KEY POINTS:
Just when I suspected there would be fireworks, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama decided to get all friendly.
Today's Democrat debate at the Kodak Theatre was notable for its tone - far warmer than it was last time Clinton and Obama met in a debate earlier this month.
The two had obviously decided it was a good time to be civil to one another and to emphasise that they are both Democrats and their real enemy is the Republicans. Of course Clinton and Obama are fierce rivals in the race to be the Democrat nominee, but they tried hard to project a unified image. The Republicans have been talking up a split in the Democrat party lately over Clinton vs Obama so the show of unity was clearly designed to offset that.
Overall I thought Clinton had a good debate, and maybe edged her rival just slightly. She gets my prize for best line of the evening - "It took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, and it might take a Clinton to clean up after the second Bush". The answer was particularly clever because it came in response to a proposition that the Clinton and Bush families would have dominated the White House for too long if she gets in. Clinton won a lengthy round of applause for her quip.
But the war in Iraq remains a hot issue within the Democrats, and Clinton's vote in favour of it several years ago was her weakness on the evening, and will be a weakness for the rest of her campaign. She voted to give President Bush the ok to go to war, while Obama instead made a speech against the war before it happened. He is pushing his opposition to the war as a strength, and Clinton spent a good deal of time in the debate sidestepping questions about whether her vote had been a mistake.
Obama is a good performer, and top notch speaker. Clinton, though, I thought did very well and managed to show some nice touches of humour. She could gain most from the debate. But it is such a close race that I pity those Democrats having to make a decision. Obama is on a roll fundraising-wise since he won South Carolina less than a week ago, and since the endorsement of him by Caroline Kennedy.
Today's debate was more of a hugfest than a slugfest, but make no mistake. The battle is well and truly on.