Let's get tonight's comedy show, er, debate, started off:

[kristina]

thanks kristina!

You're very welcome.

I'm just hoping my friend's dog doesn't like popcorn; it's her house we're gathering at...

[BoSoxGal]

S/he'll just get a fiber infusion if s/he does, as I'm thinking you'll be tossing quite a bit at the screen!

[BoSoxGal]

If Donald Trump keeps leading the polls after this debate, I will lose all faith in the members of the Republican Party.

I hope you folks nominate Governor Kasich, he really is the best of the lot - certainly the most presidential in demeanor.

[Lord Jim]

If Donald Trump keeps leading the polls after this debate, I will lose all faith in the members of the Republican Party.

Like you had a lot of faith in it to begin with...

I think Trump is making a fool out of himself, with his Rosy O'Donnell references and his sophomoric, sexist, defensive, responses to Megyn Kelly...

But then I've thought that Trump has been making a fool out of himself since he went from 4% to 24% in the nomination polls, so what do I know?

We'll have to look at the polls after this to see if he has finally damaged himself...

But if anyone thought Trump would use this debate as an opportunity to show himself as "Presidential" they must be completely disappointed...

[wesw]

pretty good moderators huh?

this ain t your daddy s fox news

the network isn t what it once was. it used to disgust me.

perhaps you all should give it another chance.....

[Guinevere]

Just for you Jim....

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/don ... s-of-doom/

2016 ELECTION 9:32 AM AUG 6, 2015

Donald Trump’s Six Stages Of Doom

By NATE SILVER

The recent polling surge by Donald Trump has launched a thousand stories about Trump’s “unprecedented campaign.” But it’s nothing all that unusual: Similar surges occurred for almost every Republican candidate four years ago, including Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich (twice).

History’s lesson isn’t necessarily that Trump’s candidacy will go bust tomorrow, however. There are plenty of examples of fringe or factional candidates who held on to their support for much longer than the month or two that Cain and Bachmann did. Sometimes, they did well enough in Iowa or New Hampshire, or even won them. Pat Buchanan claimed New Hampshire in 1996, for instance, while Mike Huckabee won Iowa in 2008. Steve Forbes took 30 percent of the Iowa vote in 2000.

The lesson, rather, is that Trump’s campaign will fail by one means or another. Like Cain, Bachmann and Gingrich, Buchanan, Huckabee and Forbes came nowhere close to winning the Republican nomination.

If you want absurd specificity, I recently estimated Trump’s chance of becoming the GOP nominee at 2 percent. How did I get there? By considering the gantlet he’ll face over the next 11 months — Donald Trump’s Six Stages of Doom:

[Sue U]

Wow, what a bunch of assholes they ALL are.

[BoSoxGal]

Even Kasich? He seems like the only one staying above the fray . . .

[Gob]

I missed a trick here. I should have bought up the exclusive TV rights to this debate, and sold it to the rest of the world as satire.

[Lord Jim]

I really don't think that most of them helped themselves or hurt themselves that much, (with so little air time available for each candidate, there's a limit to how much you could accomplish in either direction...)

My sense is that Trump may have been "the biggest loser" and genuinely hurt himself...(but the regular rules don't seem to apply to him, and my assessment may also be colored by my desire to see him hurt, so I'll wait till we see the poll numbers over the next few days...)

I also think that Carson came across a complete political know-nothing...(which is understandable, because he is a complete political know nothing.....)

I think Paul also came across particularly badly; almost as though he was just going through the motions after the way Trump has burst his balloon with the "mad as hell" vote...

I think Bush, Rubio and Walker (Bush in particular) were somewhat damaged, not because they were particularly bad but because they weren't particularly good...

If I were going to pick someone who I thought really helped themselves this evening, it would be John Kasich...

But again, my interpretation on that could be colored by the fact I would like him to be helped, so like my assessment that Trump damaged himself, I'll wait till I see some poll numbers...

