Presidential Debates to be Prescripted for the First Time

[^_^ 5,021]

If the candidates give the canned responses, which I wholly expect, then we will read the next day, "How wonderful (Obama,Romney) was staying on point, and not being distracted by the question."

Here's a good example of what makes Romney such a formidable debater. From a primary debate in Feb 2012 aired on CNN.

KING: I want to close with this question: Help the voters who still have questions about you. What is the biggest misconception about you in the public debate right now?

Congressman Paul, we'll start with you, sir.

PAUL: I would say the perpetuation of the myth by the media that I can't win.

And the total ignoring some statistics that show it to be the opposite. Just recently, there was a poll in Iowa, and it matched all the four of us up against Obama. And guess what? I did the very best.

PAUL: So I would say that is been the biggest myth. But let me tell you, though, public perception is one thing, but when you go around and talk to the American people and we have our rallies, that misconception isn't there. And I think that's the biggest misconception that I have to deal with.

KING: Mr. Speaker?

GINGRICH: I think that the fact is that the American public are really desperate to find somebody who can solve real problems. I think that's why it's been going up and down and why you have got all sorts of different folks as front-runners.

And all I can say is that my background of having actually worked with President Reagan, then having been Speaker, if there was one thing I wish the American people could know about me, it would be the amount of work it took to get to welfare reform, a balanced budget, a 4.2 percent unemployment rate, and that you've got to have somebody who can actually get it done in Washington, not just describe it on the campaign trail.

KING: Governor Romney?

ROMNEY: We've got to restore America's promise in this country where people know that with hard work and education, that they're going to be secure and prosperous and that their kids will have a brighter future than they've had. For that to happen, we're going to have to have dramatic fundamental change in Washington, D.C., we're going to have to create more jobs, have less debt, and shrink the size of the government.

I'm the only person in this race --

KING: Is there a misconception about you? The question is a misconception.

ROMNEY: You know, you get to ask the questions want, I get to give the answers I want. Fair enough?

Edited September 25, 2012 by Habitual Offender

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

KING: Is there a misconception about you? The question is a misconception.

ROMNEY: You know, you get to ask the questions want, I get to give the answers I want. Fair enough?

Edited September 25, 2012 by The Patriot

[^_^ 5,021]

He does not take kindly to peasants telling him what to do.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

He does not take kindly to peasants telling him what to do.

He is trying to be Reaganesque.

[^_^ 5,021]

He is trying to be Reaganesque.

I have no meaningful memories of any president before Clinton. That means nothing to me.

[james&olya 1,121]

Romney does great with his strengths, making and hanging onto large amounts of money for himself and firing people and shuttering businesses. He has little time or patience for things such as foreign policy, taking care of the less fortunate, rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, etc. He cannot think on his feet and it will show in the debates. I think it is a bit of hyperbole to say that the debates have been prescripted. Any reasonable person could have identified those broad subject areas that were announced. Unless Romney has been able to buy a copy of the actual test questions (which I would not rule out) he is probably going to be flailing!

[^_^ 5,021]

I think it is a bit of hyperbole to say that the debates have been prescripted. Any reasonable person could have identified those broad subject areas that were announced.

Yeah, all the moderator really did was let them know half the time will be spent on the economy and the other half will be divided between government/governing and health care. Any one of us could have guessed those will be the topics.. the actual proportions is perhaps the only "new" information.

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

FACT-CHECKERS PLAN WHAT FACTS TO CHECK FOR FIRST DEBATE

The top fact checkers from Politifact, FactCheck.org, The Washington Post’s Fact Checker blog and The Associated Press are putting their heads together this week to root out the less-than-factual lines President Obama and Mitt Romney are likely to spin. The four groups will forecast these debate deceptions during a panel at the Press Club in Washington, D.C., Wednesday.

“In an age where the typical citizen is subjected to an avalanche of the kind of pure baloney that journalists used to keep out of the public discourse … they are looking for journalists to be kind of adjudicators or referees,” said FactCheck.org Director Brooks Jackson. “That’s what we try to do.”

While FactCheck.org, a subsidiary of the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy, does not issue true or false ratings, Obama has already tallied six “pants on fire” rulings from Politifact and Romney has chalked up ten “4 Pinocchio’s” ratings from the Washington Post’ Fact Checker.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/09/fact-checkers-unite-to-predict-debate-deceptions/

Not only are the questions prescripted, evidently, so are the lies.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

It gives one of them time to preload the Teleprompter.

Did Ronnie's use of the teleprompter make you think less of him?

[Pooky 3,830]

To make the conclusions that the UN is noise, or that the bumps in the road are the deaths at the embassy is extreme. Now I know you are generally a fairly bipartisan poster, so I doubt you actually believe these conclusions and are only posting them as a counter balance to some of the leftest quotes about Romney.

To blow off other world leaders for the opportunity to field softball questions on "The View" lends an air of credence to whole "noise" quote, whereas the "bumps in the road" were an unfortunate choice of words. Which all goes to prove that our President is not the master debater that his supporters would like to believe.

Neither of these two idiots is much good at keeping their feet out of their mouths when it comes to working without a script, which is one good reason I'd like to see them have an actual debate.

[^_^ 5,021]

Neither of these two idiots is much good at keeping their feet out of their mouths when it comes to working without a script, which is one good reason I'd like to see them have an actual debate.

They were told there will be six segments of 15 minutes each. They were told that three of the six segments will be on the economy and the other three will be on government, governing and healthcare.

How is that a script?

It's like a teacher telling you your test tomorrow will be on plant biology and you pretending he just told you the questions.

[Pooky 3,830]

They were told there will be six segments of 15 minutes each. They were told that three of the six segments will be on the economy and the other three will be on government, governing and healthcare.

How is that a script?

It's like a teacher telling you your test tomorrow will be on plant biology and you pretending he just told you the questions.

And the response time limits?

The rebuttals?

The idiots moderating these things?

These won't be debates. All they will be are series of canned talking points laid out by the candidates. And that does not make a true debate.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

That's been the debate format for as long as I've been following US elections - right about two decades now. I read that there was a true debate once. Between Lincoln and Douglas.

[Pooky 3,830]

That's been the debate format for as long as I've been following US elections - right about two decades now. I read that there was a true debate once. Between Lincoln and Douglas.

Wouldn't you like to see a real debate?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Wouldn't you like to see a real debate?

I would.