Who Won this Debate?

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

One thing was abundantly clear at this debate: Democrats all love each other. Yay! Somebody told the two Senators that they should be nice to each other.

I think some of the best exchanges came on the subject of immigration, where there is relatively little difference between the candidates. Earlier today I wrote that I thought that the best way to deal with the drivers licenses issues was to reject the framing of the question. Well, that's what happened, only Senator Obama went one step further and pointed out what Sen. Cedillo has been saying for years: it's just good policy.

On healthcare, the issue of mandates was once again central, as it has been in California. Obama did a decent, but not great, job of describing why  mandates are problematic, but as Robert pointed out, he could be more concise. A few magic words, something akin to you can't be forced to buy that which you cannot afford.  Of course, groups like the California Nurses Association would argue that the best argument is that why should we empower a failing system (ie the argument for single payer). However, Clinton's sound bites do sound good: if there are people who don't have health insurance then it's not universal health care. It sounds good, but even under the mandated plan, you still couldn't get to 100% coverage. There are drivers in California that are still uninsured despite the mandate, right? Well, the same will be true of health insurance, doubly so b/c there is no option of not owning a body like there is the option of not owning a car. ;)

I guess I'd call this one a wash, no real winners, no real winners. But, for Obama, I think he succeeded in looking presidential, which must have been one of his goals coming in. And for Clinton, she looked less snipey and more conciliatory, also likely a goal.  I'm not sure that this debate will slingshot either of them to any victories, but perhaps the previous trends (in CA, Obama moving closer) will continue.

Your thoughts?