This is out of disgust really, but is also equal parts preventative medicine. I think I know well enough about President Obama, Mitt Romney, and Gary Johnson and their policy positions, and certainly where I am going to vote, so as to render watching a fairly useless exercise.
I'm disgusted at the exclusion of Gary Johnson. I won't watch Obama and Romney absent Johnson in order to keep my blood pressure down.
I've experienced more than my share of incredulous disappointment over American politics in my life regarding the choices. Such is my lot as an idealist. But I'm going to steal a line I get handed by Republicans all the time and apply it to how I see things. Mainly, the choice between Johnson and Obama/Romney is so stark as to be night and day; and Obama or Romney may be different kinds of horrible medicine, but they are equal doses of horrible medicine all the same. The American people deserve to see and hear Johnson alongside the candidates of the pro-war anti-civil rights crony capitalist duopoly candidates.
Johnson is on the ballot in 48 states. The overwhelming majority of Americans will have the opportunity to vote for him if they choose. They won't because they don't know enough of what he stands for.
Is it the job of the debate commission to carry Johnson's water? No, but then is it the job of the debate commission to carry Obama's and Romney's? No. The debates are supposed to be much more than that. Without Johnson, they will be boring, scripted affairs that judiciously avoid certain issues. With Johnson, those issues would be addressed.
In being barred, Johnson is reduced to being online at the same time as the debates, chiming in with his policy positions, I guess in the down moments. Well, that could be the entire time. It sucks in any case, and I won't watch. We do debates only slightly better than the Soviet Union did elections.
3 comments:
I'd love to see documentation, if there is any, about debate conditions agreed to between the campaigns; including, if it's there: "exclude the Libertarian."
There isn't. Among the hurdles participants have to leap is 'must be polling over 15%, by 5 different nationally recognized firms'.
The polling firms were doing their part, though, by not including Johnson in their polling. Pretty slick, eh?
Johnson was recently polling over 10% in Ohio. Interesting commentary at Democratic Underground, which noted that most polls exclude Johnson: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021446573
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