By Thomas Madison
H/T Danielle Durham
This has to be the classiest moment of a presidential debate, ever! THAT is what we need in the White House
On February 6, 2016, to begin the New Hampshire GOP presidential debate, ABC flubbed the introductions of the candidates royally, from beginning to end. First to be introduced was Chris Christie, to much applause and cheering. Rather than wait for Christie’s applause to die down, co-moderator Martha Raddatz pushed ahead, introducing Ben Carson amidst the applause for Christie. Needless to say, Carson didn’t hear his name over the noise. To make matters worse, the moderators had their backs to the stage so they couldn’t tell what was going on. Carson stood there in the wings, waiting to hear his name, as co-moderator, David Muir, introduced Ted Cruz, who simply walked past Carson, leaving him in an incredibly embarrassing position.
Then Donald Trump’s name was announced. Rather than walk past Carson as Cruz had done, Trump stopped there with Carson to keep him from feeling the embarrassment alone. One by one the other candidates were introduced and walked past Carson, who was still waiting to hear his name.
As the moderators became aware of what had happened, Muir announced Carson’s name again, and Carson walked onto the stage to take his place. Martha Raddatz then introduced Trump for the second time, just a second or two behind Carson’s introduction, and again amid the applause for the previous candidate. With total class and grace, Trump stood there, waiting for Carson to receive the maximum applause. He was then introduced a third time and walked onto the stage as though nothing had happened.
THAT is leadership, compassion, sportsmanship, quick and sound decision-making, and total class!
From The Conservative Treehouse
Few people will talk about this, and fewer will even want to acknowledge it, but what Donald Trump did before the debate even began shows the measure of a real man’s worth.
At the beginning of the ABC debate, each of the candidates were being introduced in a specific order. The first name called to the stage was Chris Christie. The applause was loud and lingered through the time when Martha Raddatz called the second candidate Ben Carson.
Dr. Carson did not hear his name called (easy to understand why when you listen to the video) and stood in the entry-way. The moderators, with their backs to the candidates, didn’t notice his absence and called the third name on the list, Ted Cruz.
Ted walked past Dr. Carson and onto the stage. Carson remained in the awkward, and embarrassing position, ‘no-mans-land’, on-camera but out of sight of the live audience.
What happened next shows the remarkable character of Donald Trump.
The fourth name called was Donald Trump, but by then the back-stage crew and candidates were aware of Dr. Carsons’ position. Trump slowly approached, and then realized the embarrassing position of a fellow candidate hanging in the wind.
Trump showed his leadership by standing right next to his friend, and not walking onto the stage.
The other names continued to be called, and proceeded as mentioned. But not Donald Trump, he remained with his colleague thereby reducing the internal anxiety felt by Carson.
It would have been very easy for Trump to walk by Ben, just like all the other candidates did. But instead he chose to wait, and remove the embarrassment factor by infinite magnitudes.
Then, like a boss, when Dr. Carson was called to the stage, Trump waited and allowed Ben to get the audience response and appreciation. It takes a lot of courage to make split second decisions like this, and it shows a remarkable insight into the man’s character.
People often mistake Donald Trump’s self-confidence for arrogance or even narcissism. But there is not a narcissist on the planet who would have put themselves into a position like that to assist a competing colleague.
