Obama and Romney Should Debate Lincoln-Douglas-Style

The presidential and vice-presidential debates will be held in October. While political observers and enthusiasts look forward to this, many Americans view the debates as the bane of their existence.

Modern political debates rely heavily on scripted questions and short buzz clips designed to upset an opponent’s demeanor. Language and prose are no longer important tools. It’s simply a matter of who can generate the most meaningful attack for the evening news. That’s why people switch the TV channel so often during presidential debates or don’t watch them at all.

However, there’s a ray of hope. Last week, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced a major change to the debate format. According to Washington Times reporter David Hill, “three of its four debates this October will include time blocks of as long as 15 minutes during which candidates will debate a single topic.” This is an exciting development because the new format hopefully will encourage each presidential candidate to provide well-thought-out answers to difficult questions. For the first time in a long time, intellectual discourse will replace buzz clips at a presidential debate.

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