John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon debate in 1960

Every presidential election in the United States, the two main candidates (almost always the candidates of the two main parties, the Democratic Party and the Republican Party) engage in a debate. The issues discussed in the debate are often the most hot-button issues of the time, and some have said that elections can be won or lost based on these debates. Description: Senator John F. Kennedy debates Vice President Richard M. Nixon in the first televised debates, 1960. ... Description: Senator John F. Kennedy debates Vice President Richard M. Nixon in the first televised debates, 1960. ... The Democratic Party, founded in 1792, is the second-oldest political party in the world (after the Tories of the United Kingdom). ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party [1]), is one of the two major political parties in the United States (the other being the Democratic Party). ...

Presidential debates are held late in the election cycle, after the political parties have nominated their candidates. The candidates meet in a large hall, often at a university, before an audience of citizens. The formats of the debates have varied, with questions sometimes posed from one or more journalist moderators and in other cases members of the audience. Between 1988 and 2000, the formats have been governed in detail by secret MOUs between the two major candidates; an MOU for 2004 was also negotiated, but unlike the earlier agreements it was jointly released by the two candidates. A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. ... The election was held on November 8, 1988. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... A memorandum of understanding (MOU) is a legal document describing an agreement between parties. ... The presidential debates memorandum of understanding for the 2004 U.S. presidential election debates is a memorandum of understanding between the Bush 2004 campaign and the Kerry 2004 campaign covering in minute detail all aspects of the presidential candidate debates held between the two candidates. ...

Debates are broadcast live on television and radio. The first debate for the 1960 election drew over 66 million viewers out of a population of 179 million, making it one of the most-watched broadcasts in U.S. television history. The 1980 debates drew 80 million viewers out of a 226 million. By 2000, about 46 million viewers out of a population of 280 million watched the first debate, with ten million fewer watching the subsequent debates that year. In 2004, 62.5 million people watched the first debate, while 43.6 million watched the vice-presidential debate. [1] The following is a list of most-watched television episodes, organized by country and based on various criteria. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

History

In the race for the American presidency, a series of debates between the two main candidates is held frequently. One of the first televised debates to be held was on September 26, 1960, in a debate between candidates John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. Nixon was generally considered to be the “loser” of the debates, mainly because he did not prepare for the possibilities and peculiarities of the medium of television. Some say his poor makeup and haggard appearance contributed to his loss of the debates.^[2] As the candidates in the following elections of 1964, 1968 and 1972 feared to make the same mistakes and maybe lose an election because of such a debate, it took until 1976 for the second series of televised presidential debates after 1960 to be held. On September 23, 1976 it was the Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter and President Gerald R. Ford to debate publicly on television. Since then, televised debates have become a regular part of presidential campaigns in every election. Starting in 1984, the inclusion of a single Vice Presidential debate has also been included as part of the presidential debate cycle. The President of the United States (often abbreviated POTUS) is the head of state of the United States. ... Debate, also Debating outside the USA and Canada, is a formalized system of (usually) logical argument. ... September 26 is the 269th day of the year (270th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 96 days remaining. ... 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to as Jack Kennedy or JFK, was the 35th President of the United States (1961–1963). ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the thirty-seventh President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... September 23 is the 266th day of the year (267th in leap years). ... 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. ... This page is about the year 1984. ... The Vice President of the United States is the second-highest executive official of the United States government, the person who, in the words of Adlai Stevenson, is a heartbeat from the presidency. ...

Two polls examining the 1976 debate between Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter were taken. One of the polls had been taken 12 hours or less after the debate, the other one 12 to 48 hours after it.^[3] The shifts in the public’s opinion were dramatic. 1976 (MCMLXXVI) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. ... James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ...

Shortly after the debate more than half of the interviewed felt that Ford had won, whereas later the majority felt Carter had won. The reason often purported to be why this dramatic change in public opinion happened is that, in this debate, Ford made what is considered to be one of the most serious mistakes ever made in a presidential debate. He stated that "there is no Soviet domination of Eastern Europe" and for several days did not want to acknowledge that he might have said something wrong. State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Socialist republics/ Communist state Area  - Total  - % water Largest on the planet 22,402,200 km² ?% Population  - Total  - Density 3rd before collapse 293,047,571 (July... Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium orange) and other former communist regimes (light orange). ...

