Last night’s long-awaited Univision debate was
more peaceful
than most, as the GOP candidates seemed careful not to alienate an already skeptical audience. Lines about reaching out to Hispanics drew the most applause. The only booing came when Rep. Ron Paul argued that “we create the Chavezes of the world, we create the Castros of the world.”
Univision was originally forced to
postpone
the debate after only Sen. John McCain accepted the network’s invitation. The other campaigns cited scheduling conflicts. The top GOP candidates also
avoided
a minority-sponsored forum hosted by Tavis Smiley in September, sparking concern among party leaders that the candidates are hurting the party’s reputation among blacks and Hispanics.
Whatever damage was done, the candidates did their best to repair it last night by soft-pedaling their hardline policies and emphasizing shared beliefs over rifts. Here’s a quick roundup of peace offerings:
Rudy Giuliani:
I approach the Hispanic community the same way I do all communities.
Mike Huckabee:
I think Hispanics want the same thing everybody wants.
Full transcript
here
.
