Excluded from Previous Presidential Debates, a Democrat and a Republican Offer Ways for the Parties to Fix Them

Gary Johnson and Dennis Kucinich have ideas for making the debates include people likewell, them.

Republican presidential candidates (L-R) Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) look over their notes before participating in a Fox News, Wall Street Journal sponsored debate at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center on January 16, 2012 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Photographer: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
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Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, has said for years that he wants to prevent the party's 2016 nomination fight from transforming into a "circus." He picked a tricky time to make that stand. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the weakest "front-runner" in many years, has failed to keep any of the party's credible candidates out of the race, leading to a field of at least 16 people, none polling better than the high teens in national polls.

Last week, in Arizona, the RNC discussed limiting its first televised debate to just 12 candidates. On Wednesday, Matea Gold reported that the debate's host, Fox News, wanted the debate cut down to the 10 candidates who perform best "in an average of the five most recent national polls in the run-up to the event." If two candidates tie at the bottom, maybe 11 candidates can climb aboard. That's it.