As more pachyderms near the precipice of dropping out of the primaries, we can still learn a thing or two (actually three) as we watch them. As they continue to pander to the extreme wing of the base, the biggest question of the debate for each candidate is expressed in the immortal words of The Clash: “Should I Stay or Should I Go Now?” Huckabee, Santorum and Paul should go now. One can only guess they are building platforms for their books or increasing their lecture fees on the speaking circuit. The best Fiorina can hope for is a VP slot, but she’ll be competing with Nikki Haley (who actually has government experience). Let me highlight three lessons I took away from the most recent debates.

Facts continue to be devalued as the currency of the debates. When facts are used, there is much explanation and highly contextualized circumstances. Note the following exchange during the undercard debate:

SMITH: Senator Santorum, I want to stay with you on this, moving to jobs and the economy. In his State of the Union Address the other night, President Obama touted his record on jobs, citing more than 14 million new jobs and boasted of nearly 900,000 manufacturing jobs added in the past six years. Do you dispute his track record of creating jobs?

SANTORUM: Well, the numbers just don’t add up. I mean, they have not added manufacturing jobs. Manufacturing jobs have been lost in this country, 2 million of them. The bottom line is that this president has done more to take jobs away from the hard-working people who are struggling the most.

Santorum didn’t offer any reason to dispute the numbers other than he disagreed with them. No source cited (and you wouldn’t expect one in Obama’s State of the Union Address), just simple disagreement.

Cavuto, (in reference to Christie) asked Rubio, “Is he a liberal?” Rubio’s response:

Unfortunately, Governor Christie has endorsed many of the ideas that Barack Obama supports, whether it is Common Core or gun control or the appointment of Sonia Sotomayor or the donation he made to Planned Parenthood. Our next president, and our Republican nominee can not be someone who supports those positions.

 Christie’s response to Rubio:

It appears that the same someone who has been whispering in old Marco’s ear too. [laughter]

So the indignation that you carry on, some of the stuff, you have to also own then. So let’s set the facts straight. First of all, I didn’t support Sonia Sotomayor. Secondly, I never wrote a check to Planned Parenthood.

Third, if you look at my record as governor of New Jersey, I have vetoed a 50-caliber rifle ban. I have vetoed a reduction this clip size. I vetoed a statewide I.D. system for gun owners and I pardoned, six out-of-state folks who came through our state and were arrested for owning a gun legally in another state so they never have to face charges.

And on Common Core, Common Core has been eliminated in New Jersey. So listen, this is the difference between being a governor and a senator. See when you’re a senator, what you get to do is just talk and talk and talk. And you talk so much that nobody can ever keep up with what you’re saying is accurate or not.

Politifact cannot verify the statement about Planned Parenthood, but finds the other charges about Christie’s one-time liberal positions true.

If you’re a candidate hoping to get more time, don’t answer a question directly, deliver a prepared sound bite and hope the moderators will offer you a follow-up question so you can be “pinned down” on your answer. Cruz has used this tactic successfully in the past, feigning indignation when the moderators move on. Cavuto and Bartiromo mostly failed to rise to the bait during this debate and while criticized for not pressing the candidates, actually kept the debate moving and didn’t allow it to be hijacked by the tactic.

Obama and Clinton have done a disastrous job defeating ISIS. One improvement everyone agrees on is that we should be reading Facebook pages of suspected terrorists. We also need a larger military, since we have the smallest navy since 1916 (never mind the firepower our small navy can bring to bear). Also, we shouldn’t be afraid to use it, although we are NOT the world’s policemen (does that make us the world’s meter maids?).

The debates still lack substance on specifics and candidates will continue to shy away from them until voters coalesce around one to three candidates. Fiorina, who has promised a three page tax code since the first debate has produced an example of someone else’s, but not one of her own. Cruz promised during the debate that under his tax plan, people would be able to fill out their taxes on a “postcard.” I’m waiting for a Post-it note or postage stamp tax form.