It's time to shake up the GOP presidential debates

Long before CNBC moderators came under fire from conservatives for their questions during the latest presidential nomination face-off, the Republican debate process was a mess.

From the get go, there’s been a structural problem. A historically crowded field has meant that networks running each event face a dilemma: either allow everybody to participate in a massive battle royale in which candidates get only a few minutes of speaking time, or use some sort of criteria to whittle down the candidates before voters have even had a chance to cast a single vote.