I am 85% of my way through last nights Republican debate. The remainder is sitting on my TIVO ready to be watched. I did just want to toss in a few thoughts for those who missed it.

#1 - It Was Indeed a Show
FOX News knows how to put on an event. With blinking lights, digital flags, chimes for those who go over their times and a choir the channel knows how to produce television.

#2 - It Was Lively
FOX also knows how to just get to the point and not duck difficult questions. The moderators would go right to the heart of an issue, tear down a persons position and then make them defend it. The moderators never shy away from confrontation, openly courting it and unlike Democratic debates there is no “can’t we all just get along” moments.

#3 - Fred Thompson Woke Up
Thompson is always a mystery to me but he obviously likes being on a stage more than he likes being on the campaign trail. There was no two ways about it, he had Mike Huckabee in his sights and he took every moment he could to trash the guy.

#4 - Huckabee is Darn Likable
Both Thompson and Huckabee put out pretty strong performances. For every long diatribe Thompson would hit Huckabee with, the man always had a response that would warm the crowd back up to him.

#5 - Ronald Reagan
This, like all of the Republican debates thus far was not so much an audition for president as it was a chance to audition for the part of Ronald Reagan. I give credit to John McCain and Ron Paul, they were the only people to mention Republican presidents other than Ronald Reagan that I recall. McCain talked about Teddy Roosevelt, Paul mentioned Taft.

Tonight at 9:00PM Eastern on FOX News

Republicans and Democrats with both be sitting with Charlie Gibson tonight at a roundtable to square off ahead of the New Hampshire primary. Both should provide for some VERY interesting television and if there is going to be any earth shattering, poll shattering, election shattering gaffes or breakout moments to either reinforce or destroy the Iowa Caucus results, it could happen tonight.

With less candidates than we’ve seen in both “debates” this year, more time will be focused in on the candidates and more time could potentially be had to explore, god forbid, issues! Especially on the Democratic side where only five candidates will be at the round table discussion and where the last few debates have mostly focused on the Clinton-Obama back and fourth. If Gibson does his job right we could actually start pulling out what is DIFFERENT about these candidates not just on style but substance.

Having said all that, expect that we could potentially learn nothing at all and this “debate” will be as near useless as all the others.

On the Democratic side Kucinich & Gravel have been excluded from the list.

Current lineup for Democrats will be Obama, Clinton, Edwards & Richardson

On the Republican side Duncan Hunter has been excluded

Current lineup for Republicans will be Huckabee, McCain, Giuliani, Thompson, Romney and Paul

Charles Gibson will moderate both from Manchester New Hampshire.