Essay On Presidential Debates

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We’ve been through the caucuses, the primaries , and the conventions. If that didn’t do enough to set your hair on fire, what’s up next? THE DEBATES! While it hasn’t been entirely confirmed that these meetings of the minds are going to come off as planned, is that so unusual? Will this be the first time in history? How can we have an election without debates? The answer to a couple of the main questions? Yes, in this day and age, it is unusual, and detrimental to the voter. Is it the first time in history? Absolutely not. In the past, while there had been senatorial debates ( Lincoln- Douglas, 1860) and presidential primary debates (Dewey-Stassen, 1948) and (Stevenson-Kefauver, 1956), before 1960, it was seen as “unseemly” for a candidate …show more content…

The results of those debates depended on how you heard or watched them. Those who listened on the radio, thought Nixon was the winner. Those who watched on TV, thought the victor was Kennedy. One would think this form of campaigning was off and running after the infamous 1960 debates. However, there wouldn’t be another debate between Presidential candidates until 1976 when Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter debated incumbent President Gerald Ford. After 1976, presidential debates have taken place with each election cycle. For the most part, throughout history, the topic of presidential debates have focused primarily on foreign and domestic policy, as well as defense. However, in recent years, after 9/11, the topic of national security has also become an important issue for voters to take into consideration when deciding who will lead the country. The format of a presidential debate is as follows. Generally, candidates give short opening statements. The rest of the approximately 90 minutes is divided into six time segments of approximately 15 minutes, with topics selected and announced beforehand by the moderator. Each segment opens with a question, after which each candidate has two minutes to respond. The moderator uses the balance of the time in the segment for a discussion of the

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