Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are humiliating the Republican primary circus by putting on a civil debate that is detailed, focused, on issues, and devoid of the ugliness that is dominating the Republican primary.
PBS deserves credit for picking two intelligent debate moderators in Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill, who are focused on the issues and allowing the candidates to speak. The debate format has allowed the candidates to spend minutes talking about the issues. The candidates are getting ninety seconds to answer each question. The PBS debate has not contained any of the gotcha questions that have plagued previous debates. The PBS debate isn’t interested in creating conflict between Clinton and Sanders, and the result has been the most intelligent debate of the year.
Sanders and Clinton are both having great debates. Neither candidate is slipping up, and both Democrats are getting the chance to contrast their positions. Most of all, this debate is civil. There are no attacks on character. There has been no name calling. Nobody has been called a loser.
It is refreshing to see a debate where the moderators aren’t trying to make the news, or to create the 30-second clip that will dominate the news coverage tomorrow morning.
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The Democratic primary is so tightly contested because both of the Democrats are good candidates. The difference between Clinton and Sanders is more about methodology and degree than goals. A Clinton victory or a Sanders victory would be much better for the country than a win by any of the Republican candidates.
Democrats should feel good while watching this debate, because the Democratic Party has the answers while all Republicans can muster is insults.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
