Former Vice President Mike Pence recently suspended his campaign to no one's surprise, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum didn't meet the minimum requirements to participate, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson hasn't qualified since the first debate, way back in August.

That leaves former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, S.C. Sen. Tim Scott, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

There were rumors that only three would qualify to appear tonight, and I'd figured they would be Haley, DeSantis, and Ramaswamy. But having Scott and Christie participating still really makes it just Haley, DeSantis, and Ramaswamy as the only three semi-realistic alternatives to Trump. Which really makes it either Haley or DeSantis.