Tipsheet

At the Debate....

All right, I'm here...late...once again illustrating the irony that these days it's often easier  and more effective to cover an event from your couch than it is to do it on site.

The scene outside is pretty raucous. There's a "free speech zone" in which all the campaigns' respective supporters are literally caged, screaming for the cameras and occasionally other supporters and waving signs. It's quite a spectacle.

A group of Ron Paul supporters is out front of the college, greeting people at the entrance and simultaneously supporting Paul and protesting the need for a "free speech zone." They've got a huge banner: "Don't Tax Me, Bro" and a Wookie and a trombone player.

The sign count is an interesting metric for who's got operatives on the ground, here, so I'll tell you about what we saw. Surprisingly few Paul signs (he's usually leading), surprisingly many Huckabee signs. Huckabee's signs easily outnumbered Rudy's, Fred's, and even Romney's by a long shot on the road on the way into the college. Could it be that the mythical Huckabee ground game in N.H. is real? Eh, he still won't win, but a surprising showing would be interesting.

Update:
Huckabee lands a huge hit on Romney making the entire gym full of reporters simultaneously go, "Ooooh!"

Romney: "Don't miscategorize my position."

Huck: "Which one?"