[H]aving split the first two contests, presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders squared off Thursday, dealing each other blows on domestic and foreign policy in the only scheduled debate before the next two critical contests.
The two sparred fiercely over healthcare and foreign policy, as has been the case in previous debates. The first presidential contests, in Iowa and New Hampshire, were decided largely by white voters. In this debate, the two candidates wooed minority support as the race for the Democratic Party nomination heads to the South.
The debate, broadcast live on PBS, came in advance of the primary in South Carolina and caucuses in Nevada later this month and on the heels of Sanders’ big win earlier this week in the New Hampshire primary, where he beat Clinton by 20 points. Clinton narrowly won the Iowa caucuses at the beginning of the month.
At Thursday’s debate, held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Clinton continued to portray Sanders’ policies as unrealistic.
When Sanders proposed single-payer healthcare, free tuition at public colleges and an isolationist foreign policy, Clinton said his ideas were uninformed and too expensive.
On his Medicare-for-all plan, Clinton said Sanders had a duty “to level with people about what they will have at the end of the process you are proposing.”
By her estimate, a Sanders administration would “increase the size of the federal government by about 40 percent.”
Sanders countered: “Every proposal that I have introduced has been paid for.”
He said he would close some tax loopholes and impose a fee on Wall Street speculation to pay for his major social programs.
Sanders insisted “what our campaign is indicating is that the American people are tired of establishment politics, tired of establishment economics.
“They want a political revolution,” he added.
The candidates repeatedly touched on topics relevant to African-American communities.
South Carolina has a significant population of non-white voters, with African-Americans making up nearly 28 percent, according to census statistics.
The two candidates were in agreement on issues of criminal justice reform, a topic that received more attention than in past debates, where it has been treated as a back-burner issue.
Sanders called the high incarceration rates for blacks “one of the great tragedies in our country.”
“We can no longer continue to sweep it under the rug,” he added. “It has to be dealt with. Today a male African-American baby born today stands a one-in-four chance of ending up in jail. That is beyond unspeakable.”
Sanders spoke about high unemployment and poverty rates in minority communities, and said federal dollars should be directed away from incarceration towards education and jobs.
He called for the demilitarization of police, increased accountability and greater diversity in the ranks of officers.
Asked if he would make more progress on racial issues than President Obama has, Sanders quickly responded “absolutely.”
Clinton said she agreed with Sanders, adding that her first campaign speech as a candidate was on criminal justice reform.
Clinton hailed the advances made during Obama’s tenure, including aggressive work by the Department of Justice to reform policing practices, including a [pending lawsuit against Ferguson, Missouri.
“We are seeing the dark side of the remaining systemic racism that we have to root out in our society,” Clinton said. “I think President Obama has set a great example.”
The most dramatic exchange of the night came in a discussion about foreign policy. Sanders criticized Clinton for viewing former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger as an ally who’s advice she would seek. Clinton noted Kissinger helped open up China. Sanders’ response: “Not my kind of guy.”
The full debate can be viewed below:
The most recent polling has Clinton ahead in both Nevada and South Carolina — with a 20-point lead in Nevada and a 29-point head start in South Carolina.
No polls have been released since the New Hampshire primary, and the quality and quantity of data in both two states is considered less predictive than Iowa and New Hampshire, according to statisticians at FiveThirtyEight.
In the days since leaving New Hampshire, Sanders and Clinton have each garnered endorsements from prominent black leaders.
Sanders got the backing of singer and prominent civil rights activist Harry Belafonte, who said the Vermont senator “offers us a chance to declare unequivocally that there is a group of citizens who have a deep caring for where our nation goes.”
On Wednesday, respected black intellectual Ta-Nehisi Coates — who has been critical of Sanders in the past for not supporting reparations — said he would vote for Sanders, but not campaign or officially endorse him.
In a sign of her strength with African-American politicians, Clinton was endorsed by the the Congressional Black Caucus PAC on Thursday, the political wing of the renowned congressional alliance.
The PAC voting board of 20 is composed of “11 lobbyists, seven elected officials, and two officials who work for the PAC,” according to The Intercept.
The Sanders campaign has frequently voiced objections over Clinton endorsements in cases where the full membership is not polled, and the Congressional Black Caucus was no exception, operatives said.
Shortly after the announcement, Sanders surrogate and CBC member Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., sounded off on Twitter, claiming the PAC endorsement did not reflect the opinion of the full Congressional Black Caucus membership.
Cong’l Black Caucus (CBC) has NOT endorsed in presidential. Separate CBCPAC endorsed withOUT input from CBC membership, including me.
— Rep. Keith Ellison (@keithellison) February 11, 2016
Both teams have started deploying surrogates in South Carolina. Clinton has netted the support of a high number of local leaders in the Palmetto state, and the actress Angela Bassett is stumping for the former secretary of state. Former NAACP president Ben Jealous is touring the state for Sanders.
The Sanders campaign released an emotionally evocative, four-minute spot hours before the debate featuring Erica Garner, an activist who has endorsed the Vermont senator.
The woman’s father, Eric Garner, set off a wave of protests after an amateur video emerged of New York City police officers choking him to death for selling untaxed cigarettes on the street.
In the Sanders-sponsored spot, Erica recounts her weekly protests against police brutality, and describes the pain of losing her father.
“I believe Bernie Sanders is a protester,” she says. “He’s not scared to go up against the criminal justice system, he’s not scared.”
