Huzzah! Er, sorry… but I’m pretty excited, anyway. Goodness knows there are times when watching political debates can be about as exciting as watching paint dry, and during this last round of Republican debates during the primaries there were a few moments of in-fighting that were positively cringe-worthy; but in general, I think this stuff is pretty fun. I mean, it’s not like this so-far indiscernibly close race is going to decide the fate of the free world, or anything… shudder. Well, maybe “fun” isn’t the right word, but worthy of getting fired up about, yes.
The Commission on Presidential Debates has decreed that the candidates will meet for three separate prime-time debates in October, for ninety minutes each, with the debates being moderated by one person each, that person TBD at a later date. Here’s the sched:
The first, which will focus on domestic policy, is set for Oct. 3 at the University of Denver in Denver, Colo., the city that hosted the 2008 Democratic convention. A second meeting in a town-hall format will take place Oct. 16 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., and the final meeting, focusing on foreign policy, will be held Oct. 22 at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla.
The vice presidential contenders – incumbent Democrat Joe Biden and the not-yet-named GOP candidate–will debate only once, on Oct. 11 at Centre College in Danville, Ky., over domestic and foreign policy.
We’ve picked our champion, dammit, and he’s ours now, come hell or high water. The economy is the issue about which voters care most, and while I generally agree with most of Romney’s free-enterprise-related messaging (my heart has never been so warm as the time he proudly declared, “Corporations are people, my friend!”), his challenge is going to be relaying that message to effectively combat President Obama’s populist, intellectually cheap rhetoric. I have full faith that it can be done, but there’s only one way to find out — Bring. It. On.
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