CNN Flint, MI Democratic debate @8pm ET **live commentary thread**

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

The point I think is that BOTH Clinton and Sanders should be praised for actually having a reasonable and sensible debate on policy.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

The point I think is that BOTH Clinton and Sanders should be praised for actually having a reasonable and sensible debate on policy.

And for actually holding people accountable for their negligence (Snyder). Have any Republicans called for resignations in Michigan?

Indeed.

The issue on trade is... what's the alternative? How do export industries continue if they don't compete internationally?

I get being opposed to trade pacts, but I don't see a legitimate alternative path.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

He's got to be careful with his tone here.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Wow, Clinton is being really rude.

How?

He's got to be careful with his tone here.

LOL voters don't care about tone from politicians anymore.

Democrats do.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

This Wall St stuff really his crutch when he feels like he's losing an argument.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Clinton folks seem to be getting upset tonight, does that mean Sanders is doing well?

Pretty much

They're both shouting too much and taking pot-shots.

If you like Sanders, you're loving this. The same for Clinton.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

I just wish they both trusted the microphones in front of them.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

It's not a great position for Clinton to defend Boeing.

Oh God. Bernie... the European pivot was breathtaking.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Sanders voted for the Auto Bailout

I have no idea what she's talking about.

He voted against the Bush bailout.

So did Maria Cantwell, Byron Dorgan, Russ Feingold, Debbie Stabenow, Jon Tester, and Ron Wyden.

Does he not remember how he voted?

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Whenever Wall St. comes up Hillary's responses are always so embarrassing and weak. It's always stuff like "I told them to stop being bad! I really strongly suggested they clean up their act!" Come on.

She doesn't want to upset them too bad. She'll need their money in the future.

Yes, like when she'll need to compete the GOP funding machine in November.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

He needs to keep it up. He has nothing to lose and even if it makes him look bad, it makes her look bad as well because it brings out that shrill harpy in her that everybody knows and loves. She can't resist. Being an angry old man is part of his appeal. She doesn't enjoy the same advantage.

May as well make use of them.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Whenever Wall St. comes up Hillary's responses are always so embarrassing and weak. It's always stuff like "I told them to stop being bad! I really strongly suggested they clean up their act!" Come on.

She doesn't want to upset them too bad. She'll need their money in the future.

Yes, like when she'll need to compete the GOP funding machine in November.

She'll be funded by the same people funding the Republicans.

And?

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie is channeling Rubio, he keeps repeating that he's against Wall Street over and over.

She's repeated stuff, too.

Please, of course she has. But he uses them as a crutch.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie is channeling Rubio, he keeps repeating that he's against Wall Street over and over.

She's repeated stuff, too.

Please, of course she has. But he uses them as a crutch.

Hillary uses her sex as a crutch and tries to benefit politically from it.

When has she used it recently and why not embrace the historic nature of her campaign?

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie is channeling Rubio, he keeps repeating that he's against Wall Street over and over.

She's repeated stuff, too.

Please, of course she has. But he uses them as a crutch.

Hillary uses her sex as a crutch and tries to benefit politically from it.

When has she used it recently and why not embrace the historic nature of her campaign?

During one of the debates when talking about being establishment or not.

I support a woman becoming president. I just don't think someone should become president just because they're a woman.

ftr - I said she should stop talking about it. And she has.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie and Hillary hacks will be happy. Despite the shouting and sniping, it's still 1000x more substantive than any GOP debate.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

My God, the issue is getting them through lower school even BEFORE we get them into college.

He really is out of the depth on policy details.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie's tuition free public college plan could've been paid for for the next 28 years with the money spent on the Iraq War.

BTW - wouldn't that require agreement with the states, since they're the ones who control College tuition in THEIR public institutions?

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie's tuition free public college plan could've been paid for for the next 28 years with the money spent on the Iraq War.

BTW - wouldn't that require agreement with the states, since they're the ones who control College tuition in THEIR public institutions?

So you think they couldn't do that? We have money for war but not for education or infrastructure?

Honestly, no. That would require the Federal Government not only agreeing to the policy, but then negotiations with each and every state government to get it done. I'm not sure how familiar you are with inter-governmental agreements... but it's a big part of the my job. Sanders' policy is all about the aspiration without a real plan of how it works. I remember Clinton making that exact point during a debate, and Sanders tried to suggest that Clinton didn't care about tuition, which was pretty indicative of the Sanders policy approach.

It's a train-wreck.

It's not about what I think SHOULD be the case, but how it happens. Which is why I'm not a Bernie supporter... I suppose.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie's tuition free public college plan could've been paid for for the next 28 years with the money spent on the Iraq War.

BTW - wouldn't that require agreement with the states, since they're the ones who control College tuition in THEIR public institutions?

