After entrepreneur Donald Trump pulled out of moderating a GOP debate, a “giant ego-shaped hole” was left in the Republican primaries, according to The Colbert Report’s Stephen Colbert in a televised December 14 statement — and Nat Geo WILD is springing into action like a lion on a wildebeest.

Nat Geo WILD and ‘Dog Whisperer’ Cesar Millan have agreed to host the next “Serious, Classy Republican” debate with Colbert as the moderator — and officially invite the candidates to participate! The network has started recruiting pint-sized animal-loving participants from around the country to attend the debate, per Colbert’s goal of getting kids involved.

Said David Lyle, chief executive officer of the National Geographic Channels US, “If Colbert wants animals in the buff, we’ll get them. If he wants kids in the audience, we’ll start before bedtime. Bring on the candidates for the greatest battle in the history of the universe. It will be red in tooth and claw.”

Cesar Millan, a ‘People’s Choice Award’ winner for Favorite Animal Show, said, “PAC(k) leaders unite! The candidates need someone to moderate with “Tsssst!” power. This is going to be WILD.”

In officially challenging the candidates to participate, Cesar Millan plans to head to the Iowa Caucus on January 3 — before his new season of ‘Dog Whisperer’ premieres Saturday, January 7 — to see problem-candidate behaviors he can start rehabbing. “Pooches are easy, people are hard, and political candidates … that’s a whole different animal,” he said.

Other Nat Geo WILD talent on board includes Casey Anderson, host of ‘America the Wild,’ who is working with his 800-pound grizzly-bear best-friend, Brutus, to provide questions from the animal kingdom (and has offered Brutus to provide security at the debate!) and reptile expert Brady Barr from ‘Dangerous Encounters’ — who has had his fair share of tussles with crocs, snakes and other reptiles — and is ready to get out his bite meter and see how the candidates score.

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Health care was a major issue at the November 9 Republican presidential debate hosted by CNBC titled, “Your Money, Your Vote: The Republican Presidential Debate.” With each Republican presidential candidate stating that they would repeal ObamaCare, the debate gave them the opportunity to address the steps to reform health care once elected to office.

Ron Paul, who has had previous experience in the medical field as a doctor, addressed the issue by stating that the solution to heath care was to get the government out of the business altogether. He stated that there should be the right to “opt out of ObamaCare,” as well as any health care program to bring health care back to patient-doctor relationships.

Paul also discussed the need for patients to have medical savings accounts, which would drive down the prices on major medicines. Rick Perry believes that Medicare should allow more options for people to choose from. He also said that the best solution was to send money to the states and have them decide on what program fits best for their state.

Mitt Romney, who is currently taking the lead in recent polls, has received criticism in the past on his stance on health care. His plan is often referred to as “RomneyCare” because of its similarities with ObamaCare. During the debates, he responded that he would appeal ObamaCare and the solution would also be to send money to the states and allow them decide which health care plans are best for their state.

Romney also stated that Americans should be allowed to purchase their own insurance, instead of being forced to receive it through their company. He also agreed with Paul, saying that health care should work like a market so that Americans have a stake in the quality of their insurance. Michele Bachmann also held the same stance. She also maintained her true “malpractice liability reform” stance.

Newt Gingrich stated that there was a need to restore patient-doctor relationships, as well as turn over the funds to the state level so that they can craft a plan, similar to what John Huntsman indicated. Gingrich then stated that there has to be more concentration and funding for research on brain science.

By finding cures for many leading diseases and illnesses, people wouldn’t have to pay for such federal programs. Senator Rick Santorum thought that many other candidates lacked his experience in the health care field, and that other candidates such as Romney were not consistent in their plans.

He stated, “I was always for having the government out of the health care business and for a bottom-up, consumer-driven health care, which is different than Governor Romney and some of the other people on this panel.” Though each candidate has different plans for repealing ObamaCare, health care will continue be a hotly debated topic in future debates.

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At a speech at the Citadel Military College in South Carolina on October 7, Mitt Romney outlined some of his goals for American foreign policy if he wins the presidential election in 2012. He made two large promises: first, he pledged to reverse cuts in defense spending, and second, he vowed to deploy missiles and ships.

