Last night's rancorous debate between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in Brooklyn was a far cry from the more civil ("adult"?) debates held earlier in the primary season, which had offered a sharp contrast with the puerile name calling and outrageous behavior in the Republican debates. Ah, the good old days!The low point, most observers seem to agree, was when CNN's "Cry" Wolf Blitzer had to admonish the two to stop "screaming at each other." Plus, more yammer about "judgement," influence- buying and Sandy Hook. At least Clinton mentioned women's health issues as something none of the moderators had ever brought up in this or previous debates. Oy vey.
Even the best of us can lose sight of the "big picture" when our egos get involved in a competition. Compounding this is that each candidate has deeply invested organizations and surrogates that are also largely ego- driven and not necessarily focused on post- convention politics (although the Clinton camp has been trying to pivot that way). While drawing contrasts in a debate is healthy, treating your opponent like an implacable enemy is not. At the very least, you're effectively encouraging the most unhinged of your cadres to go even further in turning fissures into chasms (not to worry -- Republicans can finish the job by November!). For candidates who say they're looking toward the future of the Democratic Party, this performance doesn't qualify as "party building."
This has to stop. And soon.
Truth is that Clinton and Sanders are similar in their politics, but tonight they're bludgeoning each other as if...they were Republicans!— Nicholas Kristof (@NickKristof) April 15, 2016
Remember how Obama was criticized for his cool, professorial debate demeanor? Don't know what you got 'till it's gone, people.— Bob Schooley (@Rschooley) April 15, 2016
