What Went Down On Night One Of The Second Democratic Debate

Prop to the moderators for letting this healthcare debate play out for a while. It is a big issue for Democrats and Americans writ large and it is an issue on which the candidates have important differences. Honestly, to me, this is what a debate should look like.

Health care again ranks among the top issues Democrats are interested in hearing about in the second debate. And with Sanders on the stage tonight, it seems likely that candidates will talk about Medicare for All or what a single-payer government health care system would look like.

But the popularity of Medicare for All may be on the decline among Americans — and even some Democrats. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 56 percent of adults favored a national Medicare for All plan in April, compared with 51 percent in July. And even among Democrats, support has declined, down from 80 percent in April to 72 percent in July.

As editor-in-chief Nate Silver wrote on Thursday, more Democrats may be leaning toward “Medicare for All that want it” — or a health care plan that would include a public option, giving Americans the choice between government-sponsored insurance and private insurance. And the July KFF poll supports that idea — 85 percent of Democrats either “somewhat” or “strongly” favor a health plan that includes a public option.

Maybe, Julia, although there’s a saying (which I made up) that first rule of electability is don’t talk about electability. If you *just so happen* to pick solutions that are politically pragmatic and say you’re picking them because they’re the right policy solutions, maybe that goes over better with voters.