He also assured the audience that he would rebuild the US economy, reverse President Obama’s “massive defense cuts,” and increase the number of soldiers in the military by 100,000. However, Obama has only slowed down the rate of increase in the defense budget, not cut spending. In the current fiscal year, Obama requested $533 billion for defense.

When Obama took office, the budge was $513 billion. In April, he asked the Pentagon to find where it would be feasible to cut spending by $400 billion in the next 12 years. Romney also wants to increase shipbuilding from nine ships per year to 15 ships per year. However, shipbuilding has been decreasing steadily since the 1980s because wars were concentrated on land.

Building military ships has not been a priority of the Pentagon for the last 10 years. The Navy said it needs a minimum of 313 ships. It currently has 284 ships, which is up from the 278 ships it had in 2007. The 24 Navy Aegis ships are equipped with missile defense technologies. Missile defense was another of Romney’s concerns.

Romney said he would like to intensify military presence against the Iranian regime “by ordering the regular presence of aircraft carrier task forces, one in eastern Mediterranean and one in Persian Gulf.” The US currently has full-time military presence in the Persian Gulf, but none in the eastern Mediterranean.

At the Republican candidate debate on October 11, Romney received some hard questions from fellow candidates about his healthcare initiatives and his decision to support the Wall Street bailout of 2008-2009.

Rick Perry asked about the Massachusetts healthcare plan that requires uninsured residents of the states to obtain healthcare. The plan served as a template for Obama’s healthcare plan. Romney claimed that the plan does not raise taxes or cut Medicare; however, he claimed that the Obama plan does.

The next Republican party debates will be on October 18 in Las Vegas. Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, and Rick Santorum will be attending the debate sponsored by CNN and the Western Republican Leadership Conference.
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States are now clamoring to move the Republican primary up early, leaving the traditional first states left in the dust. Florida Republican presidential primary is likely going to be held five weeks earlier than normal, moving the primary to January 31, 2012 instead of early March.

The Florida GOP has selected the early date by a vote of 7 to 2, according to GOP insiders. This move is in violation of Republican National Committee guidelines. It also upsets the traditional standards that allows the states of Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina to be the first primary states in every presidential election.

Although Florida may be sanctioned by the RNC, Florida’s Republican officials seem to be looking past any punishment. They believe by moving up their primary, they will be the fifth and deciding primary of the season. Early primary states are upset by Florida and other states leapfrogging moves.

Arizona had previously announced that they were moving their primary up to the same day as South Carolina’s primary. South Carolina has asked that the Republican National Convention be moved out of Florida where it is scheduled. New Hampshire is also unhappy since they have a state law mandating that the state have the first primary in the nation.

Officials in New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina and Nevada have already said that they will be moving their contests. When Chuck Todd played this out on MSNBC last week, he anticipated that the Iowa caucuses, the first contest of the season , would be moved to Jan. 5. But by the time this all shakes out, it could end up being worse.

As CNN’s Peter Hamby tweets this morning: “NH Sec of State does not rule out holding New Hampshire primary this year. As in, 2011.” This means those potential candidates that are still lingering in the dust better start to announce their candidacy if they are interested. Yes, I am talking to you Sarah Palin, Chris Christie or even Mr. Huckabee.

The chance to build up a campaign was just shortened by a month.
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So the Republicans are three for three now. In each debate, the narrowed minded audience cheered or booed something to make the rest of the country cringe. I am just now sure why the GOP continues to cater to this small subset of their party while alienating everyone else.

During the GOP debate on Thursday night, host Megyn Kelly played a Youtube clip for a question to Rick Santorum. The clip was a question from Stephen Hill, a soldier in Iraq who, up until this week, had to “lie about who [he] was” in order to serve in the army. Hill asked if Santorum would reinstate “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”

After the clip with Hill was played, several members of the audience booed him. Someone could also be heard yelling “faggot.” Nice reaction for the party that “supports the troops.” Santorum response was not much better. “I would say any type of sexual activity has absolutely no place in the military.

The fact they are making a point to include it as a provision within the military that we are going to recognize a group of people and give them a special privilege to, and removing don’t ask don’t tell. I think tries to inject social policy into the military. And the military’s job is to do one thing: to defend our country… “

Kelly asked Santorum what he would do with soldiers like Stephen Hill. “What we are doing is playing social experimentation with our military right now. That’s tragic. I would just say that going forward we would reinstitute that policy if Rick Santorum was president. That policy would be re-instituted as far as people in, I would not throw them out because that would be unfair to them because of the policy of this administration.

