 In the October 1988 vice-presidential debate, Quayle debated Democratic candidate Lloyd Bentsen.When the subject of the debate turned to Quayle's relatively limited experience in public life, he compared the length of his congressional service (12 years) with that of late President John F. Kennedy (14 years), as Kennedy had less experience than his rivals during the 1960 presidential nomination.It was a factual comparison, although Quayle's advisers cautioned beforehand that it could be used against him.