GOP hopefuls Clash in Cleveland for first debate
The first Presidential Primary Debate was held Thursday in Cleveland. Yes, Cleveland. The city often ridiculed as 'the mistake on the lake'.
So if it's such a mistake...why Cleveland? The answer is in the math.
In 2012, Mitt Romney lost Ohio by just 1 percentage point to President Barack Obama. This time, the GOP isn't fooling around and are heading straight for working class whites who either voted Democratic or didn't vote at all.
Cuyahogoa County's GOP Chairman, Rob Frost, says it's the party of the working class and the middle class. How true is that? Al Appel's a tow truck driver - a working class guy - and he voted for Obama last time.
Remember Joe the Plumber? In 2008, he was everywhere, now Joe the Plumber is Joe the Blogger and he's angry about jobs. So what do they have to do to get his vote? Well, there's not an easy answer.
"They're all the same. Just tell you what you want to hear. Then like professional wrestlers they go have lunch together," Joe said.
Joe and Al have one thing in common: they like the guy who took center stage.
"Trump. He's a business man. Owes nobody nothing. He'll fix this country," Al said. Joe agrees
"Trump. He'll seal the border up and bring America back," Joe said.
That, however, is the problem. Working class white guys might love the Donald's blunt talk on illegal immigrants and bad trade deals but the Republican establishment is worried Trump's too bigoted to win in the general election and too lazy to lead.
Guys like former Ohio Governor George Voinovich. He's, uh, not a fan.
"He's an egomaniac," Voinovich said. "It's easy to talk. But it takes a lot to actually get things done. The better candidates need to talk about the things he's talking about but offer solutions on how to fix them."
So how do they trump, Trump? The field in Ohio has to talk about the things Trump is stumping on. Oh and they have to do it without sounding like Trump or empty suits.