Let’s Scrap the Presidential Debates

NewYork Times ^ | Aug 3, 2020 | Elizabeth Drew

[RBStealth]

Nervous managers of the scheduled 2020 presidential debates are shuffling the logistics and locations to deal with the threat of the coronavirus. But here’s a better idea: Scrap them altogether. And not for health reasons.

The debates have never made sense as a test for presidential leadership. In fact, one could argue that they reward precisely the opposite of what we want in a president. When we were serious about the presidency, we wanted intelligence, thoughtfulness, knowledge, empathy and, to be sure, likability. It should also go without saying, dignity.

Yet the debates play an outsize role in campaigns and weigh more heavily on the verdict than their true value deserves.

[Grampa Dave]

Anyone agreeing with the Slimes on this issue is ___________________ fill in the blank.

[shotgun]

Th NYT is correct. If there had been no debate than Nixon sweating camera wouldn’t have happened and instead we got stuck with Kennedy et al...

[cgbg]

Translation from the NY Times:

Our candidate is senile, so we hate debates.

If our candidate was articulate, we love debates.

Heads we win, tails you lose, suckas.

[CatOwner]

Forever and ever. They’re a complete waste of time.

If the format and questioning is controlled by a partisan press, absolutely. Hard to imagine ever having a fair and informative presidential debate unless each candidate were allowed to select one of two moderators for each debate.

[Jeff Chandler]

There you go.

[ridesthemiles]

HELL, NO !!!!

It is going to be the BEST entertainment of the season.

Every other channel is doing “All Black All The Time” & there is NOTHING THERE for me to watch.

Only auto sports are worth watching.

Won’t look at BLM jerseys & pain on court floors.

Will be watching the debates laughing at Biden....

UNLESS, of course, UKRAINE INDICTS Biden et al first & he gets extradited to Ukraine.

[JohnBrowdie]

debates are important. but the current MSM moderator dominated format, who’s only goal is to generate a gotcha headline, renders them almost information free.

go back to the lincoln-douglass format, and then you’ve got something.

[Flick Lives]

I’m waiting for Biden’s face to show up on milk cartons.

[Red Badger]

WHO DIDN’T SEE THIS COMING, RAISE YOUR HAND!.......................

[tennmountainman]

If Biden wants to cancel debates let him say so himself.
If he can remember what to say.

[Ouchthatonehurt]

Elizabeth Drew is still alive!!!!!!!!!

[Honorary Serb]

I have a better idea. Let’s scrap the New York Times!!!!

As for the debates, they are needed this year to expose an unfit major-party candidate for President, Joe Biden. The American people deserve to know!!!!

[BunnySlippers]

True, but the electorate need to see Joe Biden.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

I read a post yesterday and on Tik Tok of all things, by this woman who claimed she worked on the Biden campaign and she said that Biden has aggressive dementia, he gets worse day by day and she thinks it’s really ridiculous he is running. So I told her WHY doesn’t she blow the whistle to the press, or Fox news being that we really don’t have a press anymore. If this is all true, this is yet another example of the democratic party trying to harm this country. They’re freakin’ nuts, they are trying to make someone with severe brain damage leader of the free world!!!! If the attempted coup wasn’t bad enough, this would be an even bigger scandal. And this the SAME party that was talking about using the 25th amendment on Trump that he was brain damaged, and here they are pushing a guy with a brain disease on the public

[Dr. Sivana]

When we were serious about the presidency, we wanted intelligence, thoughtfulness, knowledge, empathy and, to be sure, likability. It should also go without saying, dignity.

Whose definition of dignity?! Was Andrew Jackson dignified? Bill Clinton?

In a democratic republic, what the "people want" in a president may change from time to time. It doesn't mean we are not "serious" about it. You want "serious"? Limit the franchise to those 25+, who own land and aren't on the government teat. That would probably limit us to a handful of Appalachian and Amish farmers, but they would be "serious". If you want a near universal franchise, you don't want an overall "serious" electorate.

[Vermont Lt]

Because we want to vote for President based on their commercials and I what Twitter has to say.

FUNYT.

[Wiser now]

And here it is, the excuse to keep Biden from having to debate Trump.
We knew this was coming. It had to. If the Democrats had somebody they thought could effectively debate Trump they would have insisted the debates start six months ago.

[KobraKai]

When you read the comments at the link, there’s actually quite a few people calling the writer out, but in true leftist form, only the comments that fully agree with the article get the official ‘NYT Pick’designation.

[GrandJediMasterYoda]

LOL! A few weeks ago someone called into the Mark Levin show and actually suggested that, if Biden refuses to debate, Trump should then debate an empty chair lol

[katana]

A “debate” with Donald Trump accepting questions at one podium, with another onstage vacant, from Thomas Sowell, Walter E. Williams, and Candace Owens would make for must watch TV. It’s time for Emancipation 2.0, and exploding Liberal heads cleanup in Aisle 3.