, I'm not an idiot. He'd at least be a firebreak for current federal spending and fiscal recklessness.

And having the presidential veto and Supreme Court nominations in GOP hands is worth a lot.