Warren, Brown to face off in first Massachusetts Senate debate tonight

Warren knocks it out of the park at the DNC podium. It's going to be a big night in Boston, when Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Scott Brown square off in their first debate. The pressure is all on Brown tonight, as he's been down in four out of five polls this week. The fifth, from UMass Lowell/Boston Herald, has Brown leading by four among likely voters, within the 5.5 percent margin of error.

Can Brown convince voters that he's not a total lightweight, that he's more than his carefully cultivated image of just a guy in a barn coat and pick-up truck? And can he do that without veering into his usual bizarre self-aggrandizement about secret meetings with foreign heads of state? He's going to have to work very hard to keep up with Warren on the issues.

And can Warren do what she most needs to: pierce the Brown-cultivated myth that he's not really a Republican? Her key to keeping the lead she's gained in the polls is to keep reminding Massachusetts voters that Brown is part of the problem, that he's a vote for Mitch McConnell, and potentially the linchpin for a Republican majority in the Senate. Remember PPP's findings in Massachusetts: "53% of voters want Democrats to have control of the Senate compared to only 36% who want Republicans in charge."

We'll find out tonight. Details:

Debate time: 7:00-8:00 ET
Watch and/or listen: The debate will stream live on CBSBoston.com. (There's a rumor that it will also be on CSPAN, but it's not on today's schedule yet.)

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12:12 PM PT: Hmmmm.....

MASS. SENATE: Scott Brown says he will miss tonight's debate if he has to because of Senate votes... #mapoli
— @globeglen via TweetDeck But he totally wants to be there to debate. Darned Senate.