By Talmage Boston on September 22, 2016
2016 Presidential Debates
The race for the White House is now tied, according to some polls, with fewer than 45 days remaining for undecided voters to make a decision. The tipping point should be Monday night with the first of three debates, when voters can evaluate Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump side-by-side. The debate promises to provide Americans the clearest picture yet of which candidate is more acceptable to lead our nation.
NBC’s Lester Holt will preside over the first debate. Retired CBS anchor Bob Schieffer, moderator of presidential debates in 2004, 2008 and 2012), offered Holt and other moderators some advice in a Washington Post column:
- The debates should showcase the candidates, not the moderator.
- The most important purpose is to help voters determine “which person they will feel most comfortable with in time of crisis.”
- The most challenging moderator responsibilities are fact-checking answers in real time and keeping candidates within their time limits.
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Talmage Boston is an attorney, historian, keynote speaker and public interviewer. His newest book Cross-Examining History: A Lawyer Gets Answers From the Experts About Our Presidents was released this month. Twitter @TalmageBoston
(Originally published in DallasNews.com)
