Wednesday Night's Debate Will Be Grand Theatre

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Rick Santorum will take center stage for Wednesday Night's Republican Party Debate flanked by Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul.  It will be a new experience for him being front and center as the frontrunner.  Santorum will do everything he can to maintain his center and frontrunner position.  Count on the other three candidates to do everything they can to derail Santorum and have him cast out of the center spot.  Strategies are being developed and certainly practices by each candidate trying to unseat Santorum. 

For Santorum, the center spot casts a whole new shadow on his candidacy.  The other three candidates will be taking pot shots and piling on whenever possible.  At the same time, Romney's new position on stage will be new to him.  One has to wonder if he will be more comfortable in the number two spot.  Which of these men will find their new positioning to be the most fun for them?

Newt Gingrich will be striving for a stellar performance to help reignite his campaign fires which have quieted significantly since his loss in Florida to Romney.  Look for Newt to respond to some of the social, ideological issues that Santorum has embraced over the last few weeks.  Look for Ron Paul to dismiss the social and ideological issues and encourage more debate on deficit reduction.  Look for Mitt Romney to go aggressive and attack Santorum on his record as a United States Senator.

Santorum will focus much of his attention and criticism on President Obama.  Both Romney and Gingrich will tee-off on Santorum for his voting record.  For the most part, it will be a one-two punch that Santorum hasn't experienced yet on stage.  No longer the third wheel, Santorum will definitely be engaged in this debate.  It will be interesting to see how he is able to withstand the attacks.  The President will become more of an afterthought to Romney and Gingrich but they will pile on when it plays well to the crowd.

Santorum's focus on social and ideological issues of late will certainly encourage the moderator to go after some very specific questions.  The big one where he must be prepared is his stance on women issues including contraception and women in front line battle positions.  Not perceived as a women's champion, he should expect some very pointed questions regarding his attitudes toward women.  Dangerous ground for sure and certainly an area where Mitt Romney would like to see Santorum falter.

The last debate before the Michigan and Arizona primaries is critical to each of the candidates.  Santorum wants to strengthen his lead.  Romney wants to stop the bleeding.  Gingrich wants to get back on the map.  Ron Paul just wants to be considered part of the equation.  Look for Wednesday Night's debate to be great political theatre.