The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sanders sharpens challenge to Clinton
Democratic rivals spar about stances at South Carolina forum.
ROCK HILL, S.C. — Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders on Friday issued his most direct challenge yet to front-runner Hillary Clinton, questioning her stances on issues dearest to liberal voters and promising that his campaign can incite a “political revolution” that will galvanize young voters.
Clinton, meanwhile, moved to consolidate her support with minority voters at the “First in the South” showdown with her top rivals for the party’s nomination, who have struggled to gain traction with black and Hispanic voters crucial to electoral success across the region.
The sharp-elbowed rhetoric marked a dramatic shift from Sanders’ performance at the first Democratic debate in Las Vegas, where he offered
Clinton a virtual amnesty for one of her biggest weaknesses by saying voters are “sick and tired” of hearing about her use of a private email server while serving as secretary of state.
This time, he portrayed himself as the only Democrat able to win the White House next November, and questioned whether she could forcefully take on Republicans on issues ranging from Medicaid expansion to college affordability.
“I don’t think it’s good enough just to talk about campaign finance,” he said. “You have to walk the walk. I’m the only Democratic candidate without a Super PAC.”
Clinton, meanwhile, depicted herself as a progressive successor to the nation’s first black president.
“President Obama doesn’t get the credit he deserves for the great job he has done. I want to build on the progress he has made, but I want to go further,” she said, adding: “For me, this is about how do we have a new New Deal. How do we give everybody new chances?”
‘First in the South’
The forum was a chance for voters in South Carolina and the rest of the region to get a taste of the sparring between the top three candidates for the Democratic nomination. But it was not a typical debate, and the three contenders did not answer questions on the stage together. Instead, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow interviewed each separately.
Instead, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow interviewed each separately.
Unlike the rollicking Republican race for president, the Democratic field has significantly shrunk since the party’s last showdown. Two low-profile candidates dropped out of the race shortly after the Las Vegas debate, and Vice President Joe Biden ended much speculation by announcing he wouldn’t run.
Clinton has emerged as the unquestioned frontrunner, and she’s riding a wave of polls that show she’s shaken off a sluggish summer. She also has the edge in the early-voting state of South Carolina and the rest of the region, thanks to support from black voters who make up the brunt of the Democratic electorate across the South.
Sanders, meanwhile, has tried to regain the edge that made him the most serious challenger to her White House bid. Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who is trailing the other two in the polls, is also in the running.
It was an opportunity for the three to outline how they would chip into the GOP’s dominance across the South, which was underscored by elections this week. Republican candidates won the Kentucky governor’s race, held the top job in Mississippi and staved off a Democratic effort to wrest control of the Virginia Senate.
Shell-shocked party leaders huddled here for another round of soulsearching as they plotted a new course forward, and each of the three candidates were pressed on how they would reverse the Democratic Party’s Southern decay.
Sanders tried to draw a line between the largely white population in his home state and the more diverse demographics of the South, arguing that the middle classes of both states are getting squeezed by the rich. And he said he will travel the nation asking white voters a pointed question.
“Why do you keep voting against your own best interests?” he said. “We have got to have a major focus on getting white, working-class voters back in the party.”
O’Malley said the party can build inroads to the South if candidates start appealing to the “spirit of the young people in this country” who are fearful of climate change, open to gay marriage and welcoming of immigrants.
“We need to do a better job nationally framing this and sticking to the message,” he said.
For Sanders, though, the forum underscored lingering challenges about his gun stances that could open a wider rift between him and his more liberal supporters.
He didn’t support the Brady Act, which mandated a waiting period and background checks for gun sales, and he backed a 2005 law that shields firearms makers from some lawsuits filed by shooting victims. He sought to turn that into an advantage on Friday, saying his ruralstate background gives him the leverage to call for stricter gun control rules.
“We’re going to have to stop shouting at each other and come together,” he said. “Very strong gun control advocates may not get everything they want, and people who want a missile launcher in their backyards as a constitutional right may not get them.”