Are you going to watch the presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump on Thursday?

And, if you were the moderator, what questions would you ask of those two candidates?

The debate rules are: There will be no live audience. The candidates will stand for the 90-minute debate. No note cards allowed. Candidates not answering a question will have their microphone muted. And, during breaks, neither candidate can talk to anyone from their campaign.

The obvious questions will be about immigration, inflation, Ukraine, and Israel’s war in Gaza. I am sure they will touch on societal issues such as abortion, race, crime, and climate.

Will any questions be asked about the national debt?

We currently have debt nearing $35 trillion, with no ideas, no plans, and no will to stop that or even begin to pay it down. Very soon, the interest alone on the debt will cost more each year than we spend on the entire military.

And get this: During the 90-minute debate, we will go $342 million more in debt, which is nearly $4 million more debt per minute!

Our debt is the single most recognizable crisis on the horizon. We know it’s coming, yet we do nothing to stop it.

Can you imagine being in Florida with a category 5 hurricane bearing down on Miami, and we do nothing to prepare for the catastrophe?

That’s what we are doing with the national debt crisis: nothing but making it worse, and the blame is squarely on both parties.

My question would be simple: “When will you balance the budget and begin paying down the national debt? And be specific on when.”

Will they ask any questions about Social Security, which, according to recent studies, will go insolvent nine years from right now?

They have several choices, such as raising what we pay into the program or lifting the cap on contributions, which is currently set at $168,600, meaning any person making more than that per year stops paying into Social Security for all monies earned after the $168,600. So a person making a million dollars a year does not pay into Social Security on $831,400 they made. That seems wrong to me.

My question would be simple: “Social Security is set to go insolvent in only nine years. What, exactly, is your plan to fix that once and for all? And be specific.”

I am sure immigration will come up and focus on border security, but what of the nearly 25 million aliens who are currently in the United States illegally? That’s more people than live in the combined total of the 17 lowest populated states in the country.

And that would be my question: “What are your exact plans to address the 25 million people in the United States illegally right now?”

Divisive partisanship has nearly paralyzed Congress, making it difficult to solve our most pressing issues. It seems neither party wants to work together, fearing they may be giving the other party a “political victory.” So I would ask both candidates what their plan is to fix that, or if they even intend to try.

My question would be simple: “If elected, what are three major issues that you will encourage Congress to work together on?”

Finally, I would get down to the kitchen table issues that affect most of us right in the wallet: prices on food, energy, and health care. All three of those essential living costs are making life very difficult for millions of Americans, so what do Biden and Trump plan to do, if anything, to help ease the pain?

Here’s another simple question, “Since 2020, the price of food has risen 23%, gasoline 33%, and health care is up nearly 15%. What could you do as president to reduce food, gasoline, and health care costs?”

Finally, do you think the debate will be civil, or will it be chaotic?

I would hope for civil, as well as taking this opportunity for both candidates to talk directly to the American people about what they would do as president.

The CNN moderators owe us that, keeping the two men on track and asking meaningful but simple questions that will help us decide which candidate can address our — the people’s — concerns (not holding my breath on that one).

What questions would you ask them? Let me know at gregawtry@awtry.com.