A few weeks ago, we woke to various bloviating regarding last night’s first presidential debate. Depending on which side you hold, your preferred candidate won. They may have had a disappointing performance, but the other candidate is a liar. One of them has a convicted felon for a son, and another is even a convicted felon himself! This time though, in addition to the normal bloviating, there are several key differences in the debate series, and one thing that is missing entirely.
Public debates between candidates were not a common occurrence. Wendell Willkie was the first presidential contender to challenge his opponent to a face-to-face debate in 1940. His opponent, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, simply refused to participate. It wasn’t until the first-ever televised presidential debate occurred between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon in 1960 that the idea of face-to-face debates became a common thing. Even after that televised debate, there wasn’t another one until the 1976 presidential election between Jimmy Carter and the incumbent Gerald Ford.
Ford was in a weak position. He was only president because of the Watergate scandal and the resulting resignation of Richard Nixon. In order to appear strong, he challenged Carter to the televised debates. Since that time, televised presidential debates have remained a tradition. Usually, there are two or three presidential debates and a single vice presidential debate per election cycle.
The presidential debates were originally sponsored by the League of Women Voters, but by 1987 the Commission on Presidential Debates was formed by the chairmen of both the Democratic and Republican Parties.
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