Posted on 10/15/2012 4:52:35 AM PDT by teflon9
The presidential and vice presidential debates are sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates, a nonprofit corporation that mandates that a candidate have at least 15 percent support in national polls to participate. Since the CPD took over running the debates in 1988, only once has a third party candidate been allowed to participate: In 1992, when Ross Perot joined Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush on the debate stage.
The dominance of the two major parties at the debates has critics charging that the system is effectively rigged to shut out other voices. Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party nominee for president and former New Mexico governor, has sued on anti-trust grounds to be included this year. The CPD, he said in an interview, is designed "to protect the interests of Republicans and Democrats."
George Farah, the author of "No Debate: How the Republican and Democratic Parties Secretly Control the Presidential Debates" and the executive director of Open Debates, calls the 15 percent criteria "absurdly high," noting that candidates who reach five percent support qualify for public funding if they reached five percent support in past elections.
"Third parties have played critical issues in raising issues that are critical to the conversation in this country," he said, pointing to the abolition of slavery and the creation of Social Security and public schools. "When you exclude them from the debate, you have a sort of ideological containment."
"Despite the fact that 40 percent of the country is independent and hungry for an alternative, third parties face herculean structural barriers,"
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
The constitution cuts out third parties by not providing for a majority.
There isn’t 65 cents worth of difference between the ‘rats and the GOP. There IS a huge difference between obama and Romney.
3rd parties dont work
I’d watch a Biden vs Rosanne Barr debate LOL
The Communist Party and the Green Party will be well-represented at the debate.
Me too...... what a spectacle.
Are the debates fair at all?
I always felt that there should be a stand alone debate for Third party candidates. Voters could watch them and decide. But it becomes too much of a circus to put them in with the R/D candidates.
Third parties are pretenders.
The candidates pretend to run and be relevant. Their Voters pretend they are voting.
Third parties either love drugs or the enviornment like a religion, but they don’t get enough of a percentage to be included in a real choice debate.
Once Perot elevated himself enough to be included with 11% and I think it would take that.
Whaaa!
Stop pretending like the 3rd parties magically represent all the independents. The independents are largely indecisive, not looking for more options.
In most marketing scenarios the choices are between Coke & Pepsi, an incumbent or an alternative. Perot got into the debates in 1992, Anderson in 1980. There is no monopoly.
If Gary Johnson, or Rosanne Barr for that matter, had any traction with voters they could get on the stage as well.
The fact is these candidates don’t represent the independent voters either.
Considering what’s happening to the GOP, we’re going to need a second party soon.
A little thing called the Electoral College keeps it that way..
By that logic, 99 percent of the cars on the road should be either GM or Ford.
The “debates” are a farce.
Oh, heck, let Rosanne Barr open with the national anthem...of course, provide earplugs for all present.
That could be a ratings booster. But her voice is a deadly weapon, so I don’t think the Secret Service would allow it!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.