There was a moment Sunday night at 101 Restaurant and Lounge in Tallahassee when a chorus of boos seized the crowd.
But the object of the crowd's dissatisfaction was a basketball game, not the Republican candidates for U.S. Senate -- Gov. Charlie Crist and former House Speaker Marco Rubio.
The crowd had come to watch the nationally televised debate and anticipated the scoring of debating points, not free throws from a foul line.
This debate has national implications for the Republican Party, said Dan Abel, chairman of the Leon County Republican Party, which hosted the 6 p.m. viewing party for 50 people.
Tellingly, the crowd had more Rubio than Crist supporters and they were more vocal in the support of their man, who is ahead in the polls. Rubio supporters whooped when their candidate said Crist would not stand up to the Obama administration. They also cheered when moderator Chris Wallace interrupted Crist and pointedly asked him to answer a question about his support of the Obama stimulus spending program.
Not surprisingly, Rubio supporters said their candidate won and Crist supporters said their candidate prevailed. But they also agreed on one point.
It was a good debate, saidKathryn Bonderud, a volunteer who is helping coordinate efforts in Leon County for the Crist campaign.
Following the debate, Abel said that whoever takes the Republican primary this August will have the full support of the Republicans over whoever the Democratic candidate happens to be.That produced some of the most sustained applause of the evening, as did did Abels introduction of candidates for the House, Leon County Commission and the Leon County School Board. Abels call to turn out conservative Democratic U.S. Rep. Allan Boyd received much less applause.
John Paul Bailey, a former city commissioner of Tallahassee, was impressed with both candidates, though he said they had very different styles. Rubio is more passionate, while Crist is more logical, he said. Either one of them would be great in the Senate.
Pablo Pantoja, the Leon County GOPs vice chairman of political action, agreed. We have two great candidates, he said. This is a great day for the Republican Party.
Yet there was some discontent with the manner of the debate and some of the attendees agreed with Republican Party of Florida Chairman Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, who expressed disappointment that the candidates put more focus on personal attacks than issues.
This should not be about personal issues, Pantoja agreed. We should always discuss the real issues.
Bailey recalled the famed 11th Commandment from Ronald Reagan: Thou shall not attack a fellow Republican.
You dont want the Republican candidates to be writing a bunch of attack ads for the Democrats, Bailey said.
Abel also invoked Reagans 11th Commandment and said, I hope the candidates do whats best for the Republican Party.
Wakulla County Commissioner Dr. Howard Kessler said he thought both candidates failed to flesh out the issues. He rated the debate a draw, adding that he expected Crist to be more statesman-like than Rubio..
The crowd's greatest display of unity occurred when, early in the debate, the television briefly changed over to Dukes triumph over Baylor. The Republicans booed until it was changed back to the debate.
That must have been one of the damn Democrats, said a Republican at the bar.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com, or (850) 727-0859.
