VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Democratic 2020 Presidential Candidate John Delaney Proposes President Debate Congress Quarterly

Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.), the first Democrat to announce a 2020 run for president, has many unconventional policy ideas like proposing term limits for Supreme Court Justices and granting statehood to Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico.

One of Delaney’s most attention-grabbing ideas, however, is one suggesting the president should debate lawmakers four times a year.

“One of the things I’m for that I think is a little different is that I think the president — hopefully me — will debate the Congress once every three months,” the 55-year-old said. “So for three hours, on national television every three months, have a debate. First of all, I think the president ought to be able to do it, just as a threshold matter.”

He continued: “But secondly, I think it would be amazing for the American people. So the first hour-and-a-half would be one issue — healthcare, foreign policy, climate change — and we’d go probably ten questions back and forth.”

Delaney added he believes this would allow the American public to determine “who is telling the truth” about the many issues they care about: Congress or the president.

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The Maryland Democrat continued by lamenting the “elusive” nature of truth in today’s political landscape, and suggested the fact that 60 percent of American voters obtain news from social media has contributed to misinformation.

“We got to get the American people back to this notion of ‘you should engage in your social media but there should also be some trusted places you go to where you get your information,” said Delaney.

Delaney emphasized he believes old-fashioned, “Lincoln-style” public debates would help combat widespread disinformation among voters.

The Congressman added he invites people from both sides of the political aisle to challenge his proposal, saying that throwing ideas around could ultimately lead to a viable solution to ensuring voters are informed about every major issue.

Article by Pablo Mena

Writer for uPolitics.com. NY Giants and Rangers fan. Film and TV enthusiast (especially Harry Potter and The Office) and lover of foreign languages and cultures.