I've never seen a debate LOOK as pretty as the one last night in Simi Valley.  Forget about what McCain, Romney, Huckabee, and Paul actually SAID.  The Reagan Library was a gorgeous setting.

Whoever came up with the idea of putting the candidates in front of Ronald Reagan's Air Force One was brilliant.  It definitely helped make the debate more visually attractive.

And CNN shot it well.   The "boom camera" that swooped down to give an 'aerial' view of the panel was terrific.  They even had a camera inside the plane to give a view from that angle.

The library sits on top of a hill... So the light changed as the sun set behind the candidates seated at the podium.  The color of the hillsides in the big window behind them went from orange to brown to purple.  If you were bored by the candidates, well, the backdrop was always interesting.

Here's what I didn't like: 

*Somebody needs to get tougher on the candidates to stop them from droning on.  CNN's Anderson Cooper let McCain and Romney recite monologues that could have been cut short.

*The debate was available live ONLY on CNN.  You couldn't even hear it on the radio.  So many people in L.A. are in their cars on the freeway at 5 PM.  You'd think, as a public service, CNN would have let a radio station simulcast the event.  But to my knowledge, they did not.

Allright, we'll have another big debate tonight, this time between Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.  It could get really interesting.  I'm still trying to persuade friends at CNN to get me a ticket so I can go in person.  Here's Doyle McManus from the L.A. Times with what's in store (He'll get to ask a few questions):