BLOGGING THE GOP DEBATE - The Beginning

Did someone give all the guys in the debate a memo to wear red ties? . . . Paul begins by hitting at Trump and Rubio right from the start. He strikes a libertarian pose . . . Kasich calls for an end to the fighting and yelling, but wait -- he was one of the biggest yellers in the last debate. And, here we go -- he strikes a conciliatory tone with Democrats. . . . Christie says "America has been betrayed" and he leads with swipes at Hillary and Obama. Good form as he segues into questions reminding us about the closing of the LA schools today. He's stellar! . . . . Fiorina utters those famous words: "take our country back" but she says she's "been tested" but has she? . . . . Why doesn't Jeb Bush get rid of those granny glasses? They make him look like an old man. He tries to be optimistic and upbest but his opening misses the mark . . . Rubio tells his well-known immigrants' story and then swings into an attack on Obama. But it sounds to canned -- once again like snippets from his stump speech . . . Cruz has a very angular face with a pointy, pinched nose. A friend says he looks and sounds like a televangelist. His opening is very brief . . . Carson begins with a moment of silence in memory of the San Bernardino victims. A nice touch, and he's quite dapper. He compares our country to a patient who is not well and compares ISIS to a cancer. Interesting. . . . Trump opens subdued. Yes, subdued, for him! He looks good tonight. Not to ruddy, not to shiny. "we've opened up a very big discussion that needed to be opened up." Trump's opening scores high!