Biden and Sanders set to debate during coronavirus crisis

[webfact]

Biden and Sanders set to debate during coronavirus crisis

By John Whitesides

 

FILE PHOTO: Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) (R) makes a point next to former Vice President Joe Biden during the eighth Democratic 2020 presidential debate at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S., February 7, 2020. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders square off in the first one-on-one debate of the Democratic presidential campaign on Sunday during a widening crisis over the coronavirus that has dramatically upended the daily life of Americans.

 

The showdown between front-runner Biden and his last viable rival in Sanders, originally scheduled for Phoenix, will take place in a Washington, D.C., studio with no audience, a move made to limit possible exposure to the virus - a sign of how deeply the campaign routine has been reshaped by the global pandemic.

 

The debate, perhaps the last in the Democratic race to pick an election challenger to Republican President Donald Trump, will give Biden and Sanders an opportunity to project leadership and a sense of calm and stability in a deepening crisis.

 

"People have been anxious to beat Trump, but now with coronavirus they are just anxious," said Karen Finney, a Democratic strategist and former aide to Hillary Clinton. "This will be a chance for both of them to look presidential."

 

The encounter will provide clues about how far Biden, the former vice president and centrist standard-bearer, might go to seek party unity for the Nov. 3 general election and court the progressive supporters of Sanders and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who dropped her White House bid earlier this month but has not endorsed anyone.

 

A senior Biden campaign official said on Sunday that Biden now supports making public colleges tuition-free to families with incomes below $125,000 per year, similar to a view held by Sanders. On Friday, Biden backed a bankruptcy policy pitched by former presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren.

 

The debate will be held two days before Tuesday's primaries in the big states of Ohio, Illinois, Florida and Arizona. Another string of Biden victories there would give him a nearly unassailable lead over Sanders, a democratic socialist senator from Vermont.

 

Biden got a boost on Sunday with endorsements from the National Education Association, the largest teachers' union with 3 million members, and a Florida congresswoman, Donna Shalala.

 

Despite a sweeping series of primary victories by Biden in the last two weeks, Sanders has vowed to stay in the race and keep pushing his anti-corporate economic agenda.

 

He has criticized Biden for opposing his signature Medicare for All proposal, which would replace private health insurance with a government-run system. Biden argues the plan is too costly and pledges to build on the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, by adding a public option for those who want it.

 

The debate will be the first hint of whether Sanders is more interested in attacking Biden or engaging in a measured policy discussion.

 

"Sanders' attitude and approach to this debate will probably give us some insight into how he intends to wage his own campaign," said Alan Schroeder, a professor emeritus and debate expert at Northeastern University.

 

CONTRAST WITH TRUMP, EACH OTHER

The Democratic campaign has taken a backseat in the past week to the escalating outbreak, which has slammed financial markets and threatened economic havoc while shuttering schools, sports events and cultural sites across the United States.

 

Both Biden and Sanders, who were forced to cancel campaign rallies as the virus spread, gave speeches last week offering their own approaches to the crisis and trying to draw a contrast with Trump, who spent weeks minimizing the threat before declaring a national emergency on Friday.

 

Both candidates took aim at Trump, with Biden saying fears about the outbreak were fuelled by a lack of trust in the president. Sanders said the official response had been hurt by Trump's incompetence and the absence of universal healthcare.

 

A Biden aide said on Sunday said that the debate "will be held against a backdrop of unprecedented crisis," and that voters would be "deciding which candidate is best suited to be president at a time of crisis and trial."

 

The lack of an audience at Sunday's debate could lead to a quiet and low-energy debate, creating an atmosphere that could be less conducive to the sort of fiery clashes that dominated earlier Democratic debates that featured cheering crowds and multiple candidates.

 

But the one-on-one debate format also adds a degree of unpredictability and could present a challenge to Biden.

 

Biden has turned in a few weak debate performances, and he will be the centre of attention and talk much more than in earlier encounters.

"If Biden had a bad night that could shift the narrative a little bit and create some uncertainty," Finney said.

 

Both candidates have experience in the one-on-one format on the national stage, however. Biden turned in highly praised performances in vice presidential debates against Republicans Sarah Palin in 2008 and Paul Ryan in 2012, although he has been far less steady in this election cycle.

 

Sanders participated in five one-on-one debates against Hillary Clinton, the eventual nominee, in the 2016 Democratic primary campaign.

 

(Reporting by John Whitesides; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in New York; Editing by Soyoung Kim, Alistair Bell and Lisa Shumaker)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-16

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[Crazy Alex]

Poor Joe Biden... it's only March and he is already unable to stand up for two hours to do a debate. This, along with his gaffes like not even knowing his own policies on gun control, do not bode well for him. He is becoming more senile almost every day.

