Tuesday’s gubernatorial debate at Pomona College was a good fight — and an enlightening one. 

This time, there were eight candidates onstage, which probably will not help Democrats consolidate their vote. It did, however, lead to substantive exchanges over policy. 

The most memorable candidate was Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco. He was combative, but also knowledgeable on policy. None of the Democrats in particular stood out, though Katie Porter had her best performance yet. Matt Mahan also did well, especially towards the end.

CBS News should be credited for holding a lively and successful event. However, the moderators almost derailed it with aggressive “fact checks” and by interjecting their own opinions. The candidates saved the day.

Chad Bianco: A The sheriff had the answer of the night when a Democrat rival demanded he endorse single-payer (government) health care: “If you want socialism, go somewhere else!” He knocked Democrats for supporting “single-payer” health care when they all know it has failed for fire insurance. He repeated his message that the answer to California’s problems was to end “broken Democrat policies” and “lies.” He pushed back against the moderators when they tried to blame climate change for wildfires. Agree or disagree, it was a classic performance.

Steve Hilton: A- Another strong performance from Hilton, who responded to a question on Trump’s cuts to Medicare by pointing out that California has more than enough money to pay for health care: “It’s something we can fix here.” He also fended off the CBS moderator’s attempt to pressure him into backing away from fossil fuels, and did it calmly, with a smile.

Katie Porter: B+ Her answers have improved over time, and she came across as pragmatic on gas prices and housing (though not on health care, where she is pushing unaffordable “single-payer” health care). She still enjoys playing the stern schoolmarm, complaining that the others were bickering like “teenagers.” But she toned it down a bit, and helped herself. She got a good shot in at Tom Steyer as he attacked oil companies, noting that he invested in them.

Matt Mahan: B+ Mahan came across as calm, cool, and knowledgeable. He gave a great answer on education, carefully listing the problems in California’s bloated, underachieving system, and proposing credible solutions. But he was overshadowed by other candidates, at least until homelessness came up, when he interjected to cite his record on clearing streets. 

Tony Thurmond: B Thurmond carried himself with gravitas, and took some shots at the Republican candidates. A few of those were low blows, but he showed he could carry the Democrat banner into a fight. Still, his main effect will be to dilute the Democrat vote.

Xavier Becerra: B- The former attorney general and health czar played to his experience rather well. He had a stronger presence than he had in the last debate. But he gave a poor defense of keeping the gas tax where it is, claiming that it was the only way to keep streets in good repair. It does take courage to oppose what people want. But you need a better reason.

Tom Steyer: C Steyer did rather poorly, but that wasn’t entirely his fault. The moderators really seemed to have it in for him — even more than the other candidates. He didn’t really score any points on policy, and kept repeating his attacks on oil companies. His answer on education — improve it by providing teachers more tax money from corporations — was truly terrible.

Antonio Villaraigosa: D The former LA mayor just lacks energy. He didn’t add much to the debate except to refer to his record in somewhat exaggerated terms. He said “double yes” when asked if he would jail ICE agents — something every Democrat onstage also wants to do, despite having no constitutional authority to do so. He was doubling down on stupid.

CBS moderators: D– The biased questions, the phony “fact-check” interjections, and the odd attempt to browbeat certain candidates took away from a debate that had a much better flow when the candidates were simply allowed to engage one another. Ask the questions, keep time — but let the people running for office do most of the talking. It’s what voters want to see.

Joel Pollak is the opinion editor of the California Post.