Senator Kamala Harris looked former Vice-President in the eye and confronted him about his anti-busing stand in the 1970s. Biden, unable to counter the charges, retreated from Harris’ attack and undermined his implicit claim if invincibility. If Biden could not hit Harris back, some voters wondered if he could challenge Donald Trump. Harris, on the other hand, showed voters she could bump heads with Trump. Voters will find her candidacy more attractive. Most Democratic voters will continue to stick by Biden, but he is now on probation; they will start to give other candidates serious consideration.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg debate night was more mixed. He is incredibly smart and articulate. But he failed to govern the racial currents ripping apart South Bend, Indiana – a city of 100,000 people. Can he govern a country of 300 million people torn by race? At least, Buttigieg admitted his failure and therefore thwarted any attacks that other candidates might have had planned for him.
Buttigieg was able to mount an attack against the hypocrisy of Republican white evangelicals. He pointed out that the Trump administration’s vicious treatment of immigrants on the border negated their right to speak of Christian morality.
The other candidates who merited a second look from me were Senators Michael Bennet and Kirsten Gillibrand. Bennet verbalized the obstacle that Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will pose to passing any part of a Democratic agenda. He called for a Presidential candidate who will have the coattails to help achieve a Democratic majority in the Senate. And Gillibrand demonstrated more excellent knowledge of the Medicare for All bill than its originator, Senator Bernie Sanders.
Generally, I thought the Democratic performed well, but there were some worrisome spots. First, except Harris, the candidates did not seem to recognize what they needed to do in the debate. Winning the nomination will require defeating all the candidates polling better than he or she is. Biden stands in the way of Harris, so she began to take him down. But Harris, a black candidate blocks Buttigieg who is polling less than 1 percent among black voters in South Carolina. Taking down, Harris would help Buttigieg. And I believe Buttigieg is one of the few candidates who could do it.
Second, Trump stands between the Democratic nominee and the Presidency. It is not too early to sow the seeds of a Trump takedown. In 2016, for example, Trump went to the left of Hillary Clinton by promising affordable health care, rising wages, and a corruption-free Washington, D.C. Of course, Trump lied. And he will lie again. Trump, with will use the Fox network to tar the Democrats as “radical leftists” as he promises voters more than Democrats will. Democrats must prevent Trump from going to their left with a plausible narrative of how Democrats can make voters’ lives better.
Mayor Pete Buttigieg debate night was more mixed. He is incredibly smart and articulate. But he failed to govern the racial currents ripping apart South Bend, Indiana – a city of 100,000 people. Can he govern a country of 300 million people torn by race? At least, Buttigieg admitted his failure and therefore thwarted any attacks that other candidates might have had planned for him.
Buttigieg was able to mount an attack against the hypocrisy of Republican white evangelicals. He pointed out that the Trump administration’s vicious treatment of immigrants on the border negated their right to speak of Christian morality.
The other candidates who merited a second look from me were Senators Michael Bennet and Kirsten Gillibrand. Bennet verbalized the obstacle that Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will pose to passing any part of a Democratic agenda. He called for a Presidential candidate who will have the coattails to help achieve a Democratic majority in the Senate. And Gillibrand demonstrated more excellent knowledge of the Medicare for All bill than its originator, Senator Bernie Sanders.
Generally, I thought the Democratic performed well, but there were some worrisome spots. First, except Harris, the candidates did not seem to recognize what they needed to do in the debate. Winning the nomination will require defeating all the candidates polling better than he or she is. Biden stands in the way of Harris, so she began to take him down. But Harris, a black candidate blocks Buttigieg who is polling less than 1 percent among black voters in South Carolina. Taking down, Harris would help Buttigieg. And I believe Buttigieg is one of the few candidates who could do it.
Second, Trump stands between the Democratic nominee and the Presidency. It is not too early to sow the seeds of a Trump takedown. In 2016, for example, Trump went to the left of Hillary Clinton by promising affordable health care, rising wages, and a corruption-free Washington, D.C. Of course, Trump lied. And he will lie again. Trump, with will use the Fox network to tar the Democrats as “radical leftists” as he promises voters more than Democrats will. Democrats must prevent Trump from going to their left with a plausible narrative of how Democrats can make voters’ lives better.
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