[JimmyTheMook]

Hopefully there is no local shortage of Depends for these two old goats who probably poo themselves from age related incontinence.

 

  

[blazes]

I watched this thing for 45 minutes but had to switch off it was so boring.

 

Is it that they are indeed boring (yes) but the “debate" may be flat cos there is no audience.  Ideal for the Biden handlers, however, cos you can imagine the way he might get flustered if loud cheers welcomed some of Berni’s proposals for the ….er….revolution.

 

I'll tune in later for what is laughably called "analysis"....

[Jingthing]

Future POTUS Joe Biden performed brilliantly. 

 

Plus no gaffes. 

 

Bernie clearly sees the writing on the wall and is only staying in the contest to advocate for his issues. 

 

Which is more than OK as the majority of Americans are on board with his issues to a large degree. 

 

Future POTUS Joe Biden can't become current POTUS soon enough! 

 

[Thingamabob]

Biden has several skeletons in the cupboard, but his most pressing issues are his senility and his involvement in Ukraine. Sadly, the GOP will murder him on both. Come on Dems, you can do better than this.

[Phoenix Rising]

6 hours ago, Crazy Alex said:

Poor Joe Biden... it's only March and he is already unable to stand up for two hours to do a debate. This, along with his gaffes like not even knowing his own policies on gun control, do not bode well for him. He is becoming more senile almost every day.

Even if that were all true (which it isn't) he'd still be miles ahead of Trump as a candidate for president. In fact, a mangy rat with attention deficit disorder would be preferable to the current disaster of a "president".

[bristolboy]

13 minutes ago, Thingamabob said:

Biden has several skeletons in the cupboard, but his most pressing issues are his senility and his involvement in Ukraine. Sadly, the GOP will murder him on both. Come on Dems, you can do better than this.

Biden senile, is he? Anybody interested in seeing a display of lunacy should click on the following link to see how Trump behaves while the national anthem is played:

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/watch-trump-act-bored-and-ignored-during-national-anthem.html

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by bristolboy

[Phoenix Rising]

9 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

Biden senile, is he? Anybody interested in seeing a display of lunacy should click on the following link to see how Trump behaves while the national anthem is played:

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/watch-trump-act-bored-and-ignored-during-national-anthem.html

 

Hmm, seems it's not only mangy rats that can suffer from ADD.

[Jingthing]

1 hour ago, Thingamabob said:

Biden has several skeletons in the cupboard, but his most pressing issues are his senility and his involvement in Ukraine. Sadly, the GOP will murder him on both. Come on Dems, you can do better than this.

Biden will be the nominee.

Bottom line, this election is a referendum on 45 and a strong majority of all Americans want him gone.

Especially now in light of his tragic bungling of the first crisis that he didn't create himself (so that he can "fix" his own messes) -- Covid 19.

 

[Jingthing]

45 and his cult of personality fans should be running scared now. A man who is clearly capable of actually doing the job of president is on the rise. 

 

The reality t.v. twitter troll presidency has had it's run. It's time to change the channel! (Way overdue actually.)

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by Jingthing

[blazes]

6 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

45 and his cult of personality fans should be running scared now. A man that is clearly capable of actually doing the job of president is on the rise. 

 

Ah, I love that phrase, "on the rise".  As if Sleepy Joe is Galahad, rising from a misty lake and witnessing the Holy Grail (in SJ's view, the White House itself).  But alas, it is not his to possess.  And so he will die without seeing the White House again.

 

But good luck, ol' Joe.

[bristolboy]

6 minutes ago, blazes said:

 

Ah, I love that phrase, "on the rise".  As if Sleepy Joe is Galahad, rising from a misty lake and witnessing the Holy Grail (in SJ's view, the White House itself).  But alas, it is not his to possess.  And so he will die without seeing the White House again.

 

But good luck, ol' Joe.

Someone else who thinks predicting the future is a sensible form of political argument.

Edited March 16, 2020 by bristolboy

[Jingthing]

To be clear I'm not predicting who will win in November or even if there will be an election. 

 

But if the election was held today yes Biden would definitely win. 

 

In a time of an actual crisis people don't want gaslighting and chaos 

[JustAnotherHun]

Biden and Sanders remind me of....

 

[lannarebirth]

12 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Future POTUS Joe Biden performed brilliantly. 

 

Plus no gaffes. 

 

Bernie clearly sees the writing on the wall and is only staying in the contest to advocate for his issues. 

 

Which is more than OK as the majority of Americans are on board with his issues to a large degree. 

