US Politics: Great Presidential debates

Kennedy and Nixon in 1960

Election game-changers or high-brow X Factor? Ahead of Monday's third and final Presidential showdown, Eliot Pollak selects some of the top moments from debate history...

Hands up who remembers Nick Clegg? No giggling at the back kids, this is politics so be serious. For all those still scratching their heads, Nick Clegg was the big winner in the UK's 2010 inaugural Prime Ministerial debates. Having subsequently seen the Lib Dem share of the vote drop from its 2005 figure, Clegg is currently working full-time as a punchline. As this intro handily demonstrates.

Because the truth is, as important as debates are, their true significance can only be analysed in hindsight. If Mitt Romney wins the Presidency in a couple of weeks hence, everyone will point to his beating up of the incumbent in that first debate. Yet if Obama holds on, debates will be dismissed as mere entertainment, a highbrow X Factor, with little impact on the final outcome where voters tend to check only their bank accounts before heading to the polling booth.

Take these examples from debates past. Gaffes and triumphs alike - some were seen as having an impact, others a mere footnote in history.

1960 JFK (Dem) vs Richard Nixon (Rep)

Ah, the classic US Presidential debate. As urban legend has it, those listening on the radio awarded victory to the Republican, but those lucky enough to be watching on television, saw a young, suave, charismatic Kennedy and fell in love.

Impact: Ultimately minimal. Far more voters would have tuned in on the wireless, yet Kennedy won the Presidency.

1980 Jimmy Carter (Dem) vs Ronald Reagan (Rep)

The zinger of zingers. Although looking back 30-plus years on, "There you go again", isn't really up there with "I'll be back," or even, "It's up for grabs now."

Nevertheless, this was the moment when Ronald Reagan put his showbiz background to good use. After Carter let rip with some typically sanctimonious guff about healthcare, Reagan chuckled before firing back.

Impact: Huge - the moment when the supposedly less serious candidate made the incumbent look small

1984 Walter Mondale (Dem) vs Ronald Reagan (Rep)

Yep, it's that cheeky scamp Big Ron again, this time turning the tables on Democrat opponent Walter Mondale. Facing questions that he was simply too old for the biggest job around, Reagan inverted the issue, instead questioning his opponent's relative inexperience.

Impact: Sizeable. The nation was reminded why they enjoyed having a charismatic President.

1992 Bill Clinton (Dem) vs George Bush (Rep)

Also known as that 'What's the time Mr Bush' moment. As some slight-brained lady asked a question about the national debt that she didn't really understand, the original (and still the connoisseurs' favourite) George Bush just checked his watch. He couldn't have been ruder had he held up his palm mid-question and fired back, "What the **** are you talking about you stupid woman!!!"

Compare the response of his opponent, the then still relatively unknown Bill Clinton; a master-class in debating from the then young lotharia.

Impact: This was the moment that launched Bill Clinton, and indeed a new generation of empathetic politicians such as Tony Blair. (Fans of innuendo should immediately move to 1min 26secs of the above clip.)

The third Presidential Debate between President Obama and Governor Romney will take place at 2am UK time on Tuesday October 23.