Sanders Thrives in Democratic Debate, Despite Sharp Attacks by Clinton
CHARLESTON, South Carolina - Bernie Sanders shined in Sunday night's Democratic debate here, at times overpowering Hillary Clinton in a format she typically controls. With polls showing Clinton on the ropes in Iowa and New Hampshire, Sanders' strong performance may have further imperiled Clinton's once-inevitable path to her party's presidential nomination.
Touting his surging poll numbers in the two key early states, Sanders was prepared and in command throughout the two-hour debate sponsored by NBC News and YouTube. In previous appearances, Clinton has easily dominated the stage. But turning in his strongest debate performance yet, Sanders drove the conversation - brushing aside her attacks as he doggedly returned to his core message of political revolution.
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In the long arc of a primary campaign that began with warm relations between the two top candidates only to turn acrimonious over side issues, Sunday night was the first time voters saw the core divide between Clinton and Sanders.
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They clashed over their approach to governing -- revolution or evolution -- in a way that's been hinted at since the day each got into the race but that was somewhat obscured until now.
The debate came at a critical moment in the campaign, just 14 days before the Iowa caucuses, where a surge in enthusiasm for Sanders, especially among younger voters, has suddenly made Iowa's contest a dead heat.
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http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/sanders-thrives-democratic-debate-despite-sharp-attacks-clinton-n498731
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