It’s usually pretty hard to judge the “winners” of the debates immediately after the event is over — much less partway through. But we’re roughly a third of the way through the Democratic debate, and my editors are asking me what I think. My answer: So far, I think the debate has mostly preserved the status quo. Clinton is not dominant, exactly, and she’s playing a lot of defense. But she’s easily the most polished candidate on stage — she’s pretty good at this — and has the message that’s likely to resonate most broadly with Democratic voters. Sanders is rough around the edges — take that answer on guns, for instance — but still has plenty of appeal to the liberalmost half of the room. The other three candidates are flatlining; if this was Martin O’Malley’s one chance to break out, he hasn’t taken it so far. But we’ll see; I’m prepared for the second and third periods to be more decisive.
