Pro-War GOP Top Tier Continues to Split, A Good Night for Ron Paul

For those who didn't see it, be sure to watch the debate on youtube. Paul's peformance last night was his best yet. Since the first debate, Paul has become confident and relaxed and it shows. He had much more face time than ever before and used it well.

He also showed off his sense of humor, especially in the post-debate interview when he even charmed (sort of) Sean Hannity. Hannity began to reel off a list of agencies that Paul would abolish. His list started with the IRS. Before Hannity had a chance to move onto the CIA, Paul jumped in. He smiled and winked and said"Sean, aren't you against that too?" The slightly flustered Hannity had to smile and mumble yes.

In addition to Paul, the big winner of the night (at least for the MSM) was Mike"Nanny State" Huckabee. A sustained effort is now underway to promote him into the top tier.

This is good news for Paul. Here's why. With the entry of Thompson, the ranks of the top tier will have increased to four. If Huckabee moves up, that would leave the top tier fighting for an average of under 20 percent each.

The end result is to make it even easier for Paul to stand out as the only antiwar candidate in the field and, just importantly, more difficult for the MSM and GOP leadership to exclude him and other so-called bottom tier candidates from future debates.