• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

2

Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal

3

College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind

1

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'

2

Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal

3

College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
Leadership

Who Won the Democratic Debate?

By
Tory Newmyer
Tory Newmyer
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Tory Newmyer
Tory Newmyer
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 6, 2016, 10:22 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Hillary Clinton turned in another steady and substantive performance in a head-to-head matchup with Bernie Sanders that turned chippy by Democratic standards but wonky compared to the latest Republican free-for-alls.

At this point in the Democratic primary, Clinton only needs to avoid a disaster. Though Sanders won two of three contests on Saturday, Clinton is building a delegate lead that is becoming insurmountable. In Michigan, for example — where the candidates convened on Sunday, in Flint, for the CNN-hosted debate — Clinton holds a wide lead ahead of the state’s Tuesday primary.

The debate swung from the hyperlocal, with an initial focus on the crisis surrounding the lead contamination of Flint’s water supply, to the historical and global, as Clinton and Sanders squared off over their records on guns, trade, and economic development. One standout point of contention straddled the two: Clinton argued that Sanders erred badly by opposing the Obama administration’s auto bailout, which has been credited with saving the domestic car industry; Sanders turned the criticism around, noting that the payout was folded into a larger package for Wall Street that benefited Clinton’s allies in that sector. (Specifically, Congress wrapped the funds for carmakers into an authorization to release the second tranche of the Wall Street bailout, known as TARP.)

That exchange precipitated perhaps the most fiery back-and-forth of the Democratic campaign to date. After Clinton highlighted their divergent votes on the package, Sanders began to respond, “If you are talking about the Wall Street bailout, where some of your friends destroyed this economy…” and Clinton began to interrupt. “Excuse me, I’m talking,” Sanders said, to which Clinton replied, “If you’re gonna talk, tell the whole story, Senator Sanders.”

Of course, that looked like high tea next to how the Republicans have been savaging each other recently. And shortly thereafter, when CNN moderator Anderson Cooper slow-pitched Sanders an opportunity to attack Clinton for refusing to release the transcripts of the highly-paid, private speeches she’s delivered to banks, he helped change the subject instead.

Clinton had just repeated the dodge she’s stuck with on the issue, pledging to release the transcripts “as long as everybody else does, too.” Sanders, invoking a joking tone bordering on sarcasm that characterized much of his Sunday night performance, replied, “Secretary Clinton wants everybody else to release it, well, I’m your Democratic opponent, I release it, here it is [throwing up his hands]: There ain’t nothing. I don’t give speeches to Wall Street for hundreds of thousands of dollars, you got it.” But then he shifted to make an entirely separate point, decrying the lack of criminal prosecutions of Wall Street executives. Clinton was happy for the diversion. “I think we are in vigorous agreement on this,” she said.

Clinton’s performance indicated that despite her delegate lead, she is taking nothing for granted as she seeks to wrap up the Democratic nomination. She opened the debate by matching Sanders’s call for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to resign over his role in allowing the Flint water crisis to spiral. And she deftly exploited the fact that on gun control, she lines up more closely to the liberal base than does Sanders, from rural, gun-loving Vermont.

Clinton’s performance indicated that despite her delegate lead, she is taking nothing for granted as she seeks to wrap up the Democratic nomination. She opened the debate by matching Sanders’s call for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to resign over his role in allowing the Flint water crisis to spiral. And she deftly exploited the fact that on gun control, she lines up more closely to the liberal base than does Sanders, from rural, gun-loving Vermont. She invoked the Sandy Hook massacre to make the case for removing legal immunity from gun makers and sellers. Sanders, who had earlier in the campaign suggested he would revisit his opposition to that move, on Sunday defended it, somewhat apologetically.

