GOP debate winners and losers

A lot has been written since last night about the GOP debate winners and losers.  Adding a detailed analysis here won't add much value, so here's a quick assessment.

The consensus seems to be the winner was Romney by not suffering any setbacks - no real attacks to defend and no major mistakes.  I think that's a fair assessment.  The front runner won by merely staying in front and not tripping.  That's a pretty low bar, but I'm sure Romney will take it.  The runner up seemed to be Bachmann who set the stage for herself as a viable candidate and not a merely cheerleader.  She also seemed to be relatively sound bite friendly, which is going to be a big plus this cycle.

The biggest losers?  Both Pawlenty and Gingrich had something they needed to prove and did not do so.  Pawlenty needed to draw some blood from Romney to position himself as an alternative.  He didn't do it despite given the chance to answer firmly on 'Obamneycare', to which he declined to dish dirt.  Gingrich needed to prove he still deserved to be there after cutting down Ryan.  He was hampered by the debate format and he didn't do it.  Both men can recover, it's still early.  But they can't wait forever.