Some Follow-Up Debate Points

Romney: 3 points for saying disaster relief is immoral
Gingrich: 10 points for calling for Communist-like investigations of Muslims
Santorum: 3 points for criminalizing any and all abortions

Nick (Palin) 34
Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Rob (Gingrich) 31
Zivic (Pawlenty) 30
Kaitlin (Santorum) 30
Mandy (Bachmann) 14
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Bernie (Romney) 3
Luke (Huntsman) 2

Debate Full of Analogies But Lacking In Points

Several candidates kicked the can by throwing it under the bus after shoving it down the bus driver's throats, but only two candidates scored points tonight.

Rick Santorum: 1 point for unions, 2 points for Medicare privatization, 3 points for rationing.

Tim Pawlenty: four points for Medicare and Medicaid privatization.

We await the poll winners.

Nick (Palin) 34
Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Zivic (Pawlenty) 30
Kaitlin (Santorum) 27
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Mandy (Bachmann) 14
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Well. Got a little behind on this, but I have a full recap from the last week.

Sarah Palin earns five points for her ridiculous defense of her Paul Revere comments.

Tim Pawlenty earns 12 points for claiming that Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid should end with his "Google test" remark. He also earns two points for claiming that his gigantic tax cuts can increase government revenue by 5 percent annually, an achievement only ever attained with tax increases.

Rick Santorum earns three points for claiming he would seek to criminalize any and all abortions.

Nick (Palin) 34
Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Zivic (Pawlenty) 26
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 21
Mandy (Bachmann) 14
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Palin: Revere Warned the British

Palin earns two points for this nonsensical statement.

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 29
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 14
Zivic (Pawlenty) 12
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Bachmann Calls Obama Socialist Again

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 27
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 14
Zivic (Pawlenty) 12
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Palin Rocks Leather; Pawlenty is Still Boring

Tim Pawlenty earns two points for privatizing Medicare; Sarah Palin earns three "kudos" points for her statement: "I love the smell of those emissions."

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 27
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Zivic (Pawlenty) 12
Mandy (Bachmann) 12
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Pawlenty Endorses Privitization of Medicare, Medicaid

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/tim-pawlenty-if-i-was-presdient-id-sign-the-ryan-plan-into-law.php?ref=fpa

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 24
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 12
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 10
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Bachmann Email Blast Labels Obama as Socialist

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/55675.html#ixzz1NNMdbilT

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 24
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 12
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Gingrich No Longer Discussing Past

Rightly so. No more gotcha questions.

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 24
Rob (Gingrich) 21
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 10
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Palin Rallies; Commissioner Exercises Hidden Powers

Sarah Palin earns two points for blasting the media, two points for "ram down our throats," two points for supporting the privatization of Medicare.

http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/267746/palin-fire-belly-its-there-thats-kind-my-problem

Also, I am granting 5 "kudos" points to Michele Bachmann for claiming that a curse will be placed on the United States because of Obama's Israel-Palestine policies. I am granting an additional 5 kudos points for Bachmann claiming these policies will lead to the end of the U.S. I'm doing this because I can.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/02/bachmann-if-we-reject-israel-then-there-is-a-curse-that-comes-into-play.php

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Nick (Palin) 24
Rob (Gingrich) 19
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Mandy (Bachmann) 10
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Bernie (Romney) 0

Huntsman Earns First Tallies

Late to the game, but he too wants to privatize Medicare.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/no-newt-moment-for-jon-hunstman-hes-100-behind-ending-medicare.php?ref=fpa

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Rob (Gingrich) 19
Nick (Palin) 18
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Luke (Huntsman) 2
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0

Palin: "I Can't Stay This Low In The Standings Forever"

Sarah Palin made her first major foray in the campaign. She earns 4 points for two mentions of the lamestream media and 10 points for calling David Gregory racist.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/sarah-palin-blames-lamestream-media-and-racist-david-gregory-for-newts-political-crisis.php

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Rob (Gingrich) 19
Nick (Palin) 18
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Palin Emerges from Hidden Lair

Sarah Palin earns two points for calling health care reform centralized government.

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201105180045

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Rob (Gingrich) 19
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Nick (Palin) 4
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Quoting Quotables

Newt Gingrich's claim that anyone quoting him is committing a falsehood earns him two more points.

