Sixteen Dartmouth students have been selected to sit on the stage of Tuesday’s GOP debate — and the arrangement is very particular.
Of the 50 students who applied to be in the focus group, Shaiko said he tried to select a roughly even number of students from each class. The group — which includes eight men and eight women — is composed of four registered Democrats, four registered Republicans and eight students who have either not declared a political affiliation or are Independents, he said. Focus group member Jack Pinto ’15 — who has not declared a political affiliation — said that although he is currently leaning toward supporting the Democratic party in the election, discussing the Republican candidates will still be a valuable learning opportunity.
“I know where I’m leaning, and I don’t know if the debate will change my mind,” Pinto said. “But knowing what to look for in a leader will definitely help me for the future.”
Sounds like the ideal audience for a GOP debate, right?
Prior to the debate, the students will participate in a forum on leadership, and then reconvene after the debate to assess how the candidates measure up to the standards from the discussion. Ronald Shaiko, the associate director of the Rockefeller Center, organized a similar focus group for the 2007 Democratic debate at the school.
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