Jill Stein is on the ballot. Why isn’t she in the debates ?I thought I was done with the debates. I watched the first one, but it involved inviting myself over to somebody’s house since I don’t have a television. I guess I could watch it on the computer, but one was really enough. Here is a development that might make tonight’s debate more interesting. Do you think everybody who is on the ballot in enough states to be elected should be included in the debate ? Some people do. Here is the latest on that:
Green Party Candidates to Attempt Entry to Hofstra Debate
HEMPSTEAD, NY—Green Party presidential nominee Jill Stein and her running mate, Cheri Honkala, will attempt at 2pm to gain entry to today’s presidential debate at Hofstra University organized by the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD).
Stein and Honkala will walk from Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum at 2 PM to the debate perimeter at Hofstra, where they will then attempt to walk through security checkpoints and reach the debate hall.
“If the voters so chose, I could be elected President. Cheri and my names will appear on 85% of the ballots in November, and we are qualified to participate in these debates,” said Dr. Stein. “The CPD has tried to silence us, and the millions of Americans we represent, but today we will not be silenced.”
WHO: Jill Stein and Cheri Honkala, Green Party presidential ticket
WHEN: Tuesday, October 16, 2012
WHERE: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, 1255 Hempstead Turnpike, Uniondale NY
The CPD was formed by leaders of the Democratic National Committee and the Republican National Committee in the 1980s, in an ultimately successful attempt to take control of the presidential debates from the League of Women Voters. The CPD has recently come under criticism by watchdog groups like Public Citizen and Common Cause for not releasing the debate contract previously agreed upon by the Obama and Romney campaigns in closed-door meetings. Critics have alleged past contracts were drafted with the intention of excluding independent candidates from debating Republican and Democratic presidential candidates.
To learn more about the CPD, visit this link.
You can follow me on twitter @peterreillycpa.
Originally published on Forbes.com Oct 16th, 2012