Anyone see the Open Debate Conference on CSPAN?

[Norquist Nemesis]

Saw it today...excellent conference with people from the left and right. They highlight why we really need a true open debate forum with the election. The conference was held 1/24/04, but I'm not sure if it's ran on CSPAN before today.

They discuss how we don't have debates in the true sense of the word anymore and how the whole process has been hijacked by the DNC/GOP to limit debating issues important to the people. It also discusses corporate special interest/sponsorships.

The video is about an hour (link: http://www.c-span.org/search/basic.asp?ResultStart=1&ResultCount=10&BasicQueryText=Open+Debates+News+Conference ), but if you have some time, it's compelling.

[bhunt70]

1. I listened to it at work.

Alan Keyes was worked up.

[Norquist Nemesis]

2. He was. And rightly so!

I found the whole thing fascinating and was ready to ask where I should sign up.

[G_j]

3. I believe this is the link

though I didn't see the conference mentioned.

www.opendebates.org

The Issue

The Presidential debates -- the single most important electoral event in the process of selecting a President -- should provide voters with an opportunity to see the popular candidates discussing important issues in an unscripted manner.  But the Presidential debates fail to do so, because the major party candidates secretly control them.
Presidential debates were run by the civic-minded and non-partisan League of Women Voters until 1988, when the national Republican and Democratic parties seized control of the debates by establishing the bi-partisan, corporate-sponsored Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD). Posing as a nonpartisan institution committed to voter education, the CPD has continually and deceptively run the debates in the interest of the national Republican and Democratic parties, not the American people. The CPD, co-chaired by the former heads of the Republican and Democratic parties, secretly submits to the demands of the Republican and Democratic candidates. Accordingly, the CPD insulates the major party candidates from challenging questions, difficult issues, and popular third party and independent candidates. As a result, under the CPD's control, the debates have been reduced to "glorified bi-partisan news conferences," where the major party candidates merely recite prepackaged soundbites and avoid discussing many important issues.

Under CPD sponsorship, the major party candidates never pay a political price for their antidemocratic practices. Were the major party candidates to openly host their own debates, employ their own stilted formats and exclude all third-party challengers, they would be held accountable by voters on Election Day. The CPD, however, publicly assumes responsibility for the presidential debates, shielding the major party candidates from public criticism.  The CPD exists to decieve American voters in order to protect the major party candidates, and that deception unacceptably harms our democracy.  Open Debates wants a transparent debate process that forces the candidates to be held accountable for their decisions.

Open Debates has established a truly nonpartisan Citizens' Debate Commission comprised of national civic leaders to sponsor presidential debates that are rigorous, fair, and inclusive of important issues and popular candidates. The higher values of democracy and voter education will be restored to the presidential debates by the Citizens' Debate Commission.