The first debate saw Clinton and Sanders clash on different issues including US foreign and Wall Street.
Ms. Hilary Clinton cast Bernie Sanders as an idealist who will never be able to get things going. Bernie Sanders, on the other, said that Ms. Clinton had links to the establishment that will never allow her to bring real change.
The Clinton and Sanders clash was the first since the two were left the only Democratic candidates this week. The debate happened in New Hampshire which became more intense due to the absence of a third candidate on stage.
Hilary Clinton also said that her opponent’s proposals regarding healthcare were unachievable due to the costs associated with them. She accused him of making attempts to depict her as an agent of the Wall Street owing to the donations for her campaigns, and the hefty fees she had been paid for making after-dinner speeches.
“It’s time to end the very artful smear that you and your campaign have been carrying out,” she said.
The senator from Vermont use the same attack against Clinton which has become one of his favorites: She supported the war in Iraq yet she questioned the foreign policy expertise of other candidates.
The Clinton and Sanders clash also saw another emerging phenomenon: when you are doubtful, blame Obama. Both the candidates, when they felt vulnerable about certain issue, turned to the incumbent president for defense.
When Sanders asked her questions regarding her ties with the big corporations, Clinton replied that Obama had also taken donations from the Wall Street giants yet he had not shied away from passing comprehensive reforms. She said that the president did this because he was a responsible person.
Later during the Clinton and Sanders clash, when the latter was asked about his views on foreign policy and why he was willing to support the Iran nuclear deal, he said that he was in agreement with Obama on the subject.
Barrack Obama is still very popular within his own party and its supporters and he sort of offered a very easy refuge when the candidates were faced with a problematic question.
Mr. Sanders does have a very strong point here: polls are showing that most the electorate – especially the Democrats – is much more concerned about the economy rather than the foreign policy of America and how it affects the international affairs.
Despite some very heated moments during the Clinton and Sanders clash, the debate did end on a warm note. Clinton joked that if she managed to win the nominations, the first person to receive a call from her will be Bernie Sanders.
Martin O’Malley, the former governor of Maryland, quit the Democratic race on Monday. He had earned a distant third position in the Iowa vote. Bernie Sanders already has a big lead in New Hampshire that borders the state of Vermont.
Both Democratic and Republican parties will announce their formal presidential candidates in July.