But we would move forward in conformity with what was happening in the past. Which was- sex is not an issue. It should not be an issue. Leave it alone. Keep it to yourself whether you are heterosexual or homosexual. “

Although Santorum never denounced the audience’s absurd reaction, other GOP candidates did the next day. Jon Huntsman told Talking Points Memo that the booing was “unfortunate.” A Perry representative, also called the incident “very unfortunate.”

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The GOP debate on Thursday night was, once again, an attack on Texas governor Rick Perry. In the past, candidates have gone after the governor for his HPV vaccination in the state. On Thursday, it was about immigration.

Former Sen. Rick Santorum first attacked Perry over immigration. “I would say that he is soft on illegal immigration,” Santorum said. “He doesn’t want to build a fence. He gave a speech in 2001 where he talked about binational health insurance between Mexico and Texas. I mean, I don’t even think Barack Obama would be for binational health insurance.”

Santorum called Perry “very weak on this issue of American sovereignty and protecting our borders and not being a magnet for illegal immigration.” Perry defended his stance on immigration, especially a policy where he allows children of undocumented workers to receive in-state tuition costs at public colleges.

He said that the other Republicans who opposed in-state tuition for children of illegals were heartless. “If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no other reason than they’ve been brought there by no fault of their own, I don’t think you have a heart,” Perry said.

Romney pointed out that students from states outside Texas have to pay full tuition, putting holes in Perry’s logic. “If you’re a United States citizen from any one of the other 49 states, you have to pay $100,000 more. That doesn’t make sense to me,” Romney said. Perry had some awkward moments throughout the debate and seemed to be off his game.

Pausing and struggling to answer some questions. And the polls reflect that performance. A focus group run by Fox News said after the debate that Romney was the clear winner, and that Perry lost a large degree of support. Romney’s poise, confidence and specificity is beginning to impress voters.  Surprisingly, Santorum is also gaining support.

He had another strong performance during the debate. Rep. Michele Bachmann is already fading to obscurity as Republican voters are starting to see the electability problems she has.

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It is easy to forget that some Americans, apparently Tea Party members, believe that uninsured people should actually die rather than the United States providing any form of help. That fact was startling clear on Monday night during the Republican debate.

Late in the debate, CNN moderator Wolf Blitzer posed a hypothetical question to Rep. Ron Paul from Texas. “What do you tell a guy who is sick, goes into a coma and doesn’t have health insurance? Who pays for his coverage? Are you saying society should just let him die?” Wolf Blitzer asked. The audience actually cheered at the idea of letting someone die because they don’t have health insurance.

This is the world we now live, allowing other humans to die rather than have some damn socialist system is preferable. Paul interrupted the cheering to offer an explanation for how this was, more-or-less, the root choice of a free society. He added that communities and non-government institutions can fill the void that the public sector is currently playing.

“We never turned anybody away from the hospital,” he said of his volunteer work for churches and his career as a doctor. “We have given up on this whole concept that we might take care of ourselves, assume responsibility for ourselves … that’s the reason the cost is so high.” There are countless examples of people dying because they don’t have health insurance.

This is not a novel idea. It is a reality in everyday America. We can pump out our chests and talk about how proud we are to be an American, but a country that allows 45,000 citizens to die each year because they don’t have the money it not a place I am proud of.

Just the other day, there was another heart-wrenching story about a young girl who died with a very treatable condition because she was uninsured. A ten-year old girl was sent home from the emergency room by two different doctors on two different days, even though during her second visit she was blue around her mouth and nose, had difficulty breathing and couldn’t pee.

She was diagnosed with the “worst kidney infection” this particular doctor had ever seen. The girl died the next day. Although Paul may have an idealistic idea of a free society, that is not what happens. Clearly. Maybe people are not turned away for not having insurance, but they aren’t given the best care either.

I don’t want to live in a society where it is celebrated that people die because they live in the wrong socioeconomic bracket.

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After two Republican debates, Texas governor Rick Perry is having some difficulty. Other candidates have attacked Perry for his stance on the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Perry issued an executive order in 2007 to mandate HPV vaccination for sixth-grade girls in his state.

