GOP debate on the surface: N.H primary

Happy First-Debate-of-the-New Year!

Here's an overview of the itty bitties from Saturday night's GOP debate in New Hampshire:

1. Bye Rick Perry. If you heard Perry say that he'd "send troops back into Iraq" -- even before there's an immediate need to -- and you didn't shudder, I'm shocked. President Barack Obama effectively ended the war in Iraq in late December. Was it too soon? That's your call. But for Perry to say he's going to send men and women back to the defunct region to protect it from Iranians was suicide. RIP. And this guy has never lost an election before? Hard to believe. Texans are smart.

2. ABC's Diane Sawyer talks like Martha Stewart. Sawyer moderated the debate along with George Stephanopoulos and local affiliate Josh McElveen. Am I the only one who imagined that if the camera showed her hands, you'd see one of them holding a paint brush? She seriously sounded like  Martha Stewart. Pre-convict Martha Stewart, that is.

3. Ron Paul's tie was really outdated. Several BLAZE readers pointed this out during our live chat. As one of our readers put it, "How far back did Ron Paul have to reach into his closet for that tie?"

4. Speaking of Ron Paul, his golden moment -- perhaps of his entire campaign -- was when Mitt Romney deferred to him on whether states had the right to ban contraception. Who knew?

5. ABC's set was nice. except for the Hi-Fi stereo-looking graphics.

6. I knew what Newt Gingrich was talking about thanks to this story from Yahoo News.

7. There were too many mic problems during this debate. ABC should talk with the producers. Paul's was going haywire. And Perry sounded like he was joining the debate via ham radio.

8. This was the first time Rick Santorum was moved from the wings of the stage to the center. That probably felt good. But he still has a lot to answer for in terms of how he views an American's right to privacy.