The debate was excellent: it was the very antithesis of the Republican debates, and everything that O'Malley had to say about it in his closing statement was spot-on. Clinton, Sanders, and O'Malley all did very well, though I get the suspicion that Webb and Chafee won't be on stage next debate.
I'm a Sanders supporter for the primary, though I'll happily vote for whoever wins the Democratic nomination come next November. I'm not upset that Sanders refused to press the advantage on Clinton's e-mails: it showed integrity and kept the debate one of substance rather than scandal, and that was a better decision than trying to make a desperate short-term grab for poll numbers that would have been against the very point of his campaign. I do wish he'd been a little more succinct on some things, though. Like when he was asked about when he'd use force, he could have been much more on the ball about pointing to his record and saying that he votes for it when America or our allies are actively under attack, while rejecting discretionary and pre-emptive wars. He also could stand to do a better job of articulating why he's electable in the general election (because he is), but there will be future opportunities for that.
I will say, though. The person who kicked ass the hardest at this debate was far and away Cooper. None of those candidates are going to be able to sit down for like a week.
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