Kiddie Table Debate Reactions

I tried to watch last night’s kiddie table debate, but was just too tried to endure the pandering. So here’s a roundup of reactions:

The Democratic contenders seemed to offer up a doom and gloom scenario at odds with current economic reality:

They described an America of 2019 that was downright dystopic.

Elizabeth Warren said the economy was only “doing great for a thinner and thinner slice at the top” and that the government “is corrupt.” Cory Booker declared, “I see every single day that this economy is not working for average Americans” and lamented that “Dignity is being stripped from labor” and that “This is actually an economy that’s hurting small businesses and not allowing them to compete.” Bill de Blasio argued, “There’s plenty of money in this country. It’s just in the wrong hands. Democrats have to fix that.” Amy Klobuchar described “so many people that are having trouble affording college and having trouble affording their premiums.” (I thought Obamacare was supposed to fix that!) Tim Ryan lamented, “We’re getting drones shot down for $130 million, because the president is distracted.”

Despite President Trump canceling a military retaliation against Iran at the last minute, Tulsi Gabbard warned, “Donald Trump and his cabinet, Mike Pompeo, John Bolton, and others — are creating a situation that just a spark would light off a war with Iran, which is incredibly dangerous.” (Notice she blames Trump and his cabinet for creating the situation, not the Iranians.)

This occurs as the national unemployment rate has been at or below four percent since March 2018, and hit the lowest rate since 1969. Even half of Democrats rate the economy as “good” or “excellent.” No doubt the people most likely to watch two hours of ten Democratic candidates debating are the most partisan, and probably the ones most likely to insist that because Donald Trump is president, the economy simply cannot be doing well. But one has to wonder how well the message “I will save you from this terrible economy” will work in a general election.

A lot of fun was had at Beto O’Rourke’s Spanish language Hispandering:

Cory Booker promptly jumped aboard the “Look, I can speak Spanish!” bandwagon as well:

Warren and de Blasio went Full Socialized Medicine:

William Jacobson at Legal insurrection thought John Delaney won the debate by not sounding insane.

The moderators clearly favored Elizabeth Warren, repeatedly going back to her for questions, particularly at the beginning.

You had Warren’s tough gal act, Beto’s wandering mind and Spanish language lesson plan, Bill de Blasio’s almost full-blown commie schtick, Spartacus, and Amy Klobuchar’s Minnesota nice routine.

Who won?

Let’s focus on the purpose of an early debate — for all but the top few candidates, it’s name recognition and not coming across as a marginal freak. Tulsi Gabbard achieved a little of that, but far and away the voice of sanity was someone I never had heard of.

He spoke about how Medicare for all, which depends on reimbursement rates so low it would bankrupt most hospitals, was not viable. That goes against the grain of the Democratic Party, where most of the leading candidates have jumped on some version of Bernie’s plan….

Being the “not completely crazy” Democrat could get Delaney media attention.

Don’t bet on it. Besides, there’s that tiny physical similarity problem:

Delaney really is the right man for the job-

of selling you a reverse mortgage in an infomercial

— Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) June 27, 2019

Speaking of insane, Julian Castro promised taxpayer subsidized abortions for transexuals:

Tim Ryan correctly identified the Democratic Party's elitist problem:

"We have a perception problem in the Democrat Party," Ryan admitted. "We have got to change the center of gravity from being coastal, elitist and Ivy League to a party that is on the side of workers. If we don't focus on workers, none of this change will happen."

He insisted that Democrats will not win unless they "address that fundamental problem."

Ryan is correct, but that "perception problem" is rooted in the Democratic Party's increasing radicalism on issues such as abortion, climate change, intersectionality, and more.

(Hat tip: Stephen green at Instapundit.)

Gabbard wins the unscientific online polling following the debate, which should remind you of a certain Republican contender of years past:

And now some random tweets about the debates:

Finally, YouTube appears to have banned a number of YouTubers just for livestreaming their commentary about the debates:

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