A Modest Suggestion for a More Civil #PresidentialDebate

I have watched a little over half of the debates so far.  All of the first presidential debate.  Two-thirds of the vice-presidential debate.  And none of the last one.  One of the problems, especially in the VP debate and from what I read about the second presidential debate, is the constant interruptions of one candidate by the other.  (I am not going to criticize the moderators too much for this.  If a candidate wants to be a jerk, there is not too much the moderator can do about it.)

Here is my suggestion.  I realize it may sound juvenile, but with the candidates being juvenile, we may not have a choice.

The candidates need to be separated.  Maybe in some kind of booth or a separate studio.  They would be able to see and hear the other candidate.  But, and this is the key, their own microphone would be off except when it was their turn to talk.

And to stop candidates from going on and on, there would be a timer.  If you had two minutes to speak, a light would go on at 1:50.  A second light would go on at 2:00.  And your microphone would be shut off at 2:10.

If the candidates can’t follow the rules of no interruptions and time limits by themselves, or when the moderator asks them to, we may have to do it this way.  Juvenile rules for juvenile candidates.