by frank
THE BIG IDEA:
Hillary Clinton is building her delegate lead, and Bernie Sanders is getting angry.
The
Vermont senator needed a good night in Michigan to change the dynamic
of a nominating contest that has been slipping away from him. He didn’t
get it.
[Get more must-read campaign news delivered directly to your email inbox from The Daily 202]
Instead, in the seventh Democratic debate, Sanders found himself on the defensive for the first time ever over his vote against the auto bailout. He poorly handled delicate racial and gender dynamics.
He seemed angry, and he came across as someone who is running to make a point – not to win. He even managed to offend the mentally ill.
While many pundits are calling the CNN debate a draw, after reading the clips and monitoring cable chatter this morning, we are convinced it was a clear loss. Here are five main reasons why:
1. Clinton caught Sanders off guard with her attacks on his vote against the auto industry bailout.
Not only is the best defense a good offense, but the element of surprise really matters in these situations. Clinton’s campaign suggested that she would focus more on contrasting herself against the Republicans, specifically Donald Trump, than attacking Sanders.
Sanders, on the other hand, has always telegraphed his attacks against Clinton ahead of time. So she knew he was going to come out swinging over her past support for trade deals that are unpopular with the Democratic base, from NAFTA to the TPP.
When he did, the former senator from New York pounced. The Wall Street bailouts that Sanders loves to brag he voted against included $82 billion for the auto industry, she noted. “If everybody had voted the way he did, I believe the auto industry would have collapsed,” Clinton said. "The money was there and had to be released in order to save the auto industry and 4 million jobs and to begin the restructuring.”
Clinton added that Barack Obama, who remains heavily popular with Democratic voters, especially African Americans, supported it. "You were either for saving the auto industry or against it,” she said. “I voted to save the auto industry. He voted against the money that ended up saving the auto industry.”
Clinton is a deft tactician, and her performance showed that she’s been to a few rodeos. Sanders, who said he protected “hard-working” Americans from bailing out “the crooks of Wall Street,” has never been quick on his feet.
Reporters abhor repetition, and this was new information after a series of debates that have included a lot of the same back-and-forth. It also played to a parochial concern ahead of Michigan’s Tuesday primary. And it happened early enough during the two-hour debate that it could make all the stories reporters needed to file before their final print deadlines.
Notably, the auto rescue exchange made the lead of the stories about the debate from the Flint Journal, the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press.
The Clinton campaign has already turned a one-minute radio ad off the back-and-forth that will go on the air in Michigan today. (Listen here.)
2. Sanders seemed condescending when he cut off Clinton.
The 74-year-old got testy, even grumpy, multiple times. She clearly got under his skin with the auto rescue hit.
Sanders hushed Clinton as she sought to speak during the ensuing exchange. “Excuse me, I’m talking,” he said. The audience gasped.
“If you’re going to talk, tell the whole story,” Clinton replied.
“You’ll get your turn,” he snapped.
“Let me tell my story, you tell yours,” Sanders said later. “Your story is voting for every disastrous trade amendment and voting for corporate America.”
Later in the debate, he bristled again: “Let me finish, please!”
He also said, “Can I finish, please? All right?”
Sanders may speak with everyone this way (he often cuts off reporters of both genders mid-sentence), but in this case he risked offending female voters who have been wavering on whether to back Clinton.
One of the consequences of the vulgarity in the Republican race is the coarsening of our broader national discourse. While it is harder to shock the conscience than it used to be, Sanders still went too far.
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders talk over each other as they debate in Flint, Michigan, last night.
Hillary Clinton is building her delegate lead, and Bernie Sanders is getting angry.
The
Vermont senator needed a good night in Michigan to change the dynamic
of a nominating contest that has been slipping away from him. He didn’t
get it.[Get more must-read campaign news delivered directly to your email inbox from The Daily 202]
Instead, in the seventh Democratic debate, Sanders found himself on the defensive for the first time ever over his vote against the auto bailout. He poorly handled delicate racial and gender dynamics.
He seemed angry, and he came across as someone who is running to make a point – not to win. He even managed to offend the mentally ill.
While many pundits are calling the CNN debate a draw, after reading the clips and monitoring cable chatter this morning, we are convinced it was a clear loss. Here are five main reasons why:
1. Clinton caught Sanders off guard with her attacks on his vote against the auto industry bailout.
Not only is the best defense a good offense, but the element of surprise really matters in these situations. Clinton’s campaign suggested that she would focus more on contrasting herself against the Republicans, specifically Donald Trump, than attacking Sanders.
Sanders, on the other hand, has always telegraphed his attacks against Clinton ahead of time. So she knew he was going to come out swinging over her past support for trade deals that are unpopular with the Democratic base, from NAFTA to the TPP.
When he did, the former senator from New York pounced. The Wall Street bailouts that Sanders loves to brag he voted against included $82 billion for the auto industry, she noted. “If everybody had voted the way he did, I believe the auto industry would have collapsed,” Clinton said. "The money was there and had to be released in order to save the auto industry and 4 million jobs and to begin the restructuring.”
Clinton added that Barack Obama, who remains heavily popular with Democratic voters, especially African Americans, supported it. "You were either for saving the auto industry or against it,” she said. “I voted to save the auto industry. He voted against the money that ended up saving the auto industry.”
Clinton is a deft tactician, and her performance showed that she’s been to a few rodeos. Sanders, who said he protected “hard-working” Americans from bailing out “the crooks of Wall Street,” has never been quick on his feet.
Reporters abhor repetition, and this was new information after a series of debates that have included a lot of the same back-and-forth. It also played to a parochial concern ahead of Michigan’s Tuesday primary. And it happened early enough during the two-hour debate that it could make all the stories reporters needed to file before their final print deadlines.
Notably, the auto rescue exchange made the lead of the stories about the debate from the Flint Journal, the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press.
The Clinton campaign has already turned a one-minute radio ad off the back-and-forth that will go on the air in Michigan today. (Listen here.)
2. Sanders seemed condescending when he cut off Clinton.
The 74-year-old got testy, even grumpy, multiple times. She clearly got under his skin with the auto rescue hit.
Sanders hushed Clinton as she sought to speak during the ensuing exchange. “Excuse me, I’m talking,” he said. The audience gasped.
“If you’re going to talk, tell the whole story,” Clinton replied.
“You’ll get your turn,” he snapped.
“Let me tell my story, you tell yours,” Sanders said later. “Your story is voting for every disastrous trade amendment and voting for corporate America.”
Later in the debate, he bristled again: “Let me finish, please!”
He also said, “Can I finish, please? All right?”
Sanders may speak with everyone this way (he often cuts off reporters of both genders mid-sentence), but in this case he risked offending female voters who have been wavering on whether to back Clinton.
One of the consequences of the vulgarity in the Republican race is the coarsening of our broader national discourse. While it is harder to shock the conscience than it used to be, Sanders still went too far.
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