Fiorina Led Debate That Was All About Trump


Republican presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina speaks during the Republican presidential debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California on September 16, 2015. Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump stepped into a campaign hornet's nest as his rivals collectively turned their sights on the billionaire in the party's second debate of the 2016 presidential race. AFP PHOTO / FREDERIC J. BROWNFREDERIC J BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

The spokesman for a media watchdog is not surprised that 44 percent of CNN’s questions during Wednesday night’s debate referenced GOP frontrunner Donald Trump in some way.  

 

Written by Chad Groening and Billy Davis

Media Research Center reports that 32 of the 73 questions questions either were directed to – or were a reference to – Donald Trump.

Dan Gainor, vice president of MRC Business, says there are several reasons for CNN’s obsession with Trump.

“One of them is ratings,” Gainor says. “Look, they’re a business. They certainly want to get good ratings.”

In fact, CNN posted its best ratings ever – for any of its shows – during the three-hour debate. An estimated 23 million watched it.

Two of the debate’s biggest winners were Carly Fiorina and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, says Dr. Charles Dunn, a political scientist who talks politics often with OneNewsNow.

Fiorina, a former CEO of Hewlett Packard, was also hailed as the debate winner by other political analysts, writers, and bloggers.

“GOP Insiders: Carly crushed it,” reads a story headline from Politico.

A third person who did well, Dunn adds, is Gov. Chris Christie.

“When he engaged, he was on the offensive,” Dunn says of Christie.

Meanwhile, Gainor has a second theory for Trump dominating the night, which is that he’s a “straw man” for CNN.

“They want to target him and take him down,” says Gainor, “and use him to paint the rest of the GOP in bad ways because he says some things the media want to attack him about.”

In fact, MRC research has found that CNN has devoted 78 percent of its GOP campaign coverage to Trump.

Dunn tells OneNewsNow that Trump may have reached his “high water mark” during the Wednesday debate and start to fall in polls.


This article was originally posted at OneNewsNow.com.