What to watch in tonight's GOP debate

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

This is it: One last Republican presidential debate before voters (finally) begin the process of deciding which Republican will face off against President Obama in the general election.

The debates have been enormously influential in the 2012 election cycle, helping burst the bubble of a onetime frontrunner (Rick Perry) while catapulting a candidate from afterthought to the top of the polls (Newt Gingrich). Tonight's face-off in Des Moines is the last scheduled debate before both the January 3 Iowa caucuses and the holiday season, a time when families gather to celebrate - and, in many cases, talk politics.

This is the second debate since Gingrich became the frontrunner for the nomination, and he is sure to once again be a target for his rivals. Last time around, Gingrich largely fended off their attacks. But Gingrich's rivals have sharpened their critiques: Mitt Romney, his chief rival for the nomination, has been aggressively pushing the notion that Gingrich is a "zany," "unreliable conservative," someone who can't be trusted as the GOP's standard bearer. Expect him to hit that point repeatedly tonight in an effort to convince voters that Gingrich represents an unacceptable risk as a general election candidate.

Gingrich has repeatedly vowed to run a positive campaign, though he hasn't always followed through; it will be interesting to see if he lashes out in response to attacks tonight or tries to take the high road. Gingrich's professorial posture in early debates - when he wasn't being attacked - convinced voters to give him a second look; his task tonight will be not to say something to make them reevaluate that decision.

(At left, Brian Montopoli discusses fears that Newt Gingrich could be the second coming of Christine O'Donnell.)

Romney will be looking to land punches while also avoiding the sort of gaffe he made last time around, when his offer of a $10,000 bet generated a torrent of negative headlines. Romney is a good debater but can seem uncomfortable when on the attack; if he can be convincingly aggressive against Gingrich, it will both diminish the frontrunner and help put to rest concerns among some Republicans that he won't take the fight to President Obama in a general election.

Then there are the candidates who have pinned all their hopes in Iowa: Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum and Rick Perry. All three are campaigning aggressively in the Hawkeye State in the hope that a surprise victory there will give their sputtering campaigns a shot of momentum. Expect all three to try to appeal to evangelical voters, who dominate the GOP electorate in Iowa, and to name check towns and landmarks in the state in an effort to squeeze out a few more voters come January.

For Jon Huntsman, the debate is also a chance to appeal to key early state voters - not in Iowa, which he has written off, but in his make-or-break state of New Hampshire, which holds its primary January 10. Huntsman's campaign was buoyed by a new poll showing him in third place in New Hampshire, and you can expect the former Utah governor to tailor his comments tonight to the Granite State's independent-minded Republican voters - and its independents, who can vote in the state's GOP primary. 

Then there's Ron Paul, for whom a victory in the Iowa caucuses is not out of the question. Paul has an excellent Iowa ground game and has been running anti-Gingrich ads in the state, and a recent CBS News/New York Times poll showed him essentially tied for second there. There's no mystery what the libertarian-leaning Texas lawmaker will say - as he noted in a Fox News interview Thursday, "I've been saying the same thing for 30 years and suddenly there is a lot more enthusiasm." Look for Paul to clash with his rivals on foreign aid and the U.S. military presence abroad as well as civil liberties issues at home - and to be greeted with rapturous applause from his passionate supporters, who are usually a boisterous presence in debate audiences.

The Fox News/Iowa Republican Party debate will take place from 9-11 p.m. Eastern Time. Check back to CBSNews.com during and after the event for our reports on the biggest moments of the night as well as our take on who had a good night - and who didn't.

Special report: Election 2012

[revkrazy]

Great debate tonight. Who do you feel won

Poll: Who won the 12/15 Fox News Debate in Sioux City, Iowa?

Vote: http://www.wepolls.com/p/6488640/

[sharkboy234]

president obama is hard to beat. send newt gingrich home mitt romney will be hard to beat in the primary.

[Overhaul_America]

The sad part of political debates today is that the candidates are all essentially the same. They are all very far to their respective side. No candidate is truly a moderate, as the parties have become diametrically opposed on nearly every issue. And, the candidates very rarely explain why they are the better choice, but rather simply attack the other candidates and the incumbent. As a result, most people simply choose the candidate that they dislike the least as opposed to a candidate who actually represents their interests. This is due in large part to the overentrenchment and excessive power that the Republicans and Democrats have created for themselves. They have done this, and managed to keep any other third party from becoming a legitimate candidate, by setting up balloting rules and Congressional procedures that greatly favor these two parties, and also by setting up campaign finance rules that allow them to economically bully any third party out of the race. And, once elected, all members from these two parties do is vote and act in a manner that is best for the party and the party's few large contributors. This is not how a democracy is supposed to work and it must stop. I encourage everyone to check out the American Overhaul Act (www.americanoverhaulact.org), which attempts to correct these problems through a set of proposed Constitutional amendments. If you agree with the proposals, show your support, and also share it with your friends and family.

[Worth_Repeating]

Ron Paul is the opposite of the prototypical lying, cheating, partisan, deficit-spending, world empire-building constitution-ignoring narcissist politician we all constantly complain about. If we continue to play "right versus left" politics in Washington, fail to balance our budget, and continue to allow the gradual installation of a surveillance state, we will deserve the collapse we are about to experience.

[billpl-2009]

What to watch in tonight's GOP debate?


...thursday nite football

[fedup12]

"try to appeal to evangelical voters, who dominate the GOP electorate in Iowa"

Seems like there is an oxymoron in there somewhere!!!

[disney51]

Every GOP candidate wants to end Medicare and Social Security ,every one!! I paid for these two benefits all my life and now I'm close to that age to collect, they want to trash it. Also not one GOP candidate is willing to increase any tax on the very rich, but will increase taxes on the middle class in a heartbeat.Millionaires at one time paid a 90% tax, now they are at 35% ,and most pay less than that because of there deductibles. And remember where we were when Obama took over , losing over 700,000 jobs a month and on the brink of our 2nd depression ever!! I'm voting for Obama , I've learned my lesson by believing in the GOP...

[disney51]

Every GOP candidate wants to end Medicare and Social Security ,every one!! I paid for these two benefits all my life and now I'm close to that age to collect, they want to trash it. Also not one GOP candidate is willing to increase any tax on the very rich, but will increase taxes on the middle class in a heartbeat.Millionaires at one time paid a 90% tax, now they are at 35% ,and most pay less than that because of there deductibles. And remember where we were when Obama took over , losing over 700,000 jobs a month and on the brink of our 2nd depression ever!! I'm voting for Obama , I've learned my lesson by believing in the GOP...

[franknkissy]

Well President Obama has brought the Iraqi War to a limited conclusion - so lets hear how Republican Presidential hopefuls intend to End the hemorraging of American workers' dollars in Afghanistan ! Pacem in Terris .....Frank A. Novello

[nearl451]

Things to look for......

.....seasoned salt in the popcorn.