Dr. Ed Moore: Marco Rubio, Kendrick Meek, Charlie Crist -- None Changed His Position in Senate Debate

In the opinion of one expert on Florida politics, Tuesday night's U.S. Senate debate was polite, predictable and did little to advance the election chances of any of the three candidates.

Dr. Ed Moore, president and CEO of Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida, said Gov. Charlie Crist, the independent; U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, the Democrat; and Marco Rubio, the Republican -- under the glare of TV cameras -- responded to journalists' questions "in about as straightforward a manner as you can get. I heard nothing that came as a surprise. No new information."

Moore continued, "I think the debate suffered from three people up on the stage instead of two. In an hour, there's insufficient opportunity for follow-up questions and rebuttals. Interaction was lost."

He said he expects Wednesday night's gubernatorial debate between Democrat Alex Sink and Republican Rick Scott -- also set to be televised at 7 p.m. from Nova University -- to allow the candidates to expand on their points of view.

Moore has a monthly radio segment on the WFLA-AM morning radio show in Tallahassee, where he offers a unique perspective on current political events and campaigns in Florida.