"They projected fundamentally different approaches to what they agreed were mutual goals."

...................................................................................................................................................................
Clinton, Sanders tangle in fierce one-on-one Democratic debate
By Susan Page, February 5, 2016

Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders tangled in a fierce debate Thursday over the definition of a progressive and the direction of the Democratic Party.

In their first head-to-head debate — just five days before the New Hampshire primary — Clinton accused Sanders of waging “an artful smear” against her by criticizing contributions Wall Street bankers and others have contributed to her campaign and the super PAC supporting her, challenging him to cite a vote she had changed to advance their interests.

Sanders countered that contributions by powerful interests had corrupted the political system and shaped government policy in countless ways, from the deregulation of financial institutions in the 1990s to the expensive cost of drugs today.

Standing side-by-side on a stage at the University of New Hampshire at Durham, the two were more combative and sometimes slashing toward one another than in their previous four debates, which had included long-shot contenders now out of the race. The tone reflected the high stakes and the nearing primary — and the conclusion that both campaigns have enough money and enough support to wage an extended battle for the nomination.

They projected fundamentally different approaches to what they agreed were mutual goals.

Clinton argued for pragmatism. “A progressive is someone who makes progress; that’s what I intend to do,” she said, saying Sanders’ proposals for "Medicare for All" and free college tuition were “just not achievable.”

Sanders called for a “political revolution” that would include “major changes” in national priorities and in the Democratic Party.

The debate, hosted by MSNBC, centered in part on a dispute that has been brewing on the campaign trail: Sanders' charge that Clinton wasn't a real progressive. Clinton argued that Sanders had cast himself as the self-proclaimed "gatekeeper" who determined who was a progressive, using a definition that would exclude even President Obama and Vice President Biden.

Progressive enough? Clinton pushes back against Sanders

"If we're going to get into labels, I don't think it was 'progressive' to vote against the Brady Bill five times," she said, raising Sanders' opposition to some gun laws popular with Democratic voters.

"Secretary Clinton does represent the establishment," Sanders replied. "I represent ordinary, working Americans."

Again and again, he hammered his attack on the power of Wall Street and big banks. That issue continued to put Clinton on the defensive, including over $675,000 she received for three speeches to Goldman Sachs after resigning as secretary of State. Asked whether she would release the transcripts of those speeches she said she was "willing to look into it" but didn't commit to doing so.

On another controversy that dogs her, she insisted she was "100% confident" that an ongoing FBI investigation into her exclusive use of a private email server as secretary of State wouldn't create problems for her. "I have absolutely no concerns about it whatsoever," saying with obvious exasperation that the dispute had reached a level of absurdity.

Both candidates agreed that the federal government should intervene to help Flint, Mich., deal with an environmental crisis that has polluted its drinking water with lead.

They did close on a friendly note. Clinton declined a question about whether she would consider Sanders as a running mate, but she did say that, if she won the nomination, the first person she would call to discuss the direction of the Democratic Party would be her current rival.

"On our worst days," Sanders responded, "I think it's fair to say we are 100 times better than any Republican candidate."

On that, at least, they shook hands.
...................................................................................................................................................................