 

Future POTUS Joe Biden can't become current POTUS soon enough! 

 

 

I watched it. Sanders was much better than Biden in the debate where Joe's main talking points were that he was going to create policies to clean up the mess policies he helped create previously have created. It looked like an old Republican vs Democrat debate from years ago with Joe playing the part of the Republican.

 

Joe intransigent on healthcare, yet insisting he wants what Bernie wants, but you can't get it through Congress. If not during a global pandemic that exposes the horror of the US healthcare system then when? His words ring hollow.  Still the corporations and media have spoken and are not going to let this crisis go to waste.

[Crazy Alex]

2 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

 

I watched it. Sanders was much better than Biden in the debate where Joe's main talking points were that he was going to create policies to clean up the mess policies he helped create previously have created. It looked like an old Republican vs Democrat debate from years ago with Joe playing the part of the Republican.

 

Joe intransigent on healthcare, yet insisting he wants what Bernie wants, but you can't get it through Congress. If not during a global pandemic that exposes the horror of the US healthcare system then when? His words ring hollow.  Still the corporations and media have spoken and are not going to let this crisis go to waste.

Bernie needs to hire you. He should be hammering Biden with what you said plus variants. He should be pounding Biden for his cozy relationship with banksters. Why isn't he????

 

Oh and Biden is in a pickle on healthcare. Virtually all Democrats are campaigning on fixing health care. That means Obamacare was a failure. Where was Biden in all this?

 

I'm starting to wonder if Bernie just likes running for president. And I'll even say it again. I don't agree with Bernie's policies, but for the second presidential election in a row, he's the most honest candidate out there.

Edited March 16, 2020 by Crazy Alex

[Crazy Alex]

9 hours ago, Jingthing said:

To be clear I'm not predicting who will win in November or even if there will be an election. 

 

But if the election was held today yes Biden would definitely win. 

 

In a time of an actual crisis people don't want gaslighting and chaos 

I hate to break up all the pom pom waving, but your "Biden would definitely win" just doesn't hold up.

 

Poll, October 26, 2016, Hillary leads Trump by 14 points.

 

https://time.com/4546942/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-lead-poll/

 

How'd that work out for the *inevitable* Hillary Clinton?

[Crazy Alex]

Wow, Joe was able to stand up for two hours. Impressive. But can meth or whatever stimulant they likely had to give him get him all the way to November?

Edited March 16, 2020 by Crazy Alex

[bristolboy]

1 hour ago, Crazy Alex said:

Bernie needs to hire you. He should be hammering Biden with what you said plus variants. He should be pounding Biden for his cozy relationship with banksters. Why isn't he????

 

Oh and Biden is in a pickle on healthcare. Virtually all Democrats are campaigning on fixing health care. That means Obamacare was a failure. Where was Biden in all this?

 

I'm starting to wonder if Bernie just likes running for president. And I'll even say it again. I don't agree with Bernie's policies, but for the second presidential election in a row, he's the most honest candidate out there.

So massively untrue. What they are trying to do first of all is undo the damage caused by Trump. And they are campaigning to improve Obamacare which has been a huge success in lowering the uninsured rate. Including offering a Medicare option which is very popular with voters.

 

As you may recall, in the 2018 elections the Democrats ran on 2 issues:  Trump and the Republican attempt to destroy Obamacare. How did that work out for the Republicans?

 

 Now when Republican senators are asked what they plan to do if the Supreme Court invalidates Obamacare, they refuse to answer. Because they've got nothing.

[Crazy Alex]

23 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

So massively untrue. What they are trying to do first of all is undo the damage caused by Trump. And they are campaigning to improve Obamacare which has been a huge success in lowering the uninsured rate. Including offering a Medicare option which is very popular with voters.

 

As you may recall, in the 2018 elections the Democrats ran on 2 issues:  Trump and the Republican attempt to destroy Obamacare. How did that work out for the Republicans?

 

 Now when Republican senators are asked what they plan to do if the Supreme Court invalidates Obamacare, they refuse to answer. Because they've got nothing.

It's normal for the ruling party to lose seats in midterms. Trump lost fewer seats than Obama or Clinton did. As for the campaigning.... they sure don't sound like Obamacare is a huge success. They're campaigning on health care needing reform. That by definition means they know Obamacare is a failure. But let's set that aside anyway.

 

I don't recall what Democrats ran on, but I'll take your word for it. But I'll include the caveat that mostly it was about running against Trump.

 

As for the Republican party, you'll rarely if ever see me defend those morons. Specifically to health care, I hope thy continue to have nothing. I'm not sure how much more *help* with health care America can take. From what I can see as of now, the moochers score a home run, the rich are unaffected by the changes and the middle class has been left holding the bag of rising premiums and deductibles.