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Rob (Gingrich) 19
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Nick (Palin) 2
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Media Earns Gingrich Two Points

Newt Gingrich's haranguing of the mainstream media regarding his "Meet the Press" appearance earns him two points.

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Rob (Gingrich) 17
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Nick (Palin) 2
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Bring Back Literacy Tests!

10 Fig Newtons for Rob!

http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/05/what-questions-should-be-newt-gingrichs-literacy-test

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Rob (Gingrich) 15
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Nick (Palin) 2
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Ron Paul Surges Ahead

It was a big couple of days for Ron Paul. His frequent comparisons of long-lasting, accepted policy to slavery have vaulted him into the lead.

Paul earned 10 points for his refusal to support the Civil Rights Act of 1964; he picks up 12 points for claiming that Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security are all unconstitutional (and therefore promoting their end); and he picks up yet another 10 points for calling those three programs akin to slavery.

In the only other scoring, Newt Gingrich picked up a paltry two points with his advocacy for privatizing Medicaid.

Greg (Ron Paul) 33
Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Rob (Gingrich) 5
Nick (Palin) 2
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Racism Abounds

Mike Huckabee scored his first 10 points with this racist video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BKDD3BDNHg&feature=player_embedded#at=33

And Rand Paul earns 10 points for comparing health reform to slavery.

So, our news scores:

Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Chris (Huckabee) 10
Matt (Rand Paul) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Rob (Gingrich) 3
Nick (Palin) 2
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0

Gingrich Tallies, Pawlenty Blathers

Newt Gingrich scores his first points with a ringing criticism of Obama's pro-union socialist tendencies.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=43429

And Tim Pawlenty earns a point for blathering about unions.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/265917/federal-government-vs-job-creation-tim-pawlenty

With that, we have a change on the leaderboard:

Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 6
Rob (Gingrich) 3
Nick (Palin) 2
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Matt (Rand Paul) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0
Chris (Huckabee) 0

Santorum Continues Early Domination

Rick Santorum pulls off a 5-pointer today with his correct indictment of Shariah law in the United States.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0511/The_sharia_primary.html?showall

Our new scores:

Kaitlin (Santorum) 18
Meg (Trump) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 5
Nick (Palin) 2
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Rob (Gingrich) 0
Matt (Rand Paul) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0
Chris (Huckabee) 0

First Points for Palin

I'm adding a new point category: references to Obama as a socialist or communist (2 pts). This is an obvious oversight, and something that should clearly be part of the league.

http://mediamatters.org/research/201105090007

Thus, the new scores are:

Kaitlin (Santorum) 13
Meg (Trump) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 5
Nick (Palin) 2
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Rob (Gingrich) 0
Matt (Rand Paul) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0
Chris (Huckabee) 0

Racism Gives Trump Major Boost

None of the major polling organizations have polled for the Republican debate. However, Frank Luntz did conduct a focus group, so we will award points for the winners of the debate based on his focus group. Herman Cain finished first in the focus group, while Rick Santorum finished second, so we'll award Santorum 7 points for his second-place finish.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump has earned Meg 10 points for his implicit racism. http://thinkprogress.org/2011/05/09/trump-lease-racist-person/

The updated standings are:

Kaitlin (Santorum) 13
Meg (Trump) 10
Zivic (Pawlenty) 5
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Rob (Gingrich) 0
Matt (Rand Paul) 0
Nick (Palin) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0
Chris (Huckabee) 0

No new points

It was a quiet weekend for the candidates. Nothing crazy said or done...so our score remains the same.

Opening Night!

The fantasy league got underway with great fanfare. Specifically, Owl blew on his imaginary vuvuzela.

Here's how the night played out:

Rick Santorum: 4 pts George Bush, 2 pts privatizing Medicare
Tim Pawlenty: 2 pts throats, 1 pt Bush, 1 pt unions, 1 pt Fox News
Ron Paul: 1 pt unions

Kaitlin (Santorum) 6
Zivic (Pawlenty) 5
Greg (Ron Paul) 1
Mandy (Bachmann) 0
Bernie (Romney) 0
Meg (Trump) 0
Rob (Gingrich) 0
Matt (Rand Paul) 0
Nick (Palin) 0
Luke (Huntsman) 0
Chris (Huckabee) 0

We await the winner of the polls!