Are Debates Useful?
With the election a few short weeks away, Governor Rick Snyder and Democrat challenger Mark Schauer faced off on Public TV last evening in the only debate you'll be able to see before we cast ballots. In a time when sound bites and "I approved this message" commercials work hard to get our attention - and end up frustrating many of us - debates could be a chance to see the candidates side-by-side, speaking about the issues. It seems the candidates, though, don't want to have debates - they fight for the style of debate they prefer, if they even want one (incumbents usually don't). This year, only one debate was agreed to by the Schauer and Snyder camps. Others were proposed, but details couldn't be agreed upon. It seems the losers in that are the voters, of course. Or maybe not. Are debates even helpful anymore? You tell me.
Meanwhile, the Detroit Free Press has published a fact checker on some of the assertions made by both candidates in last night's debate:
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