Republican rivals spar in YouTube debate

McCain blasts Romney
McCain, who has shown no love for Romney during the campaign, seized on Romney's response to a question about the legality of waterboarding as an interrogation technique. Romney said that as a candidate he would not publicly discuss what techniques he would rule out. That prompted McCain, a former Vietnam POW, to assert that waterboarding is indeed torture and should not be tolerated.

"Governor, let me tell you, if we're going to gain the high ground in this world ... we're not going to torture people," McCain said. "How in the world someone could think that that kind of thing could be inflicted on people who are in our custody is absolutely beyond me."

McCain also engaged Ron Paul, a Texas congressman whose libertarian views and opposition to the war have attracted thousands of donors, millions of dollars and a devoted online following.

McCain said Paul is promoting isolationism in calling for the United States to disengage from the war. "We allowed (Adolf) Hitler to come to power with that attitude of isolation," he said.

Paul objected, saying McCain had misunderstood his support for nonintervention with isolationism.

"I want to trade with people, talk with people, travel," Paul replied. "But I don't want to send troops overseas using force to tell them how to live." Later he made clear he would not run as an independent, despite demands from many of his supporters.

Personal question about military service
One questioner, Keith Kerr of Santa Rosa, Calif., a retired Army colonel who served as a brigadier general in the reserves, asked the candidates about their views on gays in the military and revealed himself to be gay. Not mentioned was his membership on a steering committee of gays and lesbians for Democratic candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Huckabee, Romney, McCain and Calif. Rep. Duncan Hunter all said they supported the current "don't ask, don't tell" policy.

The debate ended as it began, with Romney and Giuliani in a deeply personal dispute — over the New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox.

"When I was mayor of New York City, the Yankees won four world championships," Giuliani said. "Since I've left being mayor of New York City, the Yankees have won none."

Romney replied: "Like most Americans, we love our sports teams and hate the Yankees."

Close race
The debate was the Republicans’ eighth major confrontation of the 2008 campaign. People from across the country submitted more than 3,500 videos posing questions; about 40 were to be broadcast in the unusual gathering six weeks before voting begins.

Giuliani leads in national polls but trails Romney in early-voting Iowa and New Hampshire. Romney faces challenges from Huckabee in Iowa, and from Giuliani and McCain in New Hampshire. Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo also participated in the debate.

The two-hour event comes amid heightened skirmishing among the candidates, especially between Giuliani and Romney on the subject of how well they dealt with crime while in office.

A Democratic version this summer included variations on typical debate questions and queries but from unusual questioners, including a melting snowman frightened about global warming.

Initial reluctance
McCain told a crowd at Clemson University on Wednesday that he’d have to cut off questions to head to the debate.

“It ought to be interesting because it’s the YouTube one, and so we’ll be getting questions from snowmen and other stranger creatures around America,” he said.

The Republican debate had been planned for September but organizers rescheduled it when GOP candidates balked at the timing and the format.

Romney, for one, had expressed doubts about answering a question from a snowman, which greeted Romney briefly at the start of the debate.

Picking the president: The candidates Click to visit that candidate's MSNBC page or click the XML symbol for an RSS feed. John McCain                Barack Obama

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