• by Philip Rosenstein , Staff Writer, February 8, 2016

The candidate introductions at the ABC/IJReview debate in New Hampshire on Saturday evening were the strangest yet. Miscommunication or general noise level caused Ben Carson, Donald Trump and John Kasich to miss their entrances, starting off the debate on an odd note.

Last week, this column discussed Sen. Marco Rubio’s success in Iowa and his apparent capture of the establishment lane. Much of that argument could be moot following a painful performance on Saturday.

Among the most cringe-worthy moments, completely breaking his train of thought and with no apparent relation to the questions, Rubio repeated three times, almost word for word, a canned speech that started with: “[Barack Obama] knows exactly what he is doing. He is trying to change this country.”

The exchange began as a discussion about record, pitting Gov. Chris Christie against Rubio. When the Florida senator wasn’t able to make a convincing case for defending a record of consequence, he mechanically reverted to his stump speech a second time. (Rubio surrogate Rick Santorum has the same problem with the accomplishment question.)

In response, Gov. Christie interjected and did what he does best.

“I want the people at home to think about this. That’s what Washington, D.C., does. The drive-by shot at the beginning  with incorrect and incomplete information and then the memorized 25-second speech that is exactly what his advisers gave him.”

As many have been musing: “Domo arigato Marco Roboto.”

With Rubio feeling the heat, his former colleague Jeb Bush went on offense against Donald Trump about eminent domain. Bush was a more fiery self, one he's offered in more recent debates.

Trump, trying to restore Bush’s image of a weak leader, interrupted one of the governor’s answers with: “He’s trying to be a tough guy tonight.” Soon after, he put his finger to his lips and told him to be quiet.

Surprisingly, Sen. Ted Cruz faced few attacks from his competitors. He had some good and noticeably bad moments, but didn’t really make a mark on the night overall. He spoke eloquently of his half-sister’s drug addiction and had an uncharacteristic brain-freeze when talking about torture and the legality of waterboarding.

New Hampshire looks like a lock for Donald Trump, who holds a strong lead in recent polls. Interesting footnote: The state's primary, like Iowa, has its own delegate system. NPR reports that if a candidate doesn't secure 10% of the vote, he gets no delegates. That means if Bush, Carson, Christie or Rubio perform under that threshold, their delegates go to the winner. If the polls hold, that would be Trump.

However, the field seems to have widened after the debate, which could influence the longevity of the GOP primary. Candidates, like Gov. Jeb Bush and Gov. John Kasich may stay around a little longer, despite poor showings in Iowa. To secure a foothold, Bush is outspending his rivals.

The Boston Herald reported in late December that Jeb and Right to Rise, his Super PAC, had already spent some $35 million in advertising — and had set aside $14 million or so just for the New Hampshire primary. That also includes high-exposure pitches, like Super Bowl ads in the Boston media market.

In a fluid race, Bush, Kasich, Christie and Rubio will be gunning for strong results.