He allowed parents to opt-out of the order; however, that hasn’t stopped the other GOP candidates from pouncing on the issue. Other Republican voters and pundits have questioned the governor’s character. Craig Robinson, a former Iowa Republican Party official who is now a full-time political blogger, wrote about the problem on his blog, the Iowa Republican.

“What the debate over Perry’s HPV mandate has really done is brought in to question Perry’s character and convictions,” wrote Robinson on his blog.  ”That is why the HPV issue has gained more traction and attention in recent weeks than Perry’s comments about social security.

Perry may want to put this issue to bed, but by the looks of things, his proposed HPV mandate could haunt him throughout the nominating process.” Perry was defensive during the first two debates but stated his goal was to prevent cancer.

When he first entered the race, Perry stated that he should have provided an opt-in for parents instead of an opt-out. But in both GOP debates over the past week, Perry pointed to the opt-out clause as a positive component of the executive order he signed. “I don’t know what’s more strong for parental rights than having that opt-out,” Perry said at his first debate in Simi Valley, Calif., last week.

Asked directly on Monday night, during his second debate in Tampa, Fla., whether the executive order he signed amounted to a mandate, Perry said it was not — because of the opt-out provision.”No, sir it wasn’t. It was very clear. It had an opt-out,” Perry said. But later in the week, Perry was back to stating that he should have had an opt-in instead of an opt-out.

This proves to be a difficult issue for Perry who, like other Republicans, believes Obama’s health care overhaul is unconstitutional. If Perry can force residents in his state to have a vaccine, then how can making people have health care be unconstitutional?

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The second Republican debate of this month was held on Monday night in Tampa, Florida. Candidates spent much of the night attacking frontrunner Texas governor Rick Perry. Perry defended his controversial views on social security despite attacks from Mitt Romney.

“We have not had the courage to stand up and look Americans in the face” to tell them that “this is a broken system,” Perry said of Social Security in the opening minutes of the debate among eight Republican presidential contenders at the Florida State Fairgrounds.

When asked if he believed states should run social security, instead of the federal government as he proposed in his book last year, Perry skillfully dodged the question. Perry said it was time for “thoughtful conversations with Americans, rather than trying to scare seniors, as you’re doing.” “The term ‘Ponzi scheme’ is what scared seniors,” countered Romney, the former Massachusetts governor.

Former Senator Rick Santorum from Pennsylvania criticized Perry for his views on immigration. Perry defended his policy of allowing undocumented immigrants to pay in-state college tuition in Texas. “No matter what the sound of your last name, we believe in you,” he said, drawing some boos from the crowd.

Rep. Michele Bachmann, who is currently struggling to stay in the race, attacked Perry again for his controversial executive order of requiring the human papilloma virus, or HPV, vaccination for young girls in Texas. “If I had to do it over again, I would have done it differently,” Perry said, saying he should have consulted the Legislature on the issue.

Bachmann suggested that Perry passed the order because of campaign contributions. Perry stated that the pharmaceutical company, Merck, had given him only $5,000 of his $30 million campaign war chest.”If you’re saying I can be bought for $5,000, I’m offended,” Perry said. “I’m offended for all the little girls who didn’t have a choice” to receive the vaccine, Bachmann replied.

Other participants tried to maintain relevance in the debate. Romney and Perry debated about who can create the most jobs as president. Former Speaker Newt Gingrich pointed out that the government does not create jobs, but that people do. Other participants included former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, Herman Cain, former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, and Rep. Ron Paul from Texas.

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The Republican presidential debate on Thursday involved lively exchanges moderated by Fox News’ Chris Wallace. The most contentious debates were between Rep. Michele Bachmann from Minnesota and Minnesota former governor Tim Pawlenty.

Pawlenty has criticized Bachmann for weeks stating that Bachmann lacks executive experience that he has. During the debate, Pawlenty stated that the congresswoman has “done wonderful things in her life, absolutely wonderful things, but it’s an indisputable fact that in Congress her record of accomplishments and results is nonexistent. That’s not going to be good enough.”

Bachmann, not one to shy away from confrontation, blasted Pawlenty’s record as governor. “Governor, when you were governor in Minnesota, you implemented cap and trade in our state, and you praised the unconstitutional individual mandate, and you called for requiring all people in our state to purchase health insurance,” she said.

