NH Union Leader to hold candidate 'forum' 3 days before FOX debate

[Likely Voter]

The NH Union Leader is sponsoring a sort of protest event against the Fox debate....

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So far they have 8 candidates signed up: Carson, Cruz, Christie, Kasich, Fiorina, Graham, Pataki, and Jindal.
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150715/NEWS0605/150719516/0/news18

Of that list only Carson seems sure to be on stage at the Fox debate with Cruz a probability. The rest are on the bubble or unlikely to make the cut. Notably Gilmore is not listed even though he has said he wanted to participate. It could be that he doesn't qualify (which would be ironic as the whole point of this thing is to allow those who dont qualify for Fox's debate to get a voice).

Previously the RNC has said they will penalize anyone who participates in a non-RNC sanctioned debate. This thing is being called a 'forum' and of course there have been lots of events over the last year with multiple candidates (ala CPAC). Those all feature the candidates speaking one at a time, but the announcement says "see the candidates together on a level playing field" which sounds like they will be on stage together. I think that could be the defining criteria of a 'debate' in the eyes of the RNC.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

As long as it is straight 'answer your questions and then be quiet', I think Priebus will let it go  - he hardly wants to punish the only woman, or the only black. If candidates are given time to offer a rebuttal to the other candidates statements though, then it's punishment time. Banning candidates from sanctioned debates has been discussed, along with taking away a third of a candidate's pledged delegates should they reach the convention.

[MaxQue]

As long as it is straight 'answer your questions and then be quiet', I think Priebus will let it go  - he hardly wants to punish the only woman, or the only black. If candidates are given time to offer a rebuttal to the other candidates statements though, then it's punishment time. Banning candidates from sanctioned debates has been discussed, along with taking away a third of a candidate's pledged delegates should they reach the convention.

Well, can Priebus afford to offend the NH Union Leader? It's a powerful NH newspaper.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

As long as it is straight 'answer your questions and then be quiet', I think Priebus will let it go  - he hardly wants to punish the only woman, or the only black. If candidates are given time to offer a rebuttal to the other candidates statements though, then it's punishment time. Banning candidates from sanctioned debates has been discussed, along with taking away a third of a candidate's pledged delegates should they reach the convention.

Well, can Priebus afford to offend the NH Union Leader? It's a powerful NH newspaper.

I think he has to. The moment he turns a blind eye to a FINO (Forum In Name Only) from one organization, a whole bunch more will scream about how they're so special and deserve to hold a FINO, and Priebus will have little choice but to abandon his 'punishment for non-sanctioned debates' rule, which puts the party in the place it does definitely not want to be, which is having 15 or 20 debates.

[Eraserhead]

Nice, nice.

[Likely Voter]

Santorum and Perry have signed on. No word from Bush, Walker, Trump, Huckabee, Paul, Rubio

[oeoyeleye]

This reminds me of the West Wing episode where Santos is excluded from a debate that only Hoynes and Russell are allowed into because they're the only ones who are polling well.

[Likely Voter]

NYTimes has details on the format...

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SO this seems to be more like some kind of hybrid. It is like CPAC in that they will be on stage one at a time, but like a debate in that there is a moderator asking questions.  It kind of sounds like a series of interviews.

[Likely Voter]

Rubio has signed on and so they are now up to 11 candidates. Included in the Rubio announcement article is this description....

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So will they all be on stage at the same time or not? If they are all on stage at one time, even if they speak one at a time, that sounds like a debate to me.

[Mr. Morden]

Bush and Walker will participate as well, while Trump will skip it:

http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150723/NEWS0605/150729542/1066/NEWS0605

No word from Huckabee and Paul yet, afaik.

[Mr. Morden]

There is a survey that you can take here that will apparently help determine what topics are covered in the forum:

http://www.wltx.com/story/news/politics/2015/07/21/survey-voters-first-gop-presidential-forum/30465547/

How long will this last for?  2 hours maybe?  How much speaking time would that give everyone if 17 candidates show up (given that just transitioning from one question to another also eats up time)?  I don't see how they can bring the candidates on stage one at a time.  They'd waste way too much time just moving people around.

[Mr. Morden]

On a loosely related note, the Democrats have still not announced the timing or location for their first debate.  I assume they can't throw everything together at the last minute, so when the heck will it be scheduled for?  October?

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

On a loosely related note, the Democrats have still not announced the timing or location for their first debate.  I assume they can't throw everything together at the last minute, so when the heck will it be scheduled for?  October?

