What Went Down In The Fourth Democratic Debate

To be honest I’m not really sure what the “right” response from Sanders is supposed to be on his age/health/heart attack. It’s not an easy question to answer. But I don’t know if it’s actually smart for him to essentially just sidestep the age issue and say “hey, I’m going to be campaigning really hard.” A lot of voters are concerned about the candidates’ age overall, and about Sanders’s health.

That’s a good point, Clare. I do think Buttigieg’s attacks have landed better, but maybe it’s because, as you say, O’Rourke isn’t a favored candidate in the way that Biden is. But I also think it’s generally been a good night for moderates, or at least other moderate candidates like Buttigieg and Klobuchar. Whether that’s enough to help them in the polls, though, is a fair question.

Bernie Sanders was just asked about his age. According to an Economist/YouGov poll from October, 40 percent of Americans — including 39 percent of Democrats and 43 percent of Republicans — believe being 80 or older as president makes it “too difficult to do the work the presidency requires.” Twenty-nine percent of Americans said age provides candidates the experience and wisdom to do a good job as president, and 30 percent said they were unsure.