USD Magazine, Winter/Spring 1997

~

any major political gathering, the behind-the-scenes story is usually more revealing than the actual event. The presidential debates certainly live up to that maxim. In a process that's supposed to benefit the American electorate, campaign party negotiators hold the public, the debate hosts and the debate organizers hostage as they haggle at the 11th hour over dates, sites and formats. Often,

and Republican national committees - has sponsored and produced the presidential and vice presidential debates since 1988. With two cycles of debates and all of their attendant problems under its belt, the commission in 1996 decided it would announce the proposed sites and formats early and often, so the candidates would have a On Jan. 29, 1996, after reviewing applications from 43 hopeful sites and visiting 10 of the sites, the commis- sion announced the proposed dates, locations and for- mats for the 1996 debates. USD was thrilled to have been selected to host the Oct. 16 debate, particularly since a 1992 presidential debate scheduled for USD was cancelled just days before the date due to last-minute hard time disagreeing with the recommendations. ,

rz . /jrr

even the candidates are left in the dark. The debates

1 , J ina J_yr, 111e parues 1 .

come off in the end, but at what price?

"A presidential debate at a university is big-time show ne!Jolialin!J leams

lockedl.hemsefues in a room anc/, a/ier a

business," says Jack Cannon, USD's director of public relations and chair of the presidential debate task force

that organized the Oct. 16 debate at Shiley Theatre. "It's weekofdickerin!J,

90 minutes of Cecil B. De Mille, but nine months of the

I.hey emeryecfw,l.h an a!Jreemenl - a pf an Iba! mean! euery s,le .had

Flying Wallendas."

party negotiations.

The Cecil B. De Mille aspect is derived from a flawless production that, if planned properly, provides essential voter education and extensive opportunities for students and faculty to learn about and become part of the electoral process. Planned well, the country - even the world - watches as the candidates for the highest

In September, less than two weeks before the first 1996 scheduled debate, the Republican and Democratic parties still had not agreed to the commission's proposal. At each of the debate sites, months of preparation were Finally, the parties' negotiating teams locked them- selves in a room and, after a week of dickering, they emerged with an agreement - a plan that meant every site had significant changes to incorporate in a few days hanging in the balance.

1/'

,

siani icanl c.11anaes

./

./

lo incorporale in a

office in America spar and joust their way through a list few clays or a few of incisive questions. In a perfect debate, voters come away with new information from the candidates, the candidates come away with stronger polling positions or at least having crystallized their stands on the issues, and the host university comes away with a week's worth of datelines, nationwide recognition weeks. "In terms of visibility, recognition and image, hosting a presiden- tial debate is the single best way of putting forward the university's capacities on a nationwide level," Cannon says. "It's a magnificent adventure that garners rewards and legacies for a university that and perhaps more student applications.

or a few weeks. Because the negotiations ended on Sept. 21, just four days before the debate scheduled in St. Louis, that site was scrapped. Washington University administrators were left with 10,000 T-shirts, a bannered campus and a deeply disappointed stu- dent body. The date for Hartford, Conn., changed from Oct. 2 to Oct. 6 and switched from a vice presidential to a presidential debate. Hartford officials scrambled for a new location, since the original site was not available on Oct. 6, and reorganized for the arrival of presidential candidates. The debate scheduled for St. Petersburg, Fla., kept its original date, Oct. 9, but switched from a presidential to a vice presidential debate, and from a town hall meeting format to a traditional rostrum debate. USD also kept its original date, Oct. 16, but switched from a rostrum format to a town hall meeting. No small feat for the beauti– ful, but petite Shiley Theatre. In fact, this was such a tall order that design experts had to be called in to determine if it was even

J )

will be remembered for years."

But first, a debate site has to get through the nine months of

preparation. Enter the Flying Wallendas.

The Commission on Presidential Debates - a nonpartisan, non– profit organization co-chaired by former chairs of the Democratic

17

U S D

N E

M A

A Z

&