The shoutfest is over! Here are the answers to my questions:
1. I think the realos scored some points against Sanders, but not enough.
2. Warren launched more ferocious attacks on Bloomberg, whom she appears to hate nearly as much as Trump. That excites her very small base, but in the big picture, it doesn’t do her any good at all. Biden actually benefits more from it than any of the other candidates; anything that diminishes Bloomberg without offending his supporters helps make him the realo frontrunner.
3. Biden had a very good night. I think it was enough to stop the rot, at least for now. I’m guessing he will win SC. That, combined with the continuing Warren assaults on Bloomberg, will help him on Super Tuesday.
4. There was no Mayor Pete/Amy undercard tonight, which was just as well. They are fading into electoral oblivion.
5. Bloomberg was definitely better, but the public will probably remember Warren’s assaults on him more than his responses. Which will matter more in the long run, his commercials or his poor debate performances? We won’t know the answer to that until Super Tuesday.