This Republican debate is the polar opposite of the last one.

The last Republican debate—and the one before that and the one before that and... you get it—was two hours of the candidates yelling over each other, wildly grabbing for attention. Donald Trump talked about his penis! In the first fifteen minutes of the debate! 

Twenty minutes into tonight’s debate, there has not been a single reference to Donald Trump’s penis, or anyone else’s penis, something that has not been lost on the commentariat. 

This debate has been the polar opposite of earlier ones, which at times seemed like they could break out in violence. Instead, the candidates have soberly discussed trade and immigration and largely refused to attack one another. Now, the last Fox debate started with questions tailor-made to get people’s blood boiling. CNN started serious and kind of boring, so the candidates have been serious and kind of boring. But that doesn’t change the fact that Trump is clearly trying to act presidential. His opponents seem desperate enough to try to do the same.