Tonight’s early GOP debate for lower-polling candidates on Fox Business Network will be moderated by Trish Regan and Sandra Smith at 7 p.m. We caught up with Smith earlier this week to discuss the crowded GOP field and what she’ll eat in Milwaukee. Our sister site FishbowlDC spoke with Regan to discuss how she plans to deal with a possibly antagonistic slate of debaters, her preparation and what she’s looking to get out of the candidates.
I care about jobs, the economy. We care about the size of government, we care about taxes. There’s a lot at stake right now in terms of our fiscal future, in terms of our children’s fiscal future, and these are issues that the American public cares about, that I care about, and I am honored, absolutely thrilled to be playing a role in making sure that these topics are discussed and that we have a substantive conversation about the economic future of this country.
Regan also discussed who should be responsible for setting the debate rules:
I’m a purist, and as a purist, I believe that a journalist needs to be able to ask the questions that he or she feels are important and relevant and critical to understanding the policies that these candidates are presenting. We need to be able to do this without constraints from others. It’s a network’s responsibility to ensure an impartial and fair debate. It’s a journalist’s responsibility to do the same. That’s the bottom line.