How to do Candidate Debates

The sorry state of candidate debates, where a small herd of candidates take the stage with each getting a few minutes to respond to gotcha questions from some idiot like Chris Matthews, is a great scandal. My suggestion for a replacement: a small number of online debates, with each devoted to a single topic, in writing. Each candidate would get to make an opening statement of 500 or so words, would have to answer a short list of questions from the public but vetted by experts, and would get to ask a few questions of his fellow candidates. I would suggest a couple of days between each phase of the debate to provide time for questions and responses.

My suggested topics:

Medical care: how should we change our medical care system?

Government corruption: what can we do to prevent future scandals like those occuring under Bush?

The economy, national competitiveness, and growing inequality: what do we do now?

The terrorist threat: What should we do about it?

The environment: what should we do about habitat destruction and global warming?

Energy: what can we do to be more energy independent?

The war: what do we do now?

Other possible topics, some of which might be lumped, include education, crime, guns, abortion, and whether the Earth is flat.

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