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The Fox News GOP Debate - Roger Ailes Is Making All The Rules
New York Magazine:In the absence of a clear answer from the network, advisers for both Kasich and Perry have taken to lobbying Ailes and Fox executives to use polls that put their guy over the line. One person close to the Perry campaign told me that GOP fund-raiser and Ailes friend Georgette Mosbacher recently called Ailes on behalf of the former Texas Governor. Other strategists cautioned that selling Ailes too aggressively could backfire. “Anyone who knows Roger knows that ain’t gonna work,” a longtime operative said.
The thinking among the strategists I spoke with is that Ailes faces conflicting impulses when it comes to choosing Perry or Kasich. On the one hand, Ailes is certainly hoping to produce the best television, which would give the unpredictable Perry the advantage. “People will want Perry in just because of the ‘oops’ factor,” one GOP media adviser said, referring to Perry’s infamous brain freeze from 2012. Others stressed Kasich’s close relationship with Ailes, an Ohio native. Before getting back into politics, Kasich hosted a weekly Fox show. “Roger likes Kasich,” a Fox insider told me. “Plus Roger knows it'll look awful if the sitting governor isn't on that stage.”
For the campaigns that do make prime time, there’s another wild card: Trump. Fox told campaigns this week that the candidates will be lined up onstage according to their poll numbers, with the leader in the center and the others to his left and right. That means if current numbers hold, Trump will be in the center flanked by Jeb Bush and Scott Walker. “There’s a lot of nervousness about where he’s going to be placed and who will be next to him,” one adviser said. In any normal debate, candidates would obviously fight to be in the middle, but being center stage next to Trump could be as much of a liability as an advantage. Who knows what he might do? “It’s almost like you don’t want to be too close,” one campaign adviser says, “in case he self-combusts.”
The debate format itself has been a subject of speculation. This week, Fox's VP of News, Bill Sammon, held conference calls with campaigns to inform the candidates about the rules, according to one source on a call. Sammon told campaign officials that candidates will not be allowed to make opening statements; they’ll have one minute to respond to questions from moderators; and if a candidate calls out another by name, that candidate will get 30 seconds to respond to the attack. If time allows, there will perhaps be closing statements.
The thinking among the strategists I spoke with is that Ailes faces conflicting impulses when it comes to choosing Perry or Kasich. On the one hand, Ailes is certainly hoping to produce the best television, which would give the unpredictable Perry the advantage. “People will want Perry in just because of the ‘oops’ factor,” one GOP media adviser said, referring to Perry’s infamous brain freeze from 2012. Others stressed Kasich’s close relationship with Ailes, an Ohio native. Before getting back into politics, Kasich hosted a weekly Fox show. “Roger likes Kasich,” a Fox insider told me. “Plus Roger knows it'll look awful if the sitting governor isn't on that stage.”
For the campaigns that do make prime time, there’s another wild card: Trump. Fox told campaigns this week that the candidates will be lined up onstage according to their poll numbers, with the leader in the center and the others to his left and right. That means if current numbers hold, Trump will be in the center flanked by Jeb Bush and Scott Walker. “There’s a lot of nervousness about where he’s going to be placed and who will be next to him,” one adviser said. In any normal debate, candidates would obviously fight to be in the middle, but being center stage next to Trump could be as much of a liability as an advantage. Who knows what he might do? “It’s almost like you don’t want to be too close,” one campaign adviser says, “in case he self-combusts.”
The debate format itself has been a subject of speculation. This week, Fox's VP of News, Bill Sammon, held conference calls with campaigns to inform the candidates about the rules, according to one source on a call. Sammon told campaign officials that candidates will not be allowed to make opening statements; they’ll have one minute to respond to questions from moderators; and if a candidate calls out another by name, that candidate will get 30 seconds to respond to the attack. If time allows, there will perhaps be closing statements.
The Circus is coming to town.....
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