The two also clashed over the Export-Import Bank, typically a more hotly contested fight on the right. Free-market conservatives last year launched a failed campaign to force the expiration of the bank’s charter, arguing it exists to dole out taxpayer-backed guarantees to giant corporations that don’t need them. Though Democrats largely support it, Sanders picked up the conservative critique on Sunday, calling it the “Bank of Boeing.” Explaining how he came to align with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz on the issue, he said, “I don’t want to break the bad news. Democrats are not always right. Democrats have often supported corporate welfare.”

Clinton at first argued for the bank on the basis of the support it offers small businesses. She then acknowledged it disproportionately benefits big companies but that it’s needed nevertheless to help them keep pace with foreign competitors. “There are two big plane manufacturers in the world: there’s Airbus and Boeing,” Clinton said. “Airbus does everything it can to get contracts to sell planes everywhere in the world. We don’t have as quite an aggressive outreach from our government.”

Both candidates borrowed some of Republican front-runner Donald Trump’s metric-flogging self-congratulations in explaining why they’d be the best to confront him. “Let me start by saying that the last time I checked, as of last night, Donald Trump had received 3.6 million votes, which is a good number,” Clinton said. “And there is only one candidate in either party who has more votes than him and that’s me.” Sanders pointed to polls, noting “almost every poll has shown that Sanders versus Trump does a lot better than Clinton versus Trump.”

About the Author
By Tory Newmyer
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Leadership

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

Latest in Leadership

Jeff Bezos says being lazy, not working hard, is the root of anxiety: ‘The stress goes away the second I take that first step’
SuccessJeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos says being lazy, not working hard, is the root of anxiety: ‘The stress goes away the second I take that first step’
By Sydney LakeJuly 26, 2026
11 hours ago
Stressed out Gen X woman
SuccessRetirement
Despite nearing their 60s, nearly four in 10 Americans heading towards the end of their careers don’t even have a retirement account
By Emma BurleighJuly 26, 2026
11 hours ago
A Gen Xer sold his company for $1.6 billion. He kept less than $100 million and gave the rest away because he doesn’t ‘believe in billionaires’
SuccessHow I made my first million
A Gen Xer sold his company for $1.6 billion. He kept less than $100 million and gave the rest away because he doesn’t ‘believe in billionaires’
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 26, 2026
11 hours ago
raikes
CommentaryMicrosoft
Jeff Raikes: The talent debt I warned about is now showing up in the data
By Jeff RaikesJuly 26, 2026
13 hours ago
Salary Transparent Street creator Hannah Williams
SuccessCareers
This millennial job-hopped every 6 months to $90K by the time she was 23—she left it all behind to become a salary negotiation guru
By Emma BurleighJuly 26, 2026
14 hours ago
beatles
CommentaryLeadership
George Martin never out-wrote the Beatles. That’s exactly why he’s the AI leadership lesson we need now
By Jeff DeGraffJuly 26, 2026
14 hours ago

Most Popular

The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
Real Estate
The millennial generation is split in 2: an older crowd with boomer-style comfort, a younger set going 'back to the early 1900s'
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 25, 2026
2 days ago
Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal
Middle East
Trump pulls back after Iran crosses his red line as U.S. military breaks two-week streak of airstrikes amid talks for potential Hormuz deal
By Jason MaJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago
College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
Economy
College-educated women are snapping up the highest-earning men without college degrees, leaving the rest further behind
By Mia OsmonbekovJuly 26, 2026
15 hours ago
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
Success
An 11-year-old is cleaning his neighbors' trash cans for $10 each—he now has 100K followers as teens face the worst summer job market since 1948
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 25, 2026
2 days ago
'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down
Economy
'The demographic dividend of the last 40 years is ending': J.P. Morgan says the world is running out of the two things that kept interest rates down
By Eleanor PringleJuly 24, 2026
3 days ago
Startups are installing tiny data centers in people’s homes to reduce strain on the beleaguered electrical grid
Environment
Startups are installing tiny data centers in people’s homes to reduce strain on the beleaguered electrical grid
By Sasha RogelbergJuly 25, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.