Edward Longe: In defense of the debate

On September 26, 1960, at CBS studios in Chicago, Illinois, Sen. John F. Kennedy debated Vice President Richard Nixon in the first televised presidential debate. Nixon, pale and sweating after recovering from a staph infection, is widely considered to have hurt his campaign that night. As the front-runner in 1968 and 1972, Nixon later refused to debate Hubert Humphrey or George McGovern, recognizing the power a debate performance can have on voting outcomes. Debates did not return until Gerald Ford debated Jimmy Carter in 1976. While presidential debates took a hiatus between 1960 and 1976, they have since grown into a cornerstone of American elections, with candidates up and down the electoral stack taking the stage to outline their agendas for voters. Despite the power these public events can hold, candidates across the country have turned against debates, including here in Florida, with gubernatorial candidate David Jolly refusing to debate Byron Donalds and Sen. Ashley Moody refusi