The two continued to debate and Bachmann praised her own record of fighting Democratic proposals, such as health care. But Pawlenty pointed out that she did not stop the health care bill, increases in spending or the 2008 bailout of Wall Street banks. “She said she’s got a titanium spine. It’s not your spine we’re worried about, it’s your record of results,” Pawlenty said. “If that’s your view of effective results and leadership, then please stop because you’re killing us.”

Minutes later, the two lawmakers argued again over a cigarette tax that both appeared to agree with. Bachmann, who voted for the tax, stated she only voted for it because it was tied to an anti-abortion measure. Pawlenty called her arguments “illogical.” Most observers and pundits declared Bachmann the winner in the debate. Kent Sorensen, a Republican state legislator who is supporting Bachmann, certainly felt that way.”She exposed [Pawlenty] for the phony that he is,” Sorensen said. “He came out with the first punch and she came back with a roundhouse.”

Mitt Romney appeared to skate through the debate unscathed, mainly because other participants were too busy arguing with one another. It was Jon Huntsman first debate but he did little to stand out. An interesting portion of the debate came as Ron Paul, the congressman from Texas, and Rick Santorum, the former senator from Pennsylvania, discussed Iran. Paul said he did not have a problem with Iran trying to obtain nuclear weapons.”Why wouldn’t it be natural that they might want a weapon … Why should we write people off?” he asked. “What’s so terribly bad about this?”

“Iran is not Iceland, Ron. Iran is a country that has been at war with us since 1979,” Santorum replied. Paul stated that the U.S. has intervened in Iran since the CIA was involved in the 1953 coup of Iran’s democratically elected prime minister.”We just plain don’t mind our own business … that’s the problem,” Paul said.

Paul became more agitated as he pointed out the “trillions of dollars” being spent on foreign wars to a crowd of cheering supporters.

NewtGingrich, the former House Speaker from Georgia, complained that the questions about his staff shake-up earlier in the year were “Mickey Mouse games.” “I took seriously [fellow host] Bret [Baier]‘s injunction to put aside the talking points. I wish you would put aside the gotcha questions,” he said. Gingrich then went on to compare himself twice to Ronald Reagan, who had staff departures during his run for the White House in 1980.

Wallace didn’t take it lightly. “If you think questions about your record are Mickey Mouse, I’m sorry,” he said, with disdain. “I think those are questions people want to hear answers to.”

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It is weird political time that we live in where potential candidates can participate in a debate even though they have not announced their candidacy. Participants in debates answer questions about presidential policy so it is odd to have politicians have well thought out plans in policy before they have even “decided” if they want to run. Of course, that is the way debates are supposed to go. Instead, it is all about attacking the current administration, bragging about how many kids you have (really, no one cares), and not offering any solutions to the problems of the country.

Rep. Michele Bachmann from Minnesota seemed like a person with borderline personality disorder, trying to steal the spotlight every chance she got. Right from the beginning of the debate when she “announced” her candidacy and told stories of 23 foster children (mentioning them three times), Bachmann was clearly attention-seeking. And although I saw through her fake charisma, I fear many people may like her and not listen to her bobble head empty policies.

The debate, held in New Hampshire, was hosted by CNN’s John King. CNN further proves that they are no longer a serious network with some really stupid pointless debate questions. “Coke or Pepsi?” Really, for the possible next leader of our country?? And the dumb politicians cannot even answer these types of questions. When Bachmann was asked “Elvis or Johnny Cash,” she replied “Both.” Rick Santorum answered “Neither” when asked if he preferred Leno or Conan.  Really, these are simple questions and if you can follow these instructions, how the hell are you going to run a country?

Bachmann emerged as the scary candidate. She views the world in very black and white terms. She is so conservative that George W.  Bush looks like a pinko communist in comparison.  Mitt Romney, the supposed frontrunner, was boring and bland. Romney announced during the debate that he wants to bring the troops home and that added lots of conditions on that plan. “It’s time for us to bring our troops home. As soon as we possibly can, consistent with the, uh … the word that comes from our generals that we can hand the country over to the Taliban military in a way that they are able to defend themselves … excuse me, it should be the Afghan military to defend themselves from the Taliban.” Wow, way to take a stance dude.

The other candidates were uninteresting and boring. Herman Cain is crazy, but we already knew that. Tim Pawlenty is …..Oh wait, I fell asleep. And that is really about it. I don’t even remember any one else that was there.

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