The campaigns will squeeze out the RNC, which has so far taken the lead in negotiating the terms of each debate with the networks. They’re not our boss.”As for the networks, the meeting at a hotel in the Washington suburbs ended with no firm conclusions but with the promise for more talks about future debates.In a letter to be sent next week, the Republican campaigns will ask that a conference call be arranged before each debate between the host network and all of the campaigns to negotiate terms for the debate.Among the changes many of the campaigns wish to see are a guarantee that the candidates get opening and closing remarks, an even distribution of speaking time, a two-hour time limit on the debate and control over biographical graphics displayed when the candidates are speaking.That could set up some tough talks with television networks, which are likely to demand some measures of editorial control over the debates they broadcast.At the same time, this year’s debates have been a television ratings bonanza, giving leverage to GOP candidates — particularly front-runners Donald Trump and Ben Carson.Sunday’s meeting was spearheaded by the Carson and Trump campaigns, both of whom are looking to leverage their lofty statuses in the race to push for changes.“If you have the opportunity to have the RNC or Mr. Trump negotiate, who would you rather?” asked Trump’s campaign manager Corey Lewandowski.Said Bennett: “Obviously, some of us have more power than others.”By seizing control over the negotiations, the campaigns believe they’ll have a better understanding of the rules and formats ahead of time. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) 
 
 Representatives from the undercard campaigns of Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.), former senator Rick Santorum (Pa.) and Louisiana Gov. ADVERTISEMENT 
 
 Going forward, the RNC will continue to be involved in debate operations, campaign advisers said, such as media credentialing and ticket sales, but will not take the lead in negotiating the formats of the debates.“They’ll continue to do logistics and all that kind of stuff,” said Ben Carson’s campaign manager Barry Bennett. Mike Huckabee and others are upset about the unequal speaking time for the candidates and the negative tone of the debates, which often have pitted the candidates against one another.Sen. “When you don’t have a single conservative moderator, when the moderation earns boos from the audience — I mean, I’ve never seen that before where an audience booed the moderation,” she said on “This Week.” 
 
 Sunday’s meeting was facilitated by longtime Republican attorney and fixer Ben Ginsberg, who is unaffiliated and has crafted deals between the networks and presidential campaigns. Campaigns should be able to get details of the debate far sooner than they have at this point in the cycle.”The Sunday night meeting was provoked by last Wednesday’s CNBC debate, which infuriated the candidates and their campaigns on a number of fronts.CNBC didn’t allow for opening statements, in accordance with previously agreed-upon criteria, the speaking times for the candidates was skewed, the debate ran longer than agreed-upon and conservatives have lashed out at the moderators over questions they believe were unfair, biased or irrelevant.The RNC is caught in the middle, insisting that it doesn’t have control over the networks in determining several critical factors, such as the criteria to qualify, the lengths of the debates, speaking time allotment and what questions are asked or whether there are opening and closing statements.The RNC has sought to be proactive in responding to the campaign complaints, moving last week to pull out of a planned Feb. 26 debate with NBC, which owns CNBC.And on Sunday night, the RNC assigned a new staff member to act as a liaison between the campaigns and the networks.The campaign advisers leaving Sunday’s meeting said they were happy with both moves but that the damage has been done.Several of the candidates publicly ripped the RNC over the weekend, and representatives from the group were not invited to Sunday night’s gathering.Still, with the huge number of candidates, each with specific concerns, it’s hard to see how wholesale changes could occur to the formats.Carson, whose campaign spearheaded the gathering, thinks there are too many debates and not enough time for each of the candidates to expound on their policy views.His campaign has proposed going around the networks by streaming the debates online and providing for longer opening and closing statements so the candidates can spend more time speaking about what they believe is important.Trump wants fewer people on the main stage and has sought to control the logistics of the process to ensure the debates don’t run too long and feature opening and closing statements.Former Arkansas Gov.
– The debate about the GOP debates looks set to rumble on. Reps from at least 11 campaigns met at a hotel in the DC suburbs for a strategy meeting on Sunday night and emerged with a list of changes they want made after last week's widely criticized CNBC debate. The New York Times reports that the campaigns have agreed to demand 30-second or longer opening and closing statements for all candidates, an even distribution of both speaking time and the "parity and integrity" of questions asked, and vetting of any on-screen graphics about the candidates to be aired during the debates. The campaigns agreed that they, not the Republican National Committee, should take charge of negotiating terms with the networks, the Hill reports. "They'll continue to do logistics and all that kind of stuff. But they're a partner. They're not our boss," says Ben Carson's campaign manager. The campaigns were split on several issues, including reinstating the next NBC debate, which Jeb Bush's people wanted and Donald Trump's team didn't, and doing away with "undercard" debates, which reps from the Bobby Jindal, Lindsey Graham, and Rick Santorum campaigns called for, the Times reports. A source tells the Washington Post that the campaigns agreed early on that any changes can wait until after next week's Fox Business Network debate.