So you think they couldn't do that? We have money for war but not for education or infrastructure?

Honestly, no. That would require the Federal Government not only agreeing to the policy, but then negotiations with each and every state government to get it done. I'm not sure how familiar you are with inter-governmental agreements... but it's a big part of the my job. Sanders' policy is all about the aspiration without a real plan of how it works. I remember Clinton making that exact point during a debate, and Sanders tried to suggest that Clinton didn't care about tuition, which was pretty indicative of the Sanders policy approach.

It's a train-wreck.

It's not about what I think SHOULD be the case, but how it happens. Which is why I'm not a Bernie supporter... I suppose.

A Wall Street speculation tax could pay for that.

Again, you're missing my point. It's not about how you PAY for it, it's about how you put it into place in a federated system where the Federal Government doesn't have any control. There's step one, figuring out how you pay for something the next step is how you roll it out.  

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

The Dreaded Cough strikes again!

That cough will kill Hillary within a year.

Well, Torie's National Enquirer Death Watch is well-advanced.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie's tuition free public college plan could've been paid for for the next 28 years with the money spent on the Iraq War.

BTW - wouldn't that require agreement with the states, since they're the ones who control College tuition in THEIR public institutions?

So you think they couldn't do that? We have money for war but not for education or infrastructure?

Honestly, no. That would require the Federal Government not only agreeing to the policy, but then negotiations with each and every state government to get it done. I'm not sure how familiar you are with inter-governmental agreements... but it's a big part of the my job. Sanders' policy is all about the aspiration without a real plan of how it works. I remember Clinton making that exact point during a debate, and Sanders tried to suggest that Clinton didn't care about tuition, which was pretty indicative of the Sanders policy approach.

It's a train-wreck.

It's not about what I think SHOULD be the case, but how it happens. Which is why I'm not a Bernie supporter... I suppose.

A Wall Street speculation tax could pay for that.

Again, you're missing my point. It's not about how you PAY for it, it's about how you put it into place in a federated system where the Federal Government doesn't have any control. There's step one, figuring out how you pay for something the next step is how you roll it out.  

That's where I disagree. I'm fine with the federal government controlling things.

Again... not the issue. There are clear constitutional boundaries over what the Federal Government has control over and what the states do. I don't like your chances of getting every state government to hand over control of colleges to the Federal Government.

This is the issue - not pie-in-the-sky, not what could or would happen in an ideal world - what are the frameworks and structures you work within and how do you make such a scheme work?

Aiming high is great, big goals are great - but you need to figure out how it gets done. And that cannot be ignored.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Bernie's tuition free public college plan could've been paid for for the next 28 years with the money spent on the Iraq War.

BTW - wouldn't that require agreement with the states, since they're the ones who control College tuition in THEIR public institutions?

So you think they couldn't do that? We have money for war but not for education or infrastructure?

Honestly, no. That would require the Federal Government not only agreeing to the policy, but then negotiations with each and every state government to get it done. I'm not sure how familiar you are with inter-governmental agreements... but it's a big part of the my job. Sanders' policy is all about the aspiration without a real plan of how it works. I remember Clinton making that exact point during a debate, and Sanders tried to suggest that Clinton didn't care about tuition, which was pretty indicative of the Sanders policy approach.

It's a train-wreck.

It's not about what I think SHOULD be the case, but how it happens. Which is why I'm not a Bernie supporter... I suppose.

A Wall Street speculation tax could pay for that.

Again, you're missing my point. It's not about how you PAY for it, it's about how you put it into place in a federated system where the Federal Government doesn't have any control. There's step one, figuring out how you pay for something the next step is how you roll it out.  

That's where I disagree. I'm fine with the federal government controlling things.

Again... not the issue. There are clear constitutional boundaries over what the Federal Government has control over and what the states do. I don't like your chances of getting every state government to hand over control of colleges to the Federal Government.

This is the issue - not pie-in-the-sky, not what could or would happen in an ideal world - what are the frameworks and structures you work within and how do you make such a scheme work?

Aiming high is great, big goals are great - but you need to figure out how it gets done. And that cannot be ignored.

Except it's debatable. Some things people argue should be a state's issue turn out to be constitutional if the federal government took action. Yes, there is the 10th Amendment, but there's also the Commerce Clause and the Supremacy Clause.

You think setting up peoples hopes, only to have it fail it worth it, in the tiny chance that it succeeds. I think you should focus on working with what you have to get things done to help as many as possible.

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Frankly... thinking on them, Bernie's answers on race worried me. He always pivots to issues of criminal justice and poverty. Yes, it impacts the AA community far more than the white community, but the experience of AA life in America is MORE than being in prison and or poor. The other point I thought was interesting, is that both candidates kind of acted like there is only two races in the America, but only Clinton made reference to Hispanics.