Daily US Times, South Carolina: The frontrunner candidate of Democratic Party for the next election Bernie Sanders came under withering fire in a rowdy debate in South Carolina on Tuesday, as rivals attacked his ambitious economic agenda, questioned how these get passed and warned he would cost the party the White House and control of Congress.
The chaotic debate in Charleston, South Carolina featured candidates repeatedly shouting over one another and ignoring their time limits. All other candidates got united in attacking the independent senator and self-avowed democratic socialist as a risky choice to lead Democrats against Republican President Donald Trump in November.
Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said if Bernie got the final nomination to face Donald Trump, that would be “a catastrophe” because ”he will lose to Donald Trump”, and ”the Senate and some of the statehouses will all go red.”
The former Soth Bend, Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg criticized Sanders for the shifting estimates on the costs of his proposals such as government-run healthcare and questioned how he could get his agenda passed. He said if Sanders would have to race against Trump, that would be devastating to the country.
“I can tell you exactly how it all adds up,” Mr. Pete said ”It adds up to four more years of Donald Trump.”
Buttigieg said, “If you think the last four years have been chaotic, divisive, toxic, exhausting, imagine spending the better part of 2020 with Bernie Sanders versus Donald Trump.”
Sanders defended his ability to pay for costly programs like Medicare for All, which would replace private health insurance with the government-run program. The Vermont senator said in the rowdy debate he was raising issues supported by the American people.
Referencing opinion polls, Sanders claimed that his favorability nationally is the highest up here adding he beat Trump in most national surveys.
“If you want to beat Trump, what you’re going to need is an unprecedented grassroots movement of black and white and Latino, Native American and Asian, people, who are standing up and fighting for justice. That’s what our movement is about,” Sanders said.
Sanders is in big momentum after strong showings in the first three nominating contests in Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada. Last night’s debate was the last chance for his opponents to try to stop his momentum before Saturday’s South Carolina primary and next week’s 14 vital Super Tuesday contests.
Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren took a swing at her old friend, saying: “I think I would make a better president than Bernie. And the reason for that is that getting a progressive agenda enacted is going to be really hard,” she said. “I dug in, I did the work, and then Bernie’s team trashed me.”
Amy Klobuchar, the senator from Minnesota said neither Warren nor Sanders had shown the leadership in the Senate to accomplish much.
Bloomberg was sharper than last time
Bloomberg was attended last week’s debate, which was his first debate. The former NYC mayor showed a shaky performance in Nevada, but was sharper this time, defending his treatment of women after Warren attacked what she said was his history of making sexist comments.
He said he had been wrong to make jokes that women found offensive, but said he did not remember anything.
“If it bothered them, I was wrong, and I apologize.”
Bloomberg used U.S. intelligence briefing to the lawmakers that Russia is trying to help Sanders to attack the senator. He told Sanders: “Vladimir Putin thinks that Donald Trump should be president of the United States, and that’s why Russia is helping you get elected so you lose to him,” Bloomberg told Sanders.
In the rowdy debate, candidates often forgot their time limit as they were continuously talking and shouting even after their time was over.
Bernie Sanders shot back saying “Hey Mr. Putin if I’m president of the United States, trust me you’re not going to interfere in any more elections.”
He also drew anger and criticism over the weekend when he decided to skip the meeting of pro-Israel American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobby group and its supporters, labeling it a platform for “bigotry.”
