Chris Wallace, the Fox News anchor who will moderate the first presidential debate in one week from today, has decided on the topics. The Commission on Presidential Debates has released the list, and at least half are literally Trump campaign issues and talking points.
The list includes: The Trump and Biden Records, The Supreme Court, Covid-19, The Economy, Race and Violence in our Cities, The Integrity of the Election.
Americans have said in large numbers the debates are of minimal importance to their decision-making, and polls show most voters are already decided. NBC News senior political editor Mark Murray on Sunday reports a new NBC News/WSJ poll shows “a combined 71% of voters don’t see the upcoming debates as being very important to deciding their vote.”
Just 18% say they are extremely important, and 44% says they are not at all important.
But allowing Trump to take a victory lap over seating his third Supreme Court justice seems unfair. Voters continue to see Trump as the better of the candidates to manage the economy – despite record unemployment. Race and violence in our cities feeds right in to Trump’s lies about “suburban mothers,” and supposed fear of Black people. Election integrity is an issue only because Trump has lied about the safety of voting by mail – and worked get the Postal Service to slow down deliveries.
Obvious missing topics, to name a few: climate change, police violence, health care, abortion, unemployment, immigration, Russia, America’s standing in the world, the extreme politicization of the federal government, extreme corruption in the federal government, and civil rights.
The debate will be Tuesday, Sept. 29, from 9 PM ET to 10:30 PM ET.