The two Democratic candidates for President plus three other guys.
The political / news junkie I am watched with interest the Democratic presidential debate last night. Short version: Hillary Clinton came across as polished and "presidential", and Bernie Sanders came across as honest, sincere, thoughtful, a guy who genuinely cares....and as un-electable. Sen. Jim Webb was voted Most Likely To Die On Stage From A Stick Up His Ass, Gov. Martin O'Malley seemed to be auditioning for a Hollywood movie roll, and Sen. Lincoln Chaffee seemed happy just to be allowed to eat the free munchies back in the Green Room.
One issue I personally agreed with was their almost universal (except for Hillary C) position that our financial system (the banks) are too powerful, too big, and should be reined in or even broken up into smaller, less dangerous pieces. I think it was Bernie Sanders who said, "Fraud has become their business model". He was spot on, and there are sanctions and fines against all the big banks to prove it.
They were also spot on when they said our campaign finance rules that allow PAC's to decide elections is a travesty. (Hillary was understandably quiet on the subject as she has Super PAC's supporting her.) I like the way Bernie Sanders raises his money, $30 at a time.
But their call for a $15 minimum wage, a "living wage", doesn't seem well thought out. My understanding of economics is that if your costs increase without also increasing the value of what is being produced accordingly, you'll get inflation, negating the pay increase. And it's hard to increase the value of a burger enough to justify paying flippers $15 an hour. Noble idea, but DOA.
And they want to take on the NRA? Are they nuts? Stoopid! Without even trying to debate the merits of their position, all I can say is they're chasing the proverbial windmill. Their best move would have been to just say nothing about gun control, which was the winning strategy Brick O'Bama had back in '12. Bernie hit the nail when he said if they think they're going to Congress with a comprehensive gun bill, they're delusional.
A global warming remediation agenda....sure, they can sell that.
Notice how little mention there was of the pro-choice / pro-life issue? Smart. The two positions aren't likely to change their minds, so smart politics says just leave it alone.
They seemed to agree the Middle Eastern countries should take the lead fighting ISIS, with the US supporting. That seems sellable.
The best line was Bernie's.... "The American people are sick and tired of hearing about Hillary's damn emails." That sold well in that highly partisan auditorium, but I doubt FOX News and the Republicans will be as kind over the next year.
Bottom line....IMHO it's now a 2-person race for the Democratic nomination. Hillary comes with lots of baggage, and Bernie used the "S" word. It's gonna take a lot of lipstick.... ;)
S
