DEMOCRATIC DEBATE FORMATS NEED TO BE CHANGED

…A picture from the last Democratic debate

The number of candidates must be reduced to have meaningful conversations

It is ridiculous that there are still 11 Democrats that have qualified for the next presidential debate.

Yes, I know, more people want or think that they can beat the dreadful Trump presidency.

But it’s been months that this group has been debating and we are back to having 2 days of debates due to there now being over 10 candidates.

It’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty of looking at the real competitors.

So, how would I change the process to cut back on the number of candidates?

The easiest way would be to select a time frame such as the key polls in a 6 week period, and take the top 7 candidates. 

Now, I seldom give the GOP any real credit, but in 2016 their “Kiddie Table Debate,” was a good idea for their marginal candidates. 

That way the debate between the real contenders could get to the real meat without interspersing the non-viable contenders on the same stage.

If one or 2 of those at the “Kiddie Table” really increased their poll positions and their percentages to a competitive level, they could be included in the next debate. 

However, as it was in 2016, that would be a marginal possibility.

The reality is that the number needs to be reduced for the real contenders to get to having meaningful conversations.

The other area is that the debate moderators need to get to the real issues about which the American people are concerned.  The polls should be getting their questions to their poll takers down to the ones of the public's real concerns.

As an example, the moderators asked the Medicare-for-all vs. public option question over and over, but they have neglected public education, US debt, Russia, the courts, court judges, jobs, Iran, civil rights and many other issues.

The moderators and their questions are as important as are the candidates answers.

The other issue is that more time should be given for the candidates to answer.  Too many times the candidates answers are cut off due to their short time to answer.

Also, why should there be an opening statement?  Get to the real questions that require complete answers, and allow more follow-up questions.

In addition, ask those questions that are really on the voter’s minds, such as: “What legal or constitutional changes do we now need due to the negative effects of the Trump presidency for protecting our democracy?”

What about having some of the following questions:

• “How should we be dealing with Russia after what the current president’s approach has been?”

• “How should we re-align our attitude toward climate change after the Trump administration?”

• “What should be done to deal with the nation’s debt after the Trump increases in US debt?”

• “What changes need to be made to make sure that all future presidential candidates do submit 5 years of tax returns?”

It’s time to not allow sound-bite debate answers.  We need complete statements.

Also allow candidates to question each other, but limit it to one follow-up question, one answer.

Have the moderators ask questions about entitlement programs and the nation’s taxes.  In a productivity discussion, everything from job training, to infrastructure, to K-12 education should be fair game.

The conservative writer of The Post, Jennifer Rubin, wrote the following about the Democratic debates that I totally agree with: “The debates have become Kabuki performances that do not assist voters to make informed decisions or candidates to demonstrate the depth of their knowledge and preparedness. They haven’t changed many voters’ minds because they are currently designed to create conflict, reward zingers and reinforce trite narratives. Frankly, as the debates are currently constituted, candidates should not have to spend this much time on these useless or even counterproductive exercises. If the DNC cannot figure out how to improve the debates, they should dump them.”

The DNC recently announced its new debate qualification criteria. Now required: 165,000 donors (including a minimum of 600 donors per state in at least 20 states) plus either 5% in two early state polls or 3% in four otherwise-approved polls. 

This should reduce the field.

Now the DNC needs to fix the debate format.

Copyright G. Ater 2019