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2000 United States presidential debates

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2000 United States presidential debates

← 1996 October 3, 2000
October 11, 2000
October 17, 2000
2004 →
 
Nominee Al Gore George W. Bush
Party Democratic Republican
Home state Tennessee Texas
2000 United States vice presidential debate
October 5, 2000
 
Nominee Joe Lieberman Dick Cheney
Party Democratic Republican
Home state Connecticut Wyoming

The 2000 United States presidential debates were a series of debates held during the 2000 presidential election.

The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), a bipartisan organization formed in 1987, organized four debates among the major party candidates, sponsored three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate. Only Democratic nominee Al Gore and Republican nominee George W. Bush met the criteria for inclusion in the debates, and thus were the only two to appear in the debates sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates. The CPD-sponsored vice presidential debate took place between their respective vice presidential running mates, Joe Lieberman and Dick Cheney.

Debate schedule

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 No. Date & time Host Location Moderator Participants
Key:
 P  Participant   N  Non-invitee  
Democratic Republican
Vice President
Al Gore
of Tennessee
Governor
George W. Bush
of Texas
Tuesday, October 3, 2000
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT[1]
University of Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts Jim Lehrer of PBS P P
Wednesday, October 11, 2000
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT[1]
Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, North Carolina P P
Tuesday, October 17, 2000
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT[1]
Washington University in St. Louis St. Louis, Missouri P P
2000 United States vice presidential debate
 No. Date & time Host Location Moderator Participants
Key:
 P  Participant   N  Non-invitee  
Democratic Republican
Senator
Joe Lieberman
of Connecticut
Secretary
Dick Cheney
of Wyoming
VP  Thursday, October 5, 2000
9:00 – 10:30 p.m. EDT[1]
Centre College Danville, Kentucky Bernard Shaw of CNN P P

Participant selection

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In 2000, the following eight candidates achieved ballot access in enough states to mathematically win the election via the Electoral College:

Presidential candidate Party Ballot access
George W. Bush Republican 50+DC
Al Gore Democratic 50+DC
Harry Browne Libertarian 49+DC
Pat Buchanan Reform 49
Ralph Nader Green 43+DC
Howard Phillips Constitution 41
John Hagelin Natural Law 38

Responding to criticism received from the exclusion of Ross Perot in the 1996 campaign, the Commission on Presidential Debates adjusted the criteria used to invite candidates, announcing on January 6, 2000 that third-party candidates would have to reach 15 percent in pre-debate polls to receive an invitation.

Only Governor George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore met the CPD selection criteria for any of the presidential debates. As a result, only Dick Cheney and Joe Lieberman met the criteria for the vice presidential debate.[2][3][4]

Bush initially refused to participate in all three CPD debates, instead proposing that he and Gore meet for just one CPD-sponsored debate, and another two debates of one hour each, hosted on Meet the Press and Larry King Live.[5][6] However, the Bush campaign eventually assented to the three Commission-scheduled debates.[7]

October 3: First presidential debate (University of Massachusetts Boston)

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First presidential debate
Date(s)October 3, 2000 (2000-10-03)
Duration90 minutes
VenueUniversity of Massachusetts Boston
LocationBoston, Massachusetts
ParticipantsAl Gore
George W. Bush
Moderator(s)Jim Lehrer of PBS

The first presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush took place on Tuesday, October 3, 2000, in the Clark Athletic Center on the campus of the University of Massachusetts Boston in Boston, Massachusetts.

The debate was moderated by Jim Lehrer of PBS' The NewsHour, who posed the questions for each candidate.

Transcript

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Viewership

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An estimated 46.6 million viewers tuned into the debates.

October 5: Vice presidential debate (Centre College)

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Vice presidential debate
Date(s)October 5, 2000 (2000-10-05)
Duration90 minutes
VenueCentre College
LocationDanville, Kentucky
ParticipantsJoe Lieberman
Dick Cheney
Moderator(s)Bernard Shaw of CNN

The only vice presidential debate between Senator Joe Lieberman and former Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney, took place on Thursday, October 5, 2000, in the Norton Center for the Arts on the campus of Centre College in Danville, Kentucky.

The debate was moderated by Bernard Shaw of CNN, who posed the questions for each candidate. The candidates discussed issues such as Medicare, Social Security, economic issues, the surplus, the future of the U.S. military and its decline of morale, and drugs in school and education reform.

Reflecting on the debate in 2016, Lieberman called it one of his proudest moments of the campaign, citing the debate's civil tone.[8]

Transcript

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Viewership

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An estimated 28.5 million viewers tuned into the debate.

October 11: Second presidential debate (Wake Forest University)

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Second presidential debate
Date(s)October 11, 2000 (2000-10-11)
Duration90 minutes
VenueWake Forest University
LocationWinston-Salem, North Carolina
ParticipantsAl Gore
George W. Bush
Moderator(s)Jim Lehrer of PBS

The second presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore, took place on Wednesday, October 11, 2000, in the Wait Chapel on the campus of the Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The debate was moderated by Jim Lehrer of PBS' The NewsHour, who posed the questions for each candidate.

Transcript

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Viewership

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An estimated 37.5 million viewers tuned into the debate.

October 17: Third presidential debate (Washington University in St. Louis)

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Third presidential debate
Date(s)October 17, 2000 (2000-10-17)
Duration90 minutes
VenueWashington University in St. Louis
LocationSt. Louis, Missouri
ParticipantsAl Gore
George W. Bush
Moderator(s)Jim Lehrer of PBS

The third and final presidential debate between Vice President Al Gore and Governor George W. Bush, took place on Tuesday, October 17, 2000, at the Field House on the campus of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

The town hall style debate Jim Lehrer of PBS with featuring questions asked by members of the audience.

Transcript

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Viewership

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An estimated 37.7 million viewers tuned into the debate.

Third-party debates

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "CPD: 2000 Debates". www.debates.org. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
  2. ^ "What Happened in 2000?". opendebates.org. Archived from the original on 2015-08-24. Retrieved 2014-10-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ^ "The Appleseed Citizens' Task Force On Presidential Debates: A Blueprint for Fair and Open Presidential Debates". reclaimdemocracy.org. 17 December 2000. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
  4. ^ "2000 Debates". debates.org. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
  5. ^ Swan, Jonathan; Haberman, Maggie (May 15, 2024). "The first Trump-Biden debate could come as early as June". The New York Times. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  6. ^ Allen, Mike (September 7, 2000). "For Bush, Debate Centers on Debates". The Washington Post. p. A41.
  7. ^ Balz, Dan (September 15, 2000). "Gore, Bush Agree to 3 Debates in Prime Time". The Washington Post. p. A1.
  8. ^ Lieberman, Joe (July 20, 2016). "Here's what to do if you've just been nominated for vice president". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  9. ^ "Debates". www.gwu.edu. Retrieved 2014-10-26.
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