[Above: SNL parodies a presidential debate, October 2020. -- eds]

Donald Trump is a serial liar unrivaled in modern politics. He often goes on weird tangents that have nothing to do with a question, either because he can't retain any knowledge related to any policy or legislation or because he lacks enough attention span to do so.

Since he rode down the escalator in 2015, Trump has been implementing Joseph Goebbels's strategy: when you tell a lie long enough, people will believe it. Trump has taken this tactic to extraordinary heights within the confines of the US Constitution.

What we learned from the CNN debate back in July with President Biden is that Trump, without rules, governor the debate. Donald Dump turns the debate into two-minute rallies of unedited crazy MAGA propaganda, conspiracy theories, and outright lies.

Since debate moderators aren't allowed to interfere, it's left to the political rival to either ignore, comment on the question, or attack Trump. This leaves little time to discuss the actual questions posed by the moderators.

That's what Trump thrives on: confusion, chaos, and weird analogies.

Lorraine Ali of the LA Times writes Trump uses a form of debating called the Gish gallop, used in 1994 to undermine the theory of evolution.

GG, as I’ve come to call it, is a shell game/debate tactic that takes its name from Duane Gish, a prominent figure in the creationist movement who deployed dubious arguments, selective factoids and rapid-fire lies to overwhelm his opponents in public discussions about the theory of evolution.

The disinformation technique, dubbed the Gish Gallop in 1994 by the National Center for Science Education’s founding director, Eugenie Scott, is essentially the art of burying one’s opponent in falsehoods, outlandish rhetoric, and red herrings, making it nearly impossible for them to cut through the subterfuge and correct the lies within the timed confines of a debate.

Making the GG method work in one’s favor requires criminal levels of confidence and showmanship. I’m not suggesting that former President Trump studied the late creationist’s playbook, if there is such a thing. That would require reading. But there is a set of instructional videotapes.

I doubt Trump ever heard of the Gish Gallop. Since demented Don has lied so throughout his entire life, this technique comes naturally to the narcissistic buffoon.

Without actual parameters set during any debate, who needs news hosts or journalists to ask the questions?

Using the no-fact-checking requirement in the upcoming format, I could grab two people off the street who have roughly a 4th-grade reading level, make them the debate moderators, have them read the prepared questions to each candidate, and then stand there mute.