I admit that I get a little giddy when I see something that shows Americans are paying attention.

It does my heart good and the post GOP debate polls were pretty much along the lines of what I expected, assuming that Americans were indeed focused.

If it was the intention of Vivek Ramaswamy to introduce himself to the nation, he succeeded – and failed.

Before the first GOP debate, 21 percent of Americans said they had no idea who Ramaswamy is and post debate, the foreign policy disaster in the making Ramaswamy was able to cut that number down to 12 percent.

That’s a success for him but his approval ratings dropped from 10 percent to 6 percent. That’s a solid indication to me that Conservatives – who understand foreign policy – realized what a disaster a Ramaswamy presidency would be on the global stage.

And as more information surfaces about Ramaswamy’s rise to wealth by doing business in and with China, Americans aren’t buying his alleged tough trade stance.

How can anyone take that seriously when he says China can have Taiwan after America increases its chip production capability?

He’s treating an entire pro-American nation like it was the last piece of pizza he was sharing with China and is just telling them, “Oh no, you take it.”

No big deal to give away a nation to our No. 1 enemy?

I liked Ramaswamy when he first started this campaign but he’s nothing but a used car salesman and there is no way this guy is looking out for me. This election is all about him.

And keep in mind, the majority of respondents to some of these polls thought Ramaswamy won the debate. I don’t agree with that at all, but it shows that maybe people thought Ramaswamy was personable and likable, but again, cringed at his foreign policy suggestions.

Or maybe it just shows how stupid polls are.

Our great Gov. Ron DeSantis didn’t gain a lot of ground, but he didn’t lose any either. By the way, thank you governor for halting your campaign to take care of Florida during this hurricane.

I absolutely love our governor and I won’t go into what I have said all along about whether or not he should have tossed his hat into the ring during this cycle.

I honestly thought DeSantis would see a little bit of a bump in his approval ratings. I thought he held his own but he also had some not so solid moments. So coming out of it even handed isn’t that shocking.

It’s like playing a hard fought football game to a tie. My JV football coach in high school used to say ties were like kissing your cousin. It’s nice to get a kiss, but come on man, it’s your cousin!

Nikki Haley saw a solid 5-point rise in her polls and it’s just well deserved. She has always impressed the hell out of me and I look forward to a DeSantis/Haley ticket in 2028.

Hey, one can hope, right?

Seriously though, she’s got the right stuff and I can’t think of a thing she said that I wasn’t on board with. If it wasn’t for the big man in the race, she has done enough for me to make a decision between her, DeSantis or Tim Scott, a very difficult decision indeed.

I would have a hard time choosing.

But it doesn’t matter because the big man is in the race and polls show that Donald Trump suffered a six-point setback.

And, of course, the media is delighting in it like it really has some significance. Google it and look at the headlines from the liberal rags out there. It’s hilarious. Some of them are essentially calling the election. Ridiculous.

I guess no one can be surprised that Trump’s poll numbers dropped somewhat considering he wasn’t there. But as we talked about during our last visit, Trump’s Twitter interview absolutely destroyed Fox’s debate ratings.

265 million Twitter views to Fox’s 13 million debate views. Sorry, not sorry, but Trump still wins the day without even being there.

Speaking of Trump, I’m sure you’ve seen that one of his trials is scheduled to start one day before Super Tuesday. Election interference much? Democrats are criminals, each and every one.

The biggest surprise is that Mike Pence enjoyed a 4-point jump. I thought Pence did a great job at the debate so maybe that’s just an acknowledgement of his debate prowess.

Or again, maybe polls are just stupid. Or both.

He still has no shot at winning.

I’m not even going to bother talking about Chris Christie or Asa Hutchinson anymore. They both make me sick.

And finally, there is Doug Burgum. What a trooper this guy is. I would love to see him in the next Trump administration. Just keep him away from foreign policy, too.

When he complained the debate wasn’t addressing the China threat enough, I cheered. When they finally did, he left no real impression.

Make him a “small town Czar” or something. He has a great sense for the American pulse at home and I can get behind that as a cabinet member.

Granted, some of these averaged out polls go much deeper. For example, Trump’s approval went from 54 percent to 42 percent in the Midwest after being a no show at the debate.

Midwesterners don’t like that but I’m sure Trump will recover as long as he recognizes his own opinion about polls, rightfully ignores them, and shows up.

I understand skipping the first one. Don’t skip another one even though he said he would. It’s just a bad idea. Don’t get me wrong, Trump wins the nomination hands down. There’s not stopping that train, but he’s getting away from his 2016 campaign success.

He doesn’t want to leave the door open. The one thing I’ve always loved about Trump is that he’s like a shark in the water and is smelling the blood. He goes in for the kill when he has the opportunity.

He’s missing that opportunity by ignoring these debates. It’s very un-Trump like and I’m not a fan of Trump not being Trump.

Another interesting thing in the polls is that DeSantis dropped in several categories but still wins a primary election if it were held today, and if Trump wasn’t in the race.

But he is, Ron. He is.

It’s an interesting first look, but it is just a first look. We have a long, long way to go but most of these candidates make me proud to be a Conservative.

Except for Christie and Hutchinson, of course.

If I was in Game of Thrones, I’d strip them down and make them do the walk of atonement at the GOP National Convention, walking behind them with a bell, saying, “Shame. Shame. Shame,” every few steps.

Stay vigilant out there my friends. Keep informed, keep sharing our truth and thank you God for keeping Manatee County safe after another close call with a hurricane. God bless each and every one of you and God bless America.