It’s officially a hoarse race in the Democratic primary.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont senator Bernie Sanders put their vocal cords to the test in several exchanges during a debate at the University of New Hampshire Thursday night, with Clinton saying all but “come at me” to her rival at one point.
“Time and time again, by innuendo, by insinuation, there is this attack that [Sanders] is putting forth,” Clinton said of Sanders’s criticisms of her Wall Street ties. “I really don’t think these kinds of attacks by insinuation are worthy of you, and enough is enough. If you’ve got something to say, say it — directly.”
Sanders was about to accept the challenge, until Clinton steamrolled him.
“We both agree with campaign finance reform! I worked hard for McCain-Feingold. I want to reverse Citizens United,” she said.
Sanders eventually submitted his rebuttal, assailing the presence of money in politics, but steering clear of Clinton.
The heated moment was one of several in the forum, which featured the two candidates arguing over who wears the label “progressive” better. Sanders dinged Clinton repeatedly during the opening 30 minutes about the shakiness of her ideology, highlighting a comment Clinton made in September that she was “guilty” of “being kind of moderate and center.” Clinton accused Sanders of “cherry-picking” quotes.
“I’m a progressive who gets things done,” she said.
