By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Producer 

Did you see a winner in last nights debate?  If so, share your insights. 

Posted Nov.16, 2007 – Did anybody else find the format of Thursday night’s Democratic debate in Las Vegas distracting, with all the constant applause and the unseemly amount of time allotted to Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.)?  I’m sure the other five folks who were left just standing there behind their podiums would agree with me.

Leading up to the debate, pundits focused on how Clinton was going “come back” after her lackluster performance in Philadelphia and the pounding she took from her rivals. Well, she did come back fighting, and she brought some new ammunition: her fresh hair highlights, a silver necklace and red lipstick. 

I noticed the handiwork of her “glam squad,” and I bet most of the viewers at home did too.

 Clinton has made every effort to keep her gender out off the radar, but she made sure to reference it in last night’s debate. “I’m not playing, as some people say, the gender card here in Las Vegas,” she said, contradicting herself in the process. “I’m just trying to play the winning card. And I understand very well that people are not attacking me because I’m a woman; they’re attacking me because I’m ahead.”

The candidates tried to get on the record – issue by issue – but it wasn’t easy with so much time given for rivals to mitigate their arguments in rebuttals.

Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), the only one who could stick to time limits, was refreshing and to the point.  He complimented all his challengers while finding a way to challenge their abilities in the same sentence.  “This is not about experience; it’s about change. It’s about action,” he said. “Who among us is going to be able to, on day one, step in and end the war?” 

Former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, made a compassionate speech in opposition to racial profiling.  “It will be stopped when I am president of the United States,” he said. “We’re gong to take the steps that need to be taken to restore America’s moral leadership in the world.”  

After Clinton and Obama sparred over who had the best universal healthcare plan, I didn’t see anyone score a knockout.  I’ll bet that virtually all of the candidates left Vegas with the same amount of support they brought.