During September and October 2004 George W. Bush and his Democratic challenger John Kerry met in a series of three televised debates face-to-face. John Kerry in his time at Yale University, had earned a lot of respect for his impressive skills in debating. The debate was hosted by Jim Lehrer, a PBS news anchorman. Kerry kept a calm, clear and convincing tone, which made him look serious and convincing. Bush appeared nervous, reactive, and repetitive in his responses. Kerry is widely considered by many to have won the debate. George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States and a former Governor of the State of Texas. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ... Yale University is a private university in New Haven, Connecticut. ... Jim Lehrer James Charles Lehrer (born May 19, 1934 in Wichita, Kansas) is the news anchor for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS. // He attended middle school in Beaumont, Texas, and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio, Texas, where he was one of the three sports...

Moderators of nationally televised presidential debates have included Bernard Shaw, Jim Lehrer and Dan Rather. Bernard Shaw was a leading news anchor for the Cable News Network from 1980 to his retirement in 2001. ... Jim Lehrer James Charles Lehrer (born May 19, 1934 in Wichita, Kansas) is the news anchor for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer on PBS. // He attended middle school in Beaumont, Texas, and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio, Texas, where he was one of the three sports... Dan Rather, from a telecast in October 2004. ...

Debate sponsorship

Control of the presidential debates has been a ground of struggle for more than two decades. The role was filled by the nonpartisan League of Women Voters (LWV) civic organization in 1976, 1980 and 1984. In 1987, the LWV withdrew from debate sponsorship, in protest of the major party candidates attempting to dictate nearly every aspect of how the debates were conducted. On October 2, 1988, the LWV's 14 trustees voted unanimously to pull out of the debates, and on October 3 they issued a dramatic press release: The League of Women Voters is a United States non-partisan political organization founded in 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt during a meeting of the National American Woman Suffrage Association. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in Leap years). ...

The League of Women Voters is withdrawing sponsorship of the presidential debates ... because the demands of the two campaign organizations would perpetrate a fraud on the American voter. It has become clear to us that the candidates' organizations aim to add debates to their list of campaign-trail charades devoid of substance, spontaneity and answers to tough questions. The League has no intention of becoming an accessory to the hoodwinking of the American public.

The two major political parties had their own loyalists ready to take over the debates and did so in 1988 under the name of the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD). The two parties presented the 1988 debates and have done so every election cycle since. The commission has been headed since its inception by former chairs of the Republican and Democratic parties. The Commission on Presidential Debates was created by the Democratic and Republican parties in 1987 to moderate the U.S. presidential election debates. ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party [1]), is one of the two major political parties in the United States (the other being the Democratic Party). ... The Democratic Party, founded in 1792, is the second-oldest political party in the world (after the Tories of the United Kingdom). ...

In 2004, the Citizens' Debate Commission (CDC) was formed to challenge control by the Democratic and Republican parties and attempt to return the debates to control by an independent, nonpartisan, rather than bipartisan, body. Chief concerns include the CPD's exclusion of third party and independent candidates. This effort was unsuccessful in its first attempt, as the CPD again controlled the 2004 debates. 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Citizens Debate Commission (CDC) is a nonpartisan organization, formed in 2004, that was established to sponsor future general election presidential debates. ... The 2004 United States Presidential Election Debates were sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) and concluded October 13, nearly three weeks before election scheduled for November 2, 2004. ...

Timeline

• In 1960 — four debates between Richard Nixon and Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy.
• In 1976 — three debates between President Gerald Ford and former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter
• In 1980 — one debate between President Jimmy Carter and former California Governor Ronald Reagan, one between Governor Reagan and Illinois Congressman John Anderson
• In 1984 — two debates between President Ronald Reagan and former Vice President Walter Mondale
• In 1988 — two debates between Vice President George H. W. Bush and Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis
• In 1992 — three debates including President George H. W. Bush, Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton and independent candidate Ross Perot
• In 1996 — two debates between President Bill Clinton and former Kansas Senator Bob Dole
• In 2000 — three debates between Vice President Al Gore and Texas Governor George W. Bush
• In 2004 — three debates between President George W. Bush and Massachusetts Senator John Kerry

Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the thirty-seventh President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... State nickname: Bay State Other U.S. States Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney (R) Senators Edward Kennedy (D) John Kerry (D) Official language(s) English Area 27,360 km² (44th)  - Land 20,317 km²  - Water 7,043 km² (25. ... John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to as Jack Kennedy or JFK, was the 35th President of the United States (1961–1963). ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. ... James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... James Earl Jimmy Carter, Jr. ... State nickname: The Golden State Other U.S. States Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) Senators Dianne Feinstein (D) Barbara Boxer (D) Official language(s) English Area 410,000 km² (3rd)  - Land 404,298 km²  - Water 20,047 km² (4. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan, (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975). ... State nickname: Land of Lincoln, The Prairie State Other U.S. States Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Governor Rod Blagojevich (D) Senators Richard Durbin (D) Barack Obama (D) Official language(s) English Area 149,998 km² (25th)  - Land 143,968 km²  - Water 6,030 km² (4. ... John Bayard Anderson (born February 15, 1922) was a U.S. Representative from Illinois and presidential candidate in the 1980 election. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan, (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975). ... Walter Frederick Fritz Mondale (born January 5, 1928 in Ceylon, Minnesota) is an American politician and member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. ... The election was held on November 8, 1988. ... George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12, 1924) was the 41st President of the United States (1989–1993). ... State nickname: Bay State Other U.S. States Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney (R) Senators Edward Kennedy (D) John Kerry (D) Official language(s) English Area 27,360 km² (44th)  - Land 20,317 km²  - Water 7,043 km² (25. ... Michael Stanley Dukakis (born November 3, 1933) is an American Democratic politician, former Governor of Massachusetts, and former presidential candidate, born in Brookline, Massachusetts, to Greek-immigrant parents. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12, 1924) was the 41st President of the United States (1989–1993). ... State nickname: The Natural State Other U.S. States Capital Little Rock Largest city Little Rock Governor Mike Huckabee (R) Senators Blanche Lincoln (D) Mark Pryor (D) Official language(s) English Area 137,732 km² (29th)  - Land 134,856 km²  - Water 2,876 km² (2. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe, III on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. ... Henry Ross Perot, known to most as Ross Perot (prior to 1992, generally known as H. Ross Perot by the public) (born June 27, 1930), is a billionaire American businessman from Texas best known as a candidate for President of the United States (in 1992 and 1996). ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe, III on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. ... State nickname: The Sunflower State Other U.S. States Capital Topeka Largest city Wichita Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D) Senators Sam Brownback (R) Pat Roberts (R) Official languages None Area 82,277 mi²; 213,096 km² (15th)  - Land 81,815 mi²; 211,900 km²  - Water 462 mi²; 1,196 km² (0. ... Robert Joseph Dole (born July 22, 1923) is best known as a former Republican United States Senate Majority Leader and Senator from Kansas. ... Presidential electoral votes by state. ... Albert Arnold Gore Jr. ... ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States and a former Governor of the State of Texas. ... Presidential election results map. ... The 2004 United States Presidential Election Debates were sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) and concluded October 13, nearly three weeks before election scheduled for November 2, 2004. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States and a former Governor of the State of Texas. ... State nickname: Bay State Other U.S. States Capital Boston Largest city Boston Governor Mitt Romney (R) Senators Edward Kennedy (D) John Kerry (D) Official language(s) English Area 27,360 km² (44th)  - Land 20,317 km²  - Water 7,043 km² (25. ... John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is the junior United States Senator from Massachusetts. ...

References

1. Moore, John L.: “Elections A to Z”, Second Edition; CQ Press, Washington 2003
2. Patterson, Thomas E.: “Views of Winners & Losers” in GRABER, DORIS A.: “Media Power in Politics”; Congressional Quarterly Inc., Washington 1990, p.178
3. RUTENBERG, JIM: “The Post-Debate Contest: Swaying Perceptions”; New York Times, 4 October 2004, p.1

October 4 is the 277th day of the year (278th in Leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

• U.S. presidential election debates, 2004

The 2004 United States Presidential Election Debates were sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) and concluded October 13, nearly three weeks before election scheduled for November 2, 2004. ...

External links

• Reclaim Democracy - Addressing the Real Issues in Debates
• Commission on Presidential Debates
• The Citizens' Debate Commission's proposal
• PBS debate coverage from NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and Now with Bill Moyers
• Open Debates
• The Appleseed Citizens' Task Force on Fair Debates
• A selective analysis of content of 2000 presidential debates
• The first debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon in 1960

PBS re-directs here; for alternate uses see PBS (disambiguation) PBS logo The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is a non-profit public broadcasting television service with 349 member TV stations in the United States. ...

Articles

• HEADS OR TAILS: You Lose. TomPaine.com article on debate commission and corporate influence
• Diane Ravitch on The Princeton Review findings