The GOP debate held at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, demonstrated how much the Republicans are living in the past.

The ten monochrome candidates harkened back to an era when only white middleaged men held the reins of political power. Not even the second-tier presidential hopefuls included a woman or minority.

There wasn’t even a Michael Gravel type of candidate for comic relief. The GOP heavyweights looked like a bunch of undertakers appearing solemn before a grieving family.

Not even the histrionics of the moderator, Chris Matthews, could enliven the deathly dull event.

The debaters expressed a yearning for an America where abortion is illegal, immigration is curbed, the Iraq war continues indefinitely and evolution is anathema. That’s not the “morning in America” of the Reagan era; it’s more reminiscent of Afghanistan under the Taliban.

The Republican presidential contenders are so out of touch with the American public, that they might as well be from Mars. The vast majority of American voters support a woman’s right to choose, believe in evolution and want our troops to come home as soon as possible.

My impressions of the candidates: Mitt Romney too glib; John McCain too old, Rudy Giuliani too wishy-washy; and the rest too forgettable.

The Republican candidates did their best to channel Ronald Reagan, but they only succeeded in conjuring Attila the Hun.