Timey’s time at the Republican Party Presidential Debate

Times+mascot%2C+Timey+McTimes%2C+attended+the+Republican+Party+Presidential+Debate+on+Nov.+10.+The+event%2C+which+drew+national+attention%2C+was+held+at+the+UW-Milwaukee+Panther+Arena.

Photo by Kirsten Schmitt

Times mascot, Timey McTimes, attended the Republican Party Presidential Debate on Nov. 10. The event, which drew national attention, was held at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.

Timey is the MATC Times mascot. Timey visits many places. He goes on conferences with the MATC Times staff, visits different MATC campuses, and now he’s even been to a presidential debate.

Timey was lucky enough to score a ticket to the media filing room at the Republican Party Presidential Debate at the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena on Nov. 10. Yes, that’s correct, the Panther Arena, even though the debate was in the Milwaukee Theater. Timey was next door to breathing the same air as Donald Trump, Mike Huckabee, and Marco Rubio.

Timey made his way from the MATC downtown Milwaukee campus to the event. He passed protestors, hoping for a raise in minimum wage. He passed many police officers blocking off the road and making the area safe.

He even passed through the metal detectors to get into the building. What they didn’t realize about Timey, who is a robot, is that he’s made up of all metal! The good thing though is that his heart is made of gold.

Timey slipped into the media filing center without being noticed. He found his table and set up his cameras. Even though he couldn’t get into what they call a spin room, where the press can see candidates, he wasn’t going to miss capturing anything.

He ran into a few of his photography friends that he had made at past events. Those lucky photographers got pool photographer passes, which allowed them to enter the debate hall at the Milwaukee Theater. Timey decided he wanted to work hard and work his way up to that opportunity in the future.

Timey waited for the first debate to begin. All around him, he heard the sounds of the media. People checked their sound, reporters recorded snippets for newscasts later, and there were lights everywhere! Timey knew he had made it to the big stage. He even recognized some of the local broadcasters.

The first debate featured only four of the presidential candidates. The debate flowed well, and Timey was never bored. He tried to take photos of the candidates, the media filing room, and of course, himself. Timey even ran into Mayor Tom Barrett, who came to visit the media filing room.

Timey spoke with an Associated Press photo editor, who let him watch the editor in action. The editor used Photo Mechanic to edit his photos. He edited quickly, only making simple adjustments. Timey was fascinated with the process.

The second debate was much longer than the first, which included eight candidates instead of four. The candidates often spoke over one another, which Timey didn’t like to see. He wanted to hear everyone.

While Timey hasn’t decided who he’ll vote for–Republican, Democrat, Independent–he sure did enjoy his first presidential debate and would love to have another opportunity like that again.