Who is Ilia Calderón and what was she doing there? She posed hostile questions in heavily accented English. “Why have you fleeped?” she asked Chris Christie in one of her immigration-related questions. I take it that Calderón’s role was to remind us of the questions a mainstream media figure would ask the Republican candidate in a general election. The New York Times now gives her its blessing and commendation. That says it all.

This was a terrible event. To say the least, the format is of questionable value. The moderators had a difficult job to do and performed it poorly.

[You can read my thoughts on that here, if you missed them earlier. I wonder whether the other candidates will start going rogue and seek out forums without the RNC. DeSantis’s decision to debate Gavin Newsom and his challenge to Trump suggests that his team is looking at alternatives. — Ed]