The Bush/Gore debates of 2000 are, in hindsight, perhaps the most fateful of modern times. Imagine if we had debates of Buchanan vs Fremont, or Warren Harding vs Cox, or…

The Rise of Clinton Right away, I agree with Clinton talking about trickle down economics at the beginning, and I further agree with him that infrastructure and healthcare can be…

This is the most famous of the debates from the '92 cycle, because of three key moments which defined the way the public perceived each candidate. I'll describe these when…

I'll say right off the bat that these are my favorite general election debates. 1992 is special because it remains the only time a third party candidate ever participated along…

That Question This begins with one of the most important examples of “appearances matter!” in all politics. The most infamous moment from these debates is the first question here, where…

These are a lot more spirited and fun to watch then those of the previous 3 cycles, or 1996, all of which were often brutal to slog through. How times…

These are between Reagan and Mondale, of course. So, I don't have as much to say about this cycle as I will with regards to future debates. (This general election…

This cycle is pretty special because it's one of only two times where a candidate outside of the Democrat-Republican duopoly was ever allowed to participate. But unlike the three-way competition…

So, this must seem strange, to group two non-consecutive cycles of debates together into a single post. The reason I'm doing so is simple: these are by far the two…

My thoughts on the other 3 Kennedy-Nixon Debates from 1960, the first General Election Debates in US history. None of these are anywhere near as fascinating as the first. The…

A lot has been made about the differences in appearance between the two men in this debate. There's the famous anecdote about how radio listeners liked Nixon more while TV…

Biden v Ryan 2012 Paul Ryan was supposed to be the young, fresh "exciting!" candidate to balance out Romney's milquetoast, past-his-prime factor. It didn't quite work, and in my opinion…

I'll begin with some general observations and thoughts before we dive into the specific debates. The VP is usually considered the "attack dog" of the ticket since they can say…

Bentsen v Quayle 1988 This is where the single most famous moment of any US debate occurred, “Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy” where Lloyd Bentsen put Dan Quayle in his…

These won't be as in-depth as my write ups for the Presidential or primary debates. There's just not as much to talk about, and the VP debates have never had…

So, my main purpose for watching all the primary debates since 1980 (the first year I could find any online) was to see if there were any obscure old progressive…

So, Ive finished watching at least one early primary debate from every cycle since 1980 (I couldn't find anything earlier online). I did this both in an attempt to discover…

I just didn't care. I really didn't. I got excited for the last cycle because Bernie was the first candidate in my lifetime to say all the things I had…

This cycle was when I had become apathetic and embittered to politics again after the previous 2 elections of increased awareness and excitement. By this time, we knew about NSA…

This was the first election where I was old enough to fully understand the issues, where I really first in love with a candidate (Obama, obviously) and wasn't just cheering…

The Republicans were pretty much doomed to failure this cycle following Bush and the Great Recession. On some level I'm sure even they knew that. I think McCain from 2000…

This is the first election where I was vaguely aware of the issues going on because I had to do a project for social studies class. We were tasked with…

I've been dreading this one. If there are two political “groups” I can't stand, it's the Bush and Clinton entourages. I literally cringe watching Hillary or Bush II speak—they have…

I'm really surprised the field this cycle was so narrow. Literally it's just two candidates, Gore and Bradley. I thought the 2016 primary was small with only 3 serious contenders,…

I like Bob Dole, and think he's a decent man. But if his older 1996 incarnation is the best you've got, you're in trouble. Especially against a charismatic person like…

In this debate, which I'm only guessing is from Iowa, we have all the candidates again except Agran, but with a new guy, Douglas Wilder. Let's see if he's worth…

Realistically, I don't think anyone could have ever beaten Bill Clinton in this primary—the guy was a determined, charismatic juggernaut. But I hate his "third way" policies and his political…

Obviously, I'm wondering if Bush really was the cream of the crop, or if a better alternative was passed over. It's clear after seeing the 1988 Democratic debates that Dukakis…