What Went Down At The CNN Democratic Debate

One more note on fracking: Clinton embraces the idea of natural gas as a “bridge fuel.” The notion is that the U.S. can reduce carbon emissions now by shifting from coal to cleaner gas and then later shift from gas to carbon-free energy sources. The idea is controversial in the environmental community. But given the state of renewable energy today, it isn’t clear how the U.S. could ban fracking now without burning more coal.

As Sanders and Clinton spar over who is better suited to tackle climate change, one name keeps coming up: President Obama. As FiveThirtyEight contributor Dan Hopkins has written, Clinton supporters like Obama a lot more than fans of Sanders do. Among those who supported Obama in 2007, Clinton won 55 percent, compared with 44 percent for Sanders.

Obama “deserves our appreciation, not our criticism,” Clinton said about the president’s Paris climate accord. She later said that “he has done an incredible job” against long odds. Clinton has allied herself with the president often during the debate, a savvy strategy in a climate in which Obama’s approval rating is climbing among all Americans — and is especially high among Democrats.