Manchester, NH - When ABC News moderator George Stephanopoulos asked the Democratic presidential candidates during Friday's debate if they'd be afraid to have a democratic socialist in the White House, only one contender raised her hand. And she did so timidly.
George Stephanopoulos: "Let me just ask, is anyone else on the stage concerned about having a democratic socialist at the top of the Democratic ticket?
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) February 8, 2020
Sen. @amyklobuchar: *raises hand* pic.twitter.com/drTIo1WEcD
"I'm not," said Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT), the only self-proclaimed democratic socialist onstage.
"Bernie and I work together all the time," Klobuchar explained. "But I think we are not going to be able to out divide the Divider-in-Chief. I think we need someone to head up this ticket that actually brings people with her instead of shutting them out."
She stressed the importance of attracting independents and moderate Republicans, like those found right here in New Hampshire.
"Donald Trump's worst nightmare is a candidate that can bring people in from the middle," Klobuchar said.
Former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg didn't go so far as to raise his hand with Klobuchar, but he did agree that you can't tell voters, "my way or the highway."
"Are you talking about Sen. Sanders?" Stephanopoulos asked. "Yes," Buttigieg replied.
He explained that one of Sanders's "my way or the highway" policies is his socialist Medicare for All plan.
There's "a better way," Buttigieg returned, that doesn't force people "to accept the public plan if they don't want it."
Klobuchar added that Medicare for All would kick 149 million Americans off their health insurance. She proposes maintaining Obamacare, with a non-profit public option.
The Affordable Care Act, she said, is now "10 points more popular" than the president. "Why would we talk about blowing it up?"
Sanders had the chance to respond to his opponents' claims he'd do more dividing than uniting.
"The way you bring people together," he said, is to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour and not give tax breaks to billionaires and large corporations. And he doesn't see the evil in his Medicare for All bill. He described it as "guaranteeing health care to all people as a human right."
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