¶Although they didn't occur in a presidential campaign, Abraham Lincoln's seven
face-offs with Stephen Douglas in their battle for Illinois' U.S. Senate seat significantly boosted his profile in national politics and eventually helped him win the presidency in 1860. (He lost the Senate seat to Douglas in 1858.) The debate format is widely used in today's forensic competitions.
¶Commonly named as the most significant debate in American presidential history, this first-ever televised debate marked the inauguration of television's importance in national politics. Those who watched saw a sweaty and ill-looking Richard Nixon against a young and healthy-looking John F. Kennedy. Television viewers named Kennedy the winner, while those listening on the radio thought Nixon was the victor.
¶This vice presidential debate set the standard for notable one-liners. When Republican Dan Quayle argued he had as much experience in Congress as President Kennedy did, Democrat Lloyd Bentsen quipped: "Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy."
¶Perhaps most notable for President Reagan's attempt to deflect accusations he was too old for the presidency with the quote: "I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent's youth and inexperience." But Walter Mondale also famously uttered an admission that he (and Reagan) would raise taxes. Though blunt and honest, the line contributed to his defeat.
¶In one of the biggest gaffes in debate history, President Ford declared, "there is no Soviet domination in Eastern Europe." Ford meant Eastern Europeans didn't accept Soviet domination, but the line gave the unshakable perception that he didn't understand global politics.
¶Reagan famously asked voters: "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" It helped set the tone for his
eventual defeat of President Carter, who presided over a severe economic recession.
¶Vice President Al Gore cemented his image as a boring
stick-in-the-mud with his professorial tone and constant sighing at Texas Gov. George W. Bush's answers.
¶This debate is most well-known for what many described as a wildly inappropriate question by Bernard Shaw, who asked Michael Dukakis if he would favor the death penalty if his wife were raped and murdered. If Shaw was criticized for the question, Dukakis' unemotional response was more widely panned.
¶In the first presidential debates to include an independent candidate, the series significantly increased Perot's profile. President George H.W. Bush also earned the perception of being disengaged and uninterested by repeatedly glancing at his watch while his opponents were speaking.
¶In this U.S. Senate debate pitting the sitting first lady, Hillary Clinton, against U.S. Rep. Rick Lazio, Clinton was forced to answer a pointed question about her husband's infidelity and his efforts to deny it. Lazio also was accused of seeking to intimidate his female opponent by leaving his lectern and walking to hers in an attempt to get her to sign a no-taxes pledge.
Copyright 2010 Las Vegas Sun
