A warm-up debate

Last night's gubernatorial debate succeeded in an odd contortion: It demonstrated both the value of including all the candidates on the ballot in at least one televised forum and also the argument for narrowing the field. Voters will definitely be best served if the next debate is for contenders only.

Independent Christy Mihos and Green-Rainbow Party candidate Grace Ross added color, some passion, and some fresh viewpoints to the exchanges last night. But the short-answer format, and the need to rotate among four candidates, meant that many issues were ignored altogether, or -- even worse -- were mentioned briefly and then dropped and forgotten.

Mihos remarked on the plight of small businessmen like himself. Ross said corporations and state contractors are getting too many breaks, and are too cozy with the major-party candidates, Republican Kerry Healey and Democrat Deval L. Patrick. But there was no follow-up. Health care and housing got barely a mention.

A number of differences between Healey and Patrick came to the surface. She supports merit pay for teachers; he supports it for schools, not individuals. She opposes the Cape Wind Farm; he supports it. She opposes in-state tuition rates for illegal immigrants; he supports them. But the rationale behind their positions was not developed on any of these issues.

Also, Healey said Patrick would be soft on crime, but didn't have time to back up the charge. He didn't have time to answer except to say he had experience as a prosecutor, not a criminal theorist. Even the one issue that consumed the most time, the proposed rollback of the state income tax rate to 5 percent, was left inconclusive. Healey did not respond effectively to Patrick's claim that the Romney administration had proposed $985 million in tax and fee increases, while its policies resulted in $1.8 billion in property tax increases.

One clear result of the four-candidate format was the piling on against Mitt Romney's record. Healey was quick-witted and maintained her composure for most of the debate, and pointed to her disagreement with Romney on abortion. But in general she accepted the role as defender of the administration, and was buried by relentless criticism from the other three. At times, it didn't seem fair. And Patrick was able to capitalize, sounding collegial as he went out of his way four separate times to agree with her on issues, while differing sharply on others.

Although lively, this was a warm-up for a debate between the contenders. Mihos might qualify some day. But last night, only Healey and Patrick met that standard.