General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: I really can't believe what I just watched [View all]matt819
(10,749 posts)I have mixed feelings about that.
Having not done so, President Obama's performance was characterized as weak and distracted. Maybe that was the plan. Maybe he really was stunned by the sheer volume of lies.
Had he called Romney out on the lies, Obama would have been seen to be on the defensive, and it could have changed the dynamic of the campaign so far. Also, the debate would have turned into the typical children's exchange. Did not. Did so. Did not. Stick out tongue.
I think the time has come for the debates to come to a close. No more debates from 2016 onward. They really have become pointless.
In the meantime, I have little faith that the moderators in the next few debates will be any better than Lehrer, who was a disappointment.
Frankly, I think the moderators should take a more active role, forcing the candidates to respond to the question, and if they begin answering a question that was not asked - typical for Sarah Palin and Mormons - the mike should be shut off. Even if they don't get that proactive, candidates should be held to the time restrictions, and their mikes should be shut off at the time limit. No discretion. No do-overs. And the mike for the person not speaking should be shut off, so there's no interrupting. Also, the podiums should not be partially angled to each candidate. They should be facing directly outward to the moderator.
Of course, none of this will be done. The debates are little more than a variation on the Hunger Games, a game demanded by the corporate masters for the entertainment of their upper class patrons.