EDITORIAL: More questions GOP candidates should face in Las Vegas debate

Voters want presidential debates to provide substance over style. They want a dialogue that will help them decide which candidate to support as the major parties begin their nominating process for next year's election.

To get those answers, moderators need to ask questions that give candidates an opportunity to differentiate themselves from their rivals.

By now, the personalities of the 2016 presidential candidates are obvious to anyone engaged in the campaign. Their policy disagreements are less obvious.

Tonight, the campaign spotlight returns to Las Vegas. The Strip already has hosted a Democratic presidential primary debate. Now the Republicans get their turn at The Venetian. The undercard debate goes from 3 to 5 p.m. The main event runs from 5:30 to 8:15 p.m. Both debates will be broadcast live on CNN.

Nevada is an appropriate location for the debate. Not only does the state have an early slot on the nominating calendar, with February's first-in-the-West caucuses, but it's a battleground state in November's general election as well. With that in mind, here are some questions we'd like to see asked in tonight's GOP debate:

— Do you believe the primary mission of the Justice Department is the protection of Americans' constitutional rights, or the prosecution of those who violate federal laws? Will your nominee for attorney general favor one approach over the other?

— President Barack Obama promised the most transparent administration in history, but delivered one that even liberals have decried as secretive and imperial. As president, do you promise to order executive branch agencies to comply with the Freedom of Information Act, and would you commit to regular news conferences with the national media?

— The courts have exposed the abuse of civil forfeiture laws by federal and local authorities, who've seized Americans' property without so much as writing a citation. Do you believe federal civil forfeiture laws, enacted as part of the war on drugs, should be reformed or repealed?

— Do you believe the civil service rules that protect federal workers' jobs are in need of reform? Should it be easier to fire federal workers for misconduct or nonperformance?

— Considering the country's transportation infrastructure needs trillions of dollars in repairs and upgrades, and Congress hasn't found a way to fund them, should federal fuel tax revenues continue to be used to subsidize mass transit?

— In the wake of the San Bernardino terrorist attack, do you believe the National Security Agency should resume bulk collection of phone metadata and conduct other digital surveillance to prevent additional domestic strikes?