Primary 2016: Clinton, Sanders, or The Somehow Alive Again Harry S. Truman?
When he announced his candidacy in 2015, no one thought Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders had much of a chance of winning the Democratic nomination, let alone becoming president.
How could a self-avowed socialist ever hope to defeat Hilary Clinton, the part’s heir apparent? But by early 2016, after he began winning primaries, Sanders’ long-shot candidacy seemed like less of a long-shot.
It was perhaps one of the biggest political surprises of the new century…until, of course, the revelation on Feb. 10 that former President Harry Truman was somehow still alive and would also seek his party’s nomination for president.
At first, it seemed like a disturbing joke, but after a strong second place finish in both Nevada and South Carolina primaries, observers agreed the 132-year-old former Missouri senator was a serious threat to both Sanders and Clinton.
On March 6, the three candidates met in Flint, Michigan for their first debate. Here’s what they had to say:
On the economy
Hillary Clinton: Our country may be standing, but it’s not running the way it should. As president I will work to invest in infrastructre and clean energy to create good paying jobs, and offer tax relief to working families. If you work hard in this country, you deserve to get ahead.
Bernie Sanders: More and more Americans are understanding the economy is rigged. They’re working longer hours for lower wages, while almost all of our new income goes to the top 1 percent. That’s not what this country is supposed to be about. Our job is to create an economy that works for all.
Somehow Alive Again Harry Truman: In my first term, I said that the American people had concluded that poverty was wasteful and unnecessary. Sadly, it’s a condition that still persists. It remains the responsibility of the government to work with labor, industry, agriculture and the new technology sector to see that every American has the chance to obtain their fair share. [long pause] But frankly, I do wonder why your first question wasn’t about why, 44 years after my death at age 88, I am somehow still alive.
On health care
Clinton: I’ve led the fight to expand access to health care for decades, and I’m not about to stop fighting. We need to defend the Affordable Care Act, reduce the cost of prescription drugs, lower out-of-pocket costs like deductibles, and protect women’s access to reproductive care.
Sanders: The Affordable Care Act was a huge milestone, but we need to build on its success to reach the goal of universal single-payer healthcare. We spend more on health care than any other advanced nation, but it hasn’t made us any healthier. We spend more, but end up with less.
SAAHT: The health of every American is a basic right, and a public responsibility. I spent my presidency advocating for a federally-funded health insurance program, but it wasn’t until 1964 that Medicare came into being. It was my privilege to be there when President Johnson signed the Medicare Act into law, and it will be my privilege — when I begin my third term — to bring proper health care to even more Americans.
I should add that I’m not sure how I’m standing here. I found myself wandering the woods in western Missouri a few weeks ago. I haven’t slept during that entire time. And to look at me, you wouldn’t say I was 132 years old. Most people would guess 60. I have no idea what is happening. I visited my grave in Independence. It was undisturbed.
On the water crisis in Flint
Clinton: There’s no excuse for what happened in Flint. It’s immoral.
Sanders: Absolutely no excuse. Governor Snyder should resign.
SAAHT: I don’t think “criminal” is too strong a word to apply what has happened. We’ve committed a terrible failure as a country when our rivers, great resources for one and all, are poisoned by industrial greed. Why the other party isn’t talking about this more is baffling.
Also, I wonder sometimes if I’m here because of the bomb. When I look into the audience, all I see are glowing, eyeless Japanese children…I visited Los Alamos in 1945 and saw things that stayed with me to this day. Man cannot toy with the atom and except larger forces…cosmic forces, perhaps, not to notice.
On college
Clinton: Quality education should be affordable to anyone willing to work for it, without saddling them with decades of debt. My plan will allow you refinance your loans at current rates, and allow students at community colleges to receive free tuition.
Sanders: It is unbelievably short sighted that thousands of young people cannot afford to go to college, and millions more will be hamstrung by debts upon graduation. We need to make tuition free at our public colleges and universities, and substantially cut student loan interest rates.
SAAHT: [an unbroken, inhuman screech that lasts a full minute]
On war and national security
Clinton: I’ll work to strengthen global partnerships and forge new ones. America needs a president that can hold China accountable for its aggression in the region, and stand up to Vladimir Putin. That’s what I did as Secretary of State, and that’s what I’ll continue to do as president.
Sanders: As your Commander in Chief, I’ll defend this nation, but we must seek diplomatic solutions before resorting to military action. American cannot be the world’s policeman. The only way to defeat ISIS is to begin the process of creating lasting peace in the region.
SAAHT: My presidency saw America become the most powerful nation on earth, but never could I imagine the world of 2016. People connected all over the world by computers. Tiny devices that allow us to access all the knowledge available to humanity. A black man in the White House, and a former First Lady a serious contender to replace him.
Yet none of that matters. How could it, in a world where a former president can return from the dead four decades after he breathed his last breath?
Yes, I am a man hilariously and tragically out of his own time. But has anyone else on this stage returned from the grave? They have not.
With your help, I’ll work toward the vision I had in 1945: a peace rooted in justice — and against the vision that I see whenever I close my eyes: a scorched landscape ruled by horned beasts, everything green and holy long withered.
In November, you have an opportunity to help me achieve that first vision. And now I must be going. The glowing children…they’re on the march.