The Democratic Debate tonight at 8pm CST with MSNBC and the Washington Post holding the debate at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, Georgia. I’m expecting an entertaining night of quips and one liners. Heavy blows from Tulsi Gabbard and a series of softball questions for Mayor Pete. Andrew Yang will have another night with minimum speaking time, but he’ll take full advantage of every moment he has. Joe Biden will just steady his ship and take incoming fire. Tom Steyer, Amy Klobachar, and Cory Booker are simply coming for their farewell fights as they scream with the last throes of death for their campaigns. Bernie Sanders will loom over the debate with the most impressive following in the history of presidential campaigns. Rivaled only in intensity by the Yang Gang who will make sure to dominate the Twittersphere and online polling.

Joe Biden

Joe Biden has maintained a hold on the top tier with an absolutely minimal interaction with the people. This is practically home field advantage for Joe Biden with Atlanta having a sizable black population. The black vote that has kept Joe Biden in the top tier is a testament to the power of the black voice. Black people seem to be disengaged with the race at this point and for many this will be the first debate they watch as they are just starting to tune in to the race, so a single racial gaff could squander that lead, and with the heavy hitter Tulsi Gabbard and the desperate Kamala Harris I would expect them, as the only women of color on the stage, to press Joe Biden on racial issues and more specifically his role as a part of the architecture for the failed war on drugs and the ’92 crime bill that decimated the black community. Black people’s support for Joe Biden I find disheartening and is a result of low information voters not being engaged.

Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren has started seeing a slip, possibly as a result of a combination of a rise from Pistol Pete and her wavering on issues like Medicare for All and automation. I’m most curious to see whether Warren will be forced to acknowledge Andrew Yang’s better grasp of the automation question she was unable to answer before. Her lack of foreign policy and seeming inability to answer on the fly about what is going on in the area that the Commander in Chief is most influential.

Bernie Sanders

Bernie Sanders keeps room for him to be more aggressive. I don’t think Sanders really sees Mayor Pete as a threat despite Pete’s recent surge into first place in a recent Iowa poll. Despite what you may hear on the major news networks, Bernie Sanders is the spirit of the Democratic Party. So long as he maintains his character and stance on issues that he’s held for the past 40+ years, he can capitalize by firing from the top of the mountain.

Pete Buttigieg

Pete is rising like a phoenix from the ashes after his campaign was on life support in the way that Kamala Harris’s campaign is now. With his poll numbers rising and even taking a commanding lead in this CNN/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll of likely Iowa caucus goers. Thanks in no small part to the major news networks propping him. The only other noteworthy thing is the fact that Pete’s rise has zero support from black voters. Consider that when you see how he will attempt and fail to pivot towards black issues.

Tulsi Gabbard

Tulsi Gabbard with the highest crossover support with Republicans and the attack resume that has put fear in all the establishment candidates. I’m expecting to see her and Pistol Pete have a back and forth, and for her to land knockdown punches on every question that involves foreign policy. This is also where Elizabeth Warren is most vulnerable. Tulsi is out for blood and unless she has mentioned her approval, like she has at every debate for Andrew Yang, you’re on the hit list.

Andrew Yang

Andrew Yang seems to have really plateaued in recent weeks since the last debate. His followers seem to be struggling to hang on by what I’m witnessing on the Twitter Timeline. With the debate being in Atlanta, Georgia this is Yang’s second attempt to garner the black vote away from Joe Biden who holds a commanding lead among black voters. He’s expected to have a meeting with Killer Mike which isn’t going to help considering the black voters that support Biden are not the ones that follow Killer Mike. This is a make or break moment for Yang because he’s still one qualifying poll away from making the December debate. He needs to pin Warren down on where she is now on the automation question as well as have her elaborate on her latest quote that Universal Basic Income is among the “options to consider”.

Tom Steyer

Tom Steyer is still here and rising quietly in the polls. Hey, at least I mentioned him. #YangMediaBlackout

Kamala Harris

If she hadn’t already made the threshold for the December debate I would say that this would be her farewell debate. However, with her having taken such a big hit last time and the campaign showing signs of struggle with the firing of staff, I expect her to do a full pivot on issues like marijuana.

Amy Klobachar

Amy Klobachar has maintained a presence but, with her lack of momentum she’s going to need a big night.

Cory Booker

Cory Booker has been in a slump as well. He does well in the debates but his lack of vision and no breakout performance this may well be the end of his bid.