(Though he handled himself pretty well, seemed to use his air time effectively, and got a lot of applause...)

[MajGenl.Meade]

Well, since all is superficial, for sure Kasich came across best. Each of them had something to say that was worth a cheer.... not sure what Donald's was but there must have been something.

Rand Paul - well his hair is actually worse than the master of "I used the law to screw people" Trump.

Christie did better than I expected. Actually stuck with it for two hours... must be bored

[Guinevere]

There was a lot of comedy, which all address later, but this one really had my head exploding: it's "fun "to call women fat slobs and dogs? So says "the Donald". Why did no one on that stage tell him refraining from calling women ugly names isn't political correctness it's basic decency.

[MajGenl.Meade]

Trump was utterly offensive and appalling. He also looked like a crazed obsessive (because he is one) with his mouth continually turned down in a horrid grumpy, grimace. Made Billiam Clintone seem like a breath of fresh ERA by comparison.

I find it impossible to comprehend how any voter in the USA could consider him a worthy recipient of public office. Why on earth does he have any support at all - because the viewers of moronic TV shows know who he is???? Is that it?

Yet he is of course just one end of the continuum that believes free speech equals vile language and false pride in being a poopy mouth. I'm praying he is dismissed by the Republicans as a matter of principle (ha ha ho ho) and told to go run his turd party campaign.

Disgusting

[RayThom]

... I'm totally convinced that the Trumpster, once again, came out as the decisive victor in this battle of wits. He has a clearly Republican style, with the ability to talk out of all orifices at the same time, and with equal knowledge on all things that aren't Democrat. Unfortunately, John Kasich comes in last -- he made too much sense, and I doubt if he stands a chance with moderate to conservative right-wingers. No Republican worth their bluster wants to align themselves with his kind of compromising nonsense.

So it's decided. Election Day 2016 will come down to a skilled bloviator against a skilled prevaricator. And let the best man win.

Remember, ONLY 458 Day and 15 hours to go.

"The Donald" Trump / Rosie O'Doughnut... 2016

God bless America!

[TPFKA@W]

Wasn't Trump amazing? By amazing I mean like when someone who weighs 89lbs passes a turd the size and shape of a softball without wincing.

Remember Ross Perot?

[wesw]

well, skipping past Trump, the Manchurian candidate.....

scott walker, I think, hurt himself the most last night. his faith based campaign may play well in iowa, but it won t fly nationally. he wears his faith as a chip on his shoulder, as opposed to Kasich, who wears his as his heart on his sleeve.

big difference.

kudos to the moderators, who put each and every candidate on the spot. best moderation crew since MacNeil-Lehrer

I fully expect the Dumbocrats to have a veritable fawnfest at their debates

Rand Paul looked bad, but then he never really had a chance anyway....

I don t know what Jim saw that was so bad about Carson, I must have missed it. he seemed at ease and funny and confident to me. very capable. I think he is right about his biases clouding his views....

I do agree that that insults about personal appearance are not good. I feel horrible about making fun of Donalds hair now....

[wesw]

the thing that I learned the most from yesterday happened on another cable network....

they had breathless coverage of the first debate as it happened on fox, showing clips moments after they happened in real time.

anyway, they had a crew in Cleveland and an auditorium full of democrats. they interviewed two people a young black guy, democrat and a young white woman, democrat.

the woman said she was an Obama supporter.

neither of them would hear a bad word about john Kasich.

the interviewer, that Cuomo fellow I think, seemed flummoxed by their attitude toward Kasich and just moved on.....

if Kasich is nominated he wins. he wins big. unless the Clinton dirty tricks machine gets him......

[Crackpot]

Wes what were you doing in Michigan yesterday? I figured it must be you because I seriously doubt there would be anyone else who would actually put a Carson 2016 bumper sticker on his vehicle...

[Lord Jim]

Maybe it was Carson's mother...

[wesw]

no, it was me. I was headin' out to see the wolves.

it s the closest population of timber wolves to me and I like to go dance with them on occasion....