Charlie analyzes candidate debate performances and caller feedback.

What this episode covers

Charlie James: All right, let's go to the phones and talk to Scott in Greenville. How you doing, Scott? Scott: Doing all right. Charlie James: Yes, sir. What's up? Scott: I just wanted to say that I would love to vote for Lynch, but I cannot because we all need to get behind Ralph Norman so we don't have to have a runoff, and so we can defeat the Democrats. Charlie James: There you go. I still think it's going to be a runoff, though, Scott. I appreciate it. I mean, when you got 10 people on the ballot, um, what is it, 10 now? Yeah, I think so. So, we are still doing the poll: Who won last night's debate? Text your choice to 800-905-0989. That poll is going to be running till 7:00 tonight. I did think that there were two people—or should I say one, well, two people—that kind of hurt themselves last night in this debate. I don't think Ralph Norman hurt himself. I don't think Russell Fry hurt himself. Don't think Mark Lynch hurt himself. I do think that Mark Lynch—and this is on—this is my observation—I think when he went a little negative last night, I think that hurt him in that particular segment, that particular setting. Everybody else, nobody else was going negative in that campaign, and Mark Lynch did go a little negative. Now, that being said, I thought Darline Graham was a little thin-skinned. Because it wasn't even all that egregious what Mark Lynch said about Lindsey Graham. Now, if she can't handle that, what is she going to be like against Dr. Annie Andrews and all those people on the Democrats' side, all of this Democrat PAC money that's coming in? If she can't handle that little jab from Mark Lynch, is she going to be able to handle the big boys? I mean, the really, the national guys coming after her? I don't think so. That's the thing. That's what's—that's what, cause you got to remember that, right? Who do the Democrats—who are they really preparing for right now? Is it going to be Darline Graham? I think so. I think they've got a slate of things going on. I think they've got—[laughter]—they probably got spreadsheet after spreadsheet after spreadsheet of talking points against Darline Graham. Because right now she is, like it or not, a lot of people consider her the front-runner in this race. So, again, thought Mark Lynch did a little damage to himself last night. Not a tremendous amount, but just a little bit when he went a little negative. And then I thought Darline Graham, to respond the way she did—you know, "And I don't like that!" Well, you know, this is politics. This is politics, you know? And you know, well, Russell Fry did kind of go back at, um, at Mark Lynch last night, so... but it wasn't terribly contentious. She will not be in the debate tonight from Mount Pleasant. You can watch that debate on WSPA, but my—my thought is, here you are on the Graham team. Is one debate enough? You go in—and again, she had a pretty decent debate last night. I'm—I'm not going to take anything away from her. She didn't hurt herself. So, does her team get in there and say, "All right, you did good last night, now let's lay low. Let's lay low." So, she says she's staying in Washington because there's some Senate business going on. What, um, kind of looking around here, what—what Senate business is going on right now? Literally! What are they doing in the Senate at 5:10 on August 4th? Hell, you got John Thune, he's—he's ready, he's ready to bolt. He's ready to get out of town. He wants you to be mad at the Democrats. He doesn't want you to be mad at the Republicans that are holding up the vote; he wants you to be mad at the Democrats. John Thune could get those extra three votes if he wanted to. If he wanted to, he could get them. All you got to do is, you know, grow a pair and actually be a leader. Now, there's one that maybe he won't get. Maybe he won't get Mitch McConnell. Did you know that Mitch McConnell has been out of the Senate for the past 56 days? 56 days! No Mitch McConnell. Time for the guy t ...

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