Poor Jeb looked like an aging big-leaguer striking out on three straight pitches from a Little Leaguer with a wicked fastball. Now Marco gets his moment on the mound.

So four questions from last night’s Republican playoff game:

When will the rats desert the SS Bush? You almost feel sorry for the Establishment Republicans, including many in North Carolina, who jumped on the good ship Bush when it set sail. They promised “shock and awe.” Now they’re just shocked. Who will be the first to jump ship?

Is Marco Rubio JFK or Dan Quayle? Rubio scares Democrats who, as a wise TAPster notes, are always looking for the next Jack Kennedy. Yes, Rubio is young, handsome and articulate, and he stood out last night. Republicans dream about him facing Hillary Clinton in a debate. But there hasn’t been another JFK in 50 years. And here’s guessing Mario ain’t it.

Where were the Two Wild and Crazy Guys? Trump and Carson were at center stage for a reason. They’re why we watched. We wanted a showdown between the loud crazy guy and the quiet crazy guy. But they disappeared. We want our money back!

How can the CNBC panelists ever show their faces on TV again? They lost control from the beginning, and their questions sounded just like the Republicans’ on the Benghazi committee, long, accusatory and hard-to-follow (but easy to answer), essentially, “Will you admit to the American people right now – under my withering questioning and stern visage – that you are just a sorry sack of shit?” Which enabled the candidates to respond, “No, because you in the media are all sorry sacks of shit!” Which is very popular with Republican voters.

For Democrats, there just can’t be enough of these debates. More, we say, more!