Democratic presidential candidates are trying to separate themselves from the pack ahead of tomorrow’s primary in New Hampshire. As you may have seen, seven of the Dem hopefuls held a lively debate in Manchester and sparred again over healthcare on Friday.
Along the way, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders defended his Medicare-for-All plan while Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar noted that Obamacare is 10 points more popular than President Trump. She also accused Trump of having absolutely no empathy. Other highlights:
Former VP Joe Biden acknowledged that he took a hit in the Iowa caucuses and may take a hit in New Hampshire's primary. He noted that he's in the race for the "long haul."
Sanders said the way to beat Trump is by producing a massive voter turnout among Democrats and independents.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren said the federal government works great for people "at the top" but not so well for average, hard-working Americans. Businessman Tom Steyer agreed and warned that there's a real threat that Trump could get re-elected.
Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg clearly had a target on his back with his adversaries – and defended his experience and whether that qualifies him to be president.
Buttigieg talked about his life experience, including military service in Afghanistan. He also argued that the U.S. needs a new type of politics.
Warren took a shot at former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, saying “no one should be able to buy the presidency.” Bloomberg did not qualify for the latest debate but is spending massive amounts of money on ads.
The Democratic candidates also sparred over gun control and who would be most qualified to be commander-in-chief. Dems criticized Republicans for voting to acquit Trump in the Senate impeachment trial. They also agreed that much more needs to be done to combat the opioid crisis, racism and child poverty.
So who “won?” That answer largely that depends on who you’re a “fan” of. But interestingly, an artificial intelligence analysis gives the crown to...“Mayor Pete.” The market research and predictive tool from Advanced Symbolics Inc., known as ‘Polly’ analyzed the debates and measured a sample of 11,227 New Hampshire voters to find that at the very least? Buttigieg met his goal of convincing people he could beat the president over the course of the debate.
Source: NPR