Whenever Clinton tells the DNC that she's ready.

[Retrumplican]

Bush and Walker will participate as well, while Trump will skip it:

Interesting that Trump is skipping it. That means that the RNC will not penalize candidates who attend, since the RNC mainly seems to be out to get Trump. Any debate that does not have Trump, they will support.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Everyone except Trump and Huckabee (and Gilmore) is signed up:
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150723/NEWS060501/150729542&template=mobileart

[Likely Voter]

Still curious as to the format of this thing. How will they make it so it isnt like a debate? The whole point of the RNC sactioned debates was to reduce the number, one of the complaints of the candidates. If I had to bet, Walker Bush and some others probably would prefer to not go to this thing but they are afraid of pissing off the press in the early states, notably the NHUL. If this thing ends up being almost exactly like a debate what is to  stop more of these 'forums' springing up, and then the candidates are right back where they were in 2012, compelled to show up to all of them or fear missing out and/or pissing off important media outlets.

On the other hand Trump seems to now be in full Cersei Lannister mode, lashing out at all his press enemies. So he wont go to this because the Union Leader attacked him. Also today his campaign refused to give credentials to the Des Moines Register - the biggest paper in Iowa - because they wrote an editorial against him.  If the Des Moines Register is involved in any of the future debates (as they have been in the past) will he refuse to come? What about the NBC debate, will he refuse to go to that because of MSNBC and/or connection to Univision?

[Mr. Morden]

Everyone except Trump and Huckabee (and Gilmore) is signed up:
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150723/NEWS060501/150729542&template=mobileart

According to that link, the forum will be broadcast nationally on C-SPAN.  Do we know what time?

[The Other Castro]

Everyone except Trump and Huckabee (and Gilmore) is signed up:
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150723/NEWS060501/150729542&template=mobileart

According to that link, the forum will be broadcast nationally on C-SPAN.  Do we know what time?

7 PM ET

[Mr. Morden]

Everyone except Trump and Huckabee (and Gilmore) is signed up:
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20150723/NEWS060501/150729542&template=mobileart

According to that link, the forum will be broadcast nationally on C-SPAN.  Do we know what time?

7 PM ET

Cool.  That's 7am here in Perth, so I'll be able to watch at least the beginning of it live, while I eat breakfast and get ready for work.

How many other people in the entirety of Australia do you think will watch this live?  Might I be the only one?

[Mr. Morden]

This story gives some further hints as to the format: A succession of five minute interviews?

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hearst-television-to-carry-august-3-new-hampshire-presidential-forum-on-its-tv-stations-across-the-country-300120202.html

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[Mr. Morden]

More details, and it looks like no Gilmore:

https://www.yahoo.com/politics/new-hampshire-thumbs-its-nose-at-fox-news-over-125381639521.html

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And this:

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So not quite a debate, as it'll be a rapid succession of short interviews.  But it sounds like the other candidates will be there to see what their opponents are saying, and then have a chance to respond at the end.  So it has some debate-like qualities.

[Likely Voter]

So all the candidates at one event answering questions from a moderator and given a chance to respond to each other isn't a debate? Sounds like one to me. The key thing here seems to be if they are on stage at the same time.

What if YouTube held a Forum via skype and they were all responding to eachother but obviously werent on the same stage as eachother...would that be a debate?

What if Outdoor magazine held a 'forum' where they were all in the same duck blind and answered questions between shots? There is no stage or podiums, so would that count as a debate?

[Mr. Morden]

So all the candidates at one event answering questions from a moderator and given a chance to respond to each other isn't a debate? Sounds like one to me. The key thing here seems to be if they are on stage at the same time.

In addition to them not all being on stage at the same time, it sounds like each candidate gets multiple questions (for a total of probably ~4 minutes or something), before they move on to the next one.  Then they cycle back through the candidates again with some kind of followup questions.

So I guess it's like a slow motion debate?  You ask everyone about 3 or 4 questions at a time before everyone else can respond?  Wherea in a normal debate, it's one question at a time?

But yeah, this was clearly designed to push the limits of the "no unauthorized debates" rules.

[Likely Voter]

It will be interesting to see if they get equal time by the end. You can be sure that won't be the case at the fox debate. But I doubt the frontrunners will mind. They want to save their best zingers for the fox debate.

[Mr. Morden]

This is happening when the Senate is in session, and it looks like Cruz at least will only participate via satellite:

http://www.tjcnewspaper.com/fox-opens-upcoming-debate-to-all-gop-candidates-10049/

Not sure about the other senators.