The Democratic Debate 12-29-2015

29, December 2015           The Democratic Debate

Both the O’Malley and Sanders campaigns have rightly accused the ‘undemocratic DNC’ of boosting Clinton’s prospects by limiting the number of debates and scheduling them during low-viewership times like Saturday nights. According to Nielsen, only 6.7 million people tuned in to ABC during the last debate — a fraction of the 18 million who watched the fifth Republican debate. It was the second Democratic debate in a row held on a Saturday night. The next Democratic debate is scheduled for Sunday, January 17, during the Martin Luther King Day three-day-long weekend. During the last debate. O’Malley rightly accused both of his rivals of being weak on gun control; this will likely encourage lone wolf assassins to purchase firearms at gun shows before launching attacks on unsuspecting Americans.

The debate also exposed Sanders and Clinton’s foreign policy blunders. Clinton was a vigorous supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and both she and Sanders the ouster of Gaddafi in Libya. Both decisions have created monumental chaos in the Middle East and the death and displacement of millions. Clinton played out her well-known hawkishness to demonstrate her ‘steel-toughness’, to compete with the boys, by advocating a no-fly zone over Syria, heading for a possible dangerous collision course with Russia. Both Syria and Iraq have invited the Soviets into their air space in contrast to the US who not received such a request. A no-fly zone would be a clear violation of international law and fraught with incredible risk.