There are so many controversies that GOP Presidential Nominee Donald Trump
(and yes, even now I am still in disbelief that he is the GOP Nominee) has
stirred up since clinching the nomination. I could go into the Conventions
recently, where the DNC’s theme was “Love trumps hate”, while the RNC’s theme
apparently was “Love Trump’s Hate”. I could talk about his ever expanding list
of people to criticize. I could talk about his challenges to win enough
electoral votes to become President. I could even talk about his unwillingness
to cede the spotlight, even when bigger events are going on. But I’m going to
focus on the Presidential debates, and Trump apparent disdain for a schedule
that was set a year ahead of the first debate.
Trump recently tweeted that it appeared Hillary Clinton was trying to once
again “fix the debate” schedule to increase Hillary’s chances of winning in
November:
“As usual, Hillary & the Dems are trying to rig so 2 are up against major
NFL games. Same as last time w/ Bernie. Unacceptable!” (@realDonaldTrump, July
29, 2016)
Problem is, like most of his statements in this campaign, they are lies. And I
don’t need to check Politifact to confirm this…
Last September, the Commission on Presidential Debates, a nonpartisan and
nonprofit commission, set the schedule for 3 Presidential debates and 1
VP debate. The schedule at that time was as follows:
(Presidential Debate #1) Monday, September 26, 2016: Wright State University,
Dayton, OH
(VP Debate) Tuesday, October 4, 2016: Longwood University, Farmville, VA
(Presidential Debate #2) Sunday, October 9, 2016: Washington University, St.
Louis, MO
(Presidential Debate #3) Wednesday, October 19, 2016: University of
Nevada-Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV
Two weeks ago, the President of Wright State announced the University was
backing out of the first debate. Hofstra University, on Long Island in New
York, is now the site of the first Presidential debate on September 26th.
But don’t tell Trump the Debates were set by a nonpartisan group. It would
destroy his conspiracy theories he will use to attempt to skip out of any/all of
the debates. Yeah, I know, he CLAIMS he is for three debates, but the truth is that he only wants the debates on his
terms (and I’ll bet one of those terms is to have Candy Crowley removed from any
debate panels/hosting duties).
But take a closer look: two of the debates actually happen on turf where
Trump considers favorable terrain. Debate #1 occurring in Long Island is a huge
break for him, because it’s a quick helicopter/limo ride from Trump Towers in
Manhattan. And Debate #3 being in Las Vegas will be close to a Trump Hotel
where he can enjoy his luxurious accommodations.
What Trump is also upset about is the fact that he has to share the spotlight at
all. In the GOP debates, he was front and center… even in the debate he skipped
for a “military fundraiser”. In the General Election, he will share time with
and be off to the side opposite Hillary Clinton (and maybe both will have to
share center stage and equal time with Libertarian candidate, Gary Johnson).
And attention may be split between sports and the debate (For the record, don’t
tell Trump, but it’s likely the 3rd Debate will go up against (at least) one MLB
League Championship Series, or possibly the World Series).
As I said earlier, Trump is laying the groundwork, coming up with excuses
to try and overturn the debate schedule. I am already on record that the debate
he most likely skips will be the 2nd Presidential debate, set for St. Louis on
October 9th. That debate is the Town Hall debate (the other 2 debates will be
the classical opposite facing podiums, with a defined format), and with Ferguson
being a suburb of St. Louis, you can be sure the parents of one Michael
Brown will be invited to attend, with a central focus of that debate being on
the Black Lives Matter Movement. Trump does not want to have to face setup
like that, believe me.
Trump was able to control the message during the GOP debates because of the
weak format, and dealing with a number of candidates that split the focus of
non-Trump rivals. There will be no such luck that Trump will be able to control
the General Election Debates in the same way. For Trump, the chances
of skipping organizing, and planning to win a debate, much less a General
Election (like he was able to do in the primaries) is zero. And he is feeling
the heat now of both.
Like I said, Trump hates the General Election Debates because he will not be the sole focus, and he's trying to overturn everything to get exactly what he wants. 58 days until the first debate seems like a lifetime away with Trump in the mix... and anything is possible.
