Tonight, we'll be treated to the depressing spectacle of two over-rehearsed, stiff, and unnatural men trying to convince us that one of them should sit in Lincoln's chair.
In the Lincoln-Douglas debates, one candidate spoke for 60 minutes. The challenger rebutted for 90 minutes. The first candidate was allowed a 30 minute rejoinder. Add that up, and you have three hours of substantive discourse on the weighty issues facing the nation.
Mr. Romney, we are told, has been practicing his "zingers".
The Republic has fallen to this. The fact is, these debates have long outweighed their usefulness in telling us anything of substance about the candidates.
The last "honest" moment in a debate came 20 years ago when George H.W. Bush checked his watch, thus sealing his image as an out-of-touch patrician going through the motions.
As an honest, "unscripted" moment, even that was a stage-managed fraud. The campaign machine around the famously undisciplined Clinton was remarkably prepared. The "wristwatch" debate was held on an open floor, with the candidates free to roam. Reaction shots were not allowed. Candidate Clinton was schooled on exactly where to stand to get Mr. Bush into the background of shots to remind voters of hard economic times.
Since that time, no candidate has ever been caught so unprepared for their close-up.
As theater, these debates are failures. Even as a forum for major issues, the debates have always been a failure. In 1960, when Kennedy debated Nixon, most of the discussion centered around Quemoy and Matsu. Does anyone believe the fate of the free world depended on Quemoy and Matsu?
Like those two tiny islands caught in the larger Cold War, we'll be watching the tiny islands of Romney and Obama. Awash in a sea of stage-management, handling, campaign dollars, and opposition research.
The election system is broken. These debates are just a symptom.
At least in 1960 the cast of characters was interesting. If only from a psychological point of view. Who'd have thought these debates would make one miss Dick Nixon?
http://www.filmannex.com/movie/nixon-film/12247
