Michael Waldman, former White House chief speechwriter, and William Kristol, the influential political analyst and editor, will face off in a debate on the presidential race Thursday, Sept. 9 at 7:30 p.m. in Wheelwright Auditorium at Coastal Carolina University.

The Race for the Presidency 2004: A Debate will be the topic for Coastals Kimbel Distinguished Lecturer Series, which brings noted speakers to campus. The event is free and open to the public.

In conjunction with the debate, the university is conducting a register-to-vote promotion to encourage student participation in the electoral process.

Waldman, chief speechwriter for President Bill Clinton from 1995 to 1999, is author of POTUS Speaks: Finding the Words That Defined the Clinton Presidency. Most recently he edited My Fellow Americans, an anthology of 43 major speeches by American presidents from George Washington to George W. Bush. Waldman has appeared on ABCs Good Morning America,ABCs Nightline and MSNBCs Hardball.

Kristol, editor of the Washington-based political magazine The Weekly Standard, is widely recognized as one of the nations leading political analysts and commentators. He is a regular on Fox News Sunday and recently co-authored the New York Times bestseller The War Over Iraq: Americas Mission and Saddams Tyranny. Kristol served as chief of staff to Vice President Dan Quayle during the George H.W. Bush administration and to Secretary of Education William Bennett during the Reagan administration.

The purpose of the Kimbel Distinguished Lecturer Series is to present programs promoting an appreciation for the intellectual values in broad social issues, religion, geopolitics and the arts. Some of the previous Kimbel speakers have included Howard K. Smith, Carl Bernstein and Desmond Tutu.

For more information, call the Wheelwright Box Office at 349-2502.