I thought Christie and Paul's back and forth on NSA surveillance was real interesting. Unfortunately, I thought Christie got the best of Paul, who should have done much better. These debates are never really "debates," but it still would have been better for an opponent of the NSA programs to make the case to a live national audience. I mean, Paul should have seen this topic coming, and he should have had a much better answer for any confrontation with a supporter of the NSA programs. It seems pretty simple. Attack the "conservative" candidate for playing lip service to the idea of "small government" while supporting such programs. Then use the rhetorical punch of calling the guy "Big Brother," which even those who haven't read 1984 understand. Instead, Christie got to shout emotional platitudes while Paul struggled to communicate the problems with bulk surveillance.
Yeah. I wish Paul would have focused less on the Obama bashing and more on the facts. But that would mean that Americans were actually watching the debate for well thought out content. I read Donald Trump was widely considered the winner so I know that well thought out content is not the way to win these debates.