We’ll be up and running on the CoverItLive machine around 8:30 tonight. I sent any front pager who participated last time an invite. Hopefully Joe Patrice will also liveblog in a post without comments so we can hear what a real debate expert has to say. Joe has an interesting post up about how Obama should handle the Benghazi question, which was written before Hillary took the blame but is still relevant.
Mark Halperin finally did something useful and dug up the debate rules. Here are some highlights from Elspeth Reeve at the Atlantic (via OTB):
No reaction shots. “To the best of the Commission’s abilities, there will be no TV cut-aways to any candidate who is not responding to a question while another candidate is answering a question or to a candidate who is not giving a closing statement while another candidate is doing so.” TV guys, you so broke this rule.
The town hall will be strictly regulated. In the town hall debate Tuesday, Candy Crowley “shall select the questioners, but she may not ‘coach’ the questioners.” Questioners cannot ad lib their questions. Crowley cannot ask follow-ups. If a questioner tries to as a follow-up, they will cut off his microphone.
No show of hands. This could be because Obama keeps attacking Romney for raising his hand at a Republican primary debate when the candidates were asked whether they’d take a deal that was 10 parts spending cuts to 1 part tax increases. Or it’s just because those questions are inexact and frustrating.
No shout outs. The candidates are forbidden from calling out to a person in the audience unless it’s a family member.
No accessories. Romney is not allowed to bring his PowerPoint or any other “tangible things.”
No direct questions. Obama and Romney aren’t supposed to ask each other stuff, like “What about the Dingell-Norwood bill?”
No demanding anyone take a pledge.
No audience clapping.
No sweat. “The Commission shall use best efforts to maintain an appropriate temperature as agreed to by the campaigns.”
As in many other things in life, rules so goddam stupid and overcomplicated end up being broken on the fly as both candidates push and the moderator does what s/he thinks best.