This was a pretty fragmented debate, each fragment of which had a different takeaway, in my opinion. On the coronavirus, both Biden and Sanders seemed very serious and prepared and projected the leadership people are probably looking for in this time of crisis. On most other policy issues, though, they spent a lot of time bickering — a lot more than I thought they would, given that the primary is basically not competitive anymore. I think Sanders won most of those exchanges and did a good job exposing that Biden has not been consistent in his positions over the years, but I think Cuba and China was one topic where Biden bested Sanders. Finally, though, I think the most newsworthy parts of the debate were when Biden made, well, actual news — he committed to ending most deportations and picking a female running mate. Overall, the debate did not feature the kind of colossal Biden gaffe that was needed to dislodge him as a national front-runner.
