SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

MAIN DEBATE OVER – We'll have more reaction in the morning.  Initial reaction, including focus groups, seems to suggest that Donald Trump lost ground and that Marco Rubio and Dr. Ben Carson gained some support.  There were also very good words for Mike Huckabee.   Scott Walker seemed to be a neutral, along with Jeb Bush.  The focus was on Trump, who, when seen in the company of skilled political debaters, didn't come off as either statesmanlike or knowledgeable.  But I think it will take more debates to sort out the real winners and losers.  Too many on that platform.

THE OPENING ACT – An earlier debate featured those who didn't make the poll cut, and produced a clear winner:  Carly Fiorina.  Comments by observers made clear that Fiorina stood out from the pack, and clearly deserves a place on the larger stage.  I remain amazed that, given her superb performance on the stump, she hasn't moved the numbers at all.  Maybe the GOP really is just a bit too stodgy.  Carly is the only woman running, is lightning smart, and deserves more respect.  I expect to see her in the main tent next time.

YOU CAN'T MAKE THIS UP – From Breitbart:  Thursday at a ceremony to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act at the White House, President Barack Obama laughed as he said that voter fraud is not a “real problem” because “nobody wakes up and says I’m going to go vote in somebody else’s name.”  And he comes from Chicago?  I know he knows nothing about the world, but he doesn't even know about his own neighborhood.  There are many people voting in Chicago elections who haven't been on this Earth in years.

ANYONE IN THE WHITE HOUSE INTERESTED? – From AP:  Police in northwest Louisiana say an officer has died after being shot while on duty, and a manhunt for a suspect is under way.  Shreveport Police Cpl. Marcus Hines said at a press conference late Wednesday that the officer was shot while responding to a report of a suspicious person inside a home.  Hines says an armed man was apparently inside the residence, threatening to harm people.  Late report:  A suspect is now in custody.  The officer was the 20th killed this year in the United States.  I wonder if their lives matter to the people temporarily running the U.S. Government.

August 6, 2015