Marco Rubio has announced that he has accepted an offer from Fox News to debate Charlie Crist. The Governor has yet to answer. Since the Governor is down in the polls, one might think he would be eager to have the chance to debate Rubio. Yet what should be noted is that a nationally televised debate in this political climate is rife with problems. The debate would likely only serve to raise the profile for Rubio; despite his leading poll numbers - he probably still has room to grow. What would Crist gain by saying yes? Well he could, perhaps, (1) beat Rubio on the issues, or (2) hope for a debacle (say, like, ink written notes on the hand after chastising the leader of the other party for using a teleprompter).
UPDATE: Governor Crist has accepted an offer for two national debates: March 7th on Meet the Press, and March 28 on Fox News Sunday.
The problem is that debates rarely turn on the substance. Famously in the 1960 Presidential debate, different audiences had different perceptions of the winner. The radio audience who had only heard the debate mainly believed that Nixon "won" the debate, but the television audience that also saw the debate mainly believed Kennedy won. The point is that the medium, presentation, and intangibles can matter a great deal. Think about Dukakis' feeble response to a horrific hypothetical about his wife in the 1988 Presidential campaign. His anti-death penalty response was not alarming to anyone who knew anything about Dukakis' stand on the issue of the death penalty - but his emotions, or rather lack thereof, doomed him. Crist could hope for a major "zinger" like Reagan's "There he goes again," or Bensten's "Senator, you are no Jack Kennedy." But just as possible is adding to the litany of the major debate failures: Ford's lack of knowledge of Eastern Europe, Bush (41) looking at his watch, Gore sighing, etc.
The one saving grace for Crist. Consider how the expectations for Bush (43) were so low during the 2000 campaign that in his debates against Gore, the issues hardly seemed to matter. When Bush largely held his own against Gore, that provided the media story. I'm not sure that the expectations for Crist in a debate against Rubio are comparable, but if he wants to bank on an expectations story - have at it. Otherwise, a polite "no thank you" is probably forthcoming.
About Me
- Martin J. Sweet
- is a professor, political commentator, and Director of Content for thelaw.tv. Sweet was the 2005 co-winner of the APSA's Corwin Prize for the nation's best dissertation in the area of public law. His book, "Merely Judgment: Ignoring, Evading and Trumping the Supreme Court," is forthcoming from the University of Virginia Press in November 2010. Professor Sweet is a regular political contributor for local television and radio stations, and has been interviewed for his political analysis numerous times by the Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Orlando Sentinel, Sarasota Herald Tribune, Scripps-Howard News Service, as well as the Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Daily News, and the Washington Post. Sweet has also been an invited speaker and panel moderator for national and local education, civic, and religious organizations.
