US presidential candidates prepare for debate

(Vatican Radio) In the United States, Democratic incumbent President Barack Obama and Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney are set to face each other Wednesday evening in their first live debate. Obama and Romney are slated to hold three such events in the final October stretch of the campaign ahead of general elections on November 6^th. Each of the three debates is to last 90 minutes. The first three of Wednesday's six debate segments all focus on the economy. The last three will focus on health care, the role of government, and governing. Listen to our report:

The challenger, Romney, has been couching Wednesday's debate at the university of Denver as the beginning of a month-long “conversation with the American people.” Advisor to the Romney campaign, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani says the debates offer the chance for Romney to present himself to the electorate on his own terms. “I think he has to be presidential,” Giuliani said. “He has to convey the kind of person that people would be comfortable with as President.” Fifty-two million people watched the first debate in 2008. 80 percent of the nation's adults reported watching at least part of the debates between Obama and Republican John McCain. PBS newsman Jim Lehrer is the moderator of the evening. He will open each 15-minute segment with a question, and then Obama and Romney will have two minutes apiece to answer. After that, the conversation opens under the direction of Lehrer, who will intervene if one candidate goes on too long.