[bristolboy]

4 minutes ago, Crazy Alex said:

It's normal for the ruling party to lose seats in midterms. Trump lost fewer seats than Obama or Clinton did. As for the campaigning.... they sure don't sound like Obamacare is a huge success. They're campaigning on health care needing reform. That by definition means they know Obamacare is a failure. But let's set that aside anyway.

 

I don't recall what Democrats ran on, but I'll take your word for it. But I'll include the caveat that mostly it was about running against Trump.

 

As for the Republican party, you'll rarely if ever see me defend those morons. Specifically to health care, I hope thy continue to have nothing. I'm not sure how much more *help* with health care America can take. From what I can see as of now, the moochers score a home run, the rich are unaffected by the changes and the middle class has been left holding the bag of rising premiums and deductibles.

Nonsense. The Democrats had their best year in the House since I believe 1964. And this despite widespread Republican gerrymandering after the 2010 elections.

And much of the pain caused by rising rates is due to Trump who has done whatever he can to sabotage Obamacare.

[Crazy Alex]

15 hours ago, bristolboy said:

Biden senile, is he? Anybody interested in seeing a display of lunacy should click on the following link to see how Trump behaves while the national anthem is played:

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/02/watch-trump-act-bored-and-ignored-during-national-anthem.html

 

How does a video of Trump disprove Biden's obvious senility?????

[Crazy Alex]

18 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Future POTUS Joe Biden performed brilliantly. 

 

Plus no gaffes. 

 

Bernie clearly sees the writing on the wall and is only staying in the contest to advocate for his issues. 

 

Which is more than OK as the majority of Americans are on board with his issues to a large degree. 

 

Future POTUS Joe Biden can't become current POTUS soon enough! 

 

Wow, Biden supposedly made it through a whole debate without gaffes????? Do you hear what you're saying, bro???? Seriously.

[lannarebirth]

Democrats making a huge mistake here. This "Stimulus Bill" is rife with tax credits and other junk that does not help average Americans who are about to be sidelined from earning a living income. Mitt Romney, who runs to the right of Trump on economic issues, get's it, so why don't these Democrat frontrunners who are about to be made irrelevant get it?

 

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/03/coronavirus-romney-yang-money/608134/

 

 

 

Edited March 16, 2020 by lannarebirth

[earlinclaifornia]

22 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Future POTUS Joe Biden performed brilliantly. 

 

Plus no gaffes. 

 

Bernie clearly sees the writing on the wall and is only staying in the contest to advocate for his issues. 

 

Which is more than OK as the majority of Americans are on board with his issues to a large degree. 

 

Future POTUS Joe Biden can't become current POTUS soon enough! 

 

Anyone with a bit of intelligence saw what a REAL President is. Thank you. Joe

Edited March 17, 2020 by earlinclaifornia

[tifino]

Distracting Coughs and Dribble are to be limited to 3 minutes each...

[tifino]

2 hours ago, lannarebirth said:

Democrats making a huge mistake here. This "Stimulus Bill" is rife with tax credits and other junk that does not help average Americans who are about to be sidelined from earning a living income.

any 'stimulus' should be aimed at going straight to the consumer.

The idea is to give funds out to the end user, for them to then go out and Spend it ( to assist the Economy, through supporting manufacture)

Problem is that most won't Spend, but Hoard it...

 - defeating the whole purpose.

Edited March 17, 2020 by tifino

[earlinclaifornia]

9 hours ago, Crazy Alex said:

I hate to break up all the pom pom waving, but your "Biden would definitely win" just doesn't hold up.

 

Poll, October 26, 2016, Hillary leads Trump by 14 points.

 

https://time.com/4546942/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-lead-poll/

 

How'd that work out for the *inevitable* Hillary Clinton?

Let's relive the past! Come on get REAL! No FAKE news except from RUSSIA

Edited March 17, 2020 by earlinclaifornia
spelling

[lannarebirth]

9 minutes ago, tifino said:

any 'stimulus' should be aimed at going straight to the consumer.

The idea is to give funds out to the end user, for them to then go out and Spend it ( to assist the Economy, through supporting manufacture)

Problem is that most won't Spend, but Hoard it...

 - defeating the whole purpose.

 

Millions and millions of people who live paycheck to paycheck are about to lose their jobs. They are going to spend it all and it won't be enough, but it will help them to survive. I don't need mine, but I'll send it to my kids who will need it. Not sure how anyone's going to be collecting unemployment insurance, what with offices shuttering and even if they were open, massive crowding.

 

 

 

Edited March 17, 2020 by lannarebirth