You won’t be able to escape it, so don’t even try. The first of the three Presidental debates airs tonight at 9pm on just about every network. While we bet that NBC is none too pleased about having to shuffle its Thursday night cash cow line up, they too will postpone an another helicoper-falls-out-of-the-sky episode of ER, to bring you Kerry vs. Bush. Or Bush vs. Kerry. Whichever you prefer, really.

Of course, the debate over the debate has been highly contentious and with both candidates agreeing to adhere to a strict outline of rules of engagment, the chances of any spontaneous exchanges seem slim.
It may not be the “High Noon” meeting we were hoping for, but it will still be a showdown worth watching.

According to the Presidential Debate Agreement “[t]he topic of the September 30th debate shall be foreign policy and homeland security.” Need to brush up on your policy stats to impress your wonky friends? The Post has a primer. The moderator will be cuddly Jim Lehrer. And for some people, this means it’s time to party.

The W.Times reports:

Political junkies in the region are stocking up on red and blue beverages and readying party favors such as Bush blowup dolls and Kerry flip-flops for soirees tonight to celebrate the first presidential debate.
Many have turned debate watching into a sport, fashioning drinking games around the candidates’ answers to questions on foreign policy and planning both public and private watch parties.

Only in Washington, people. Only in Washington.

So, you can either surf a couch with a drinking game (drink each time someone says “welfare reform”) or catch the debate on the town. JohnKerry.com offers events that you can search by zip code as does GeorgeWBush.com (DCist would like to point out that the President’s site does not allow you to search within an X mile radius, has match.com taught us nothing?).

And, as always, local universities offer public debate watching options, with George Mason’s event in the Johnson Center at the Fairfax campus and U. of Md. hosting two at the Skinner Building (PDF) and the Stamp Student Union.

So where are you watching the debates? Or are you at all?

(Written by Hemal Jhaveri & Rebecca Walters)

Filed Under: Bush, dcist, drinking, er, events, friends, games, george mason, Hemal Jhaveri, high noon, homeland security, Jim Lehrer, Johnson Center, nbc, people, politics, Rebecca Walters, Stamp Student Union, television, The Post, The W, washington,