I\’ll be quick with my GOP debate observations, since my son\’s double ear infection has left me dizzyingly devoid of sleep. (On the bright side, it\’s a lot better than if he had a triple ear infection.)

1. I thought Romney cleaned up. Pitch perfect throughout.

2. Nice to see Fred Thompson go on offense – but he seemed to be straining a little too hard to come up with quick one-liners. It\’s obvious he thinks South Carolina is his last stand.

3. McCain began the debate babbling completely incoherently. I thought he righted the ship about halfway through – thanks in large part to Ron Paul, who McCain was able to use as a target to discuss his strong foreign policy positions.

4. Huckabee also scored some points by taking Paul on with regard to Israel. Seriously, they should want Ron Paul in these debates – he makes them all seem a little more level headed. I also thought Huckabee gave a fantastic answer with regard to his evangelical beliefs. (Then again, asking Huckabee about religion is like asking me about Twinkies.) However, I thought he gave a really poor answer when asked about his support of past tax increases. He was insufficiently apologetic, and mentioned at the end that all that new spending made highways more accessible to children. Then again, if the minimum driving age in Arkansas was 8, would it surprise anyone?

5. Rudy was really solid, if not spectacular. I think it\’s telling that nobody\’s going after him – clearly, the other candidates\’ internal polls either show him far behind or sinking.

Need sleep. Sadly, my keyboard isn\’t drool-proof.