Tonight, an event occured that was quite a long time coming. Tonight, two senators participated in a much anticipated debate about one of the most controversial laws in the history of the United States: the Affordable Care Act. Or as Republicans rebranded it, Obamacare. For years, both sides had pushed rhetoric, but it had often bounced off the walls of an echo chamber. Now, however, the two sides had finally debated with each other, and the dynamism that came from it far outshone the aforementioned echo chambers. And, I have a confession to make. I am completely on the side of Bernie Sanders. I believe that Europeans have a superior approach to healthcare, and the United States should follow in the former’s footsteps and enact Medicare for all. Through this lens of thought, I viewed Senator Cruz’s responses, and I noticed something quite peculiar. Ted Cruz, trained as a lawyer, made an excellent job at diverting the discussion, using concepts such as freedom and choice, as well as some well-prepared statistics. But many times he failed to actually answer the question that the moderator or the audience speaker had provided. When he was asked about whether or not people would be covered under pre-existing conditions in the future, whether those on expanded Medicare could continue to be on expanded Medicare, whether his plan would result in an even greater redistribution of wealth to the 1%, he failed to give a straightforward answer, instead putting up smoke and mirrors through constant libertarian tirades, often mistakenly referring to single-payer insurance as “socialized medicine”[2]. Why? Because Senator Cruz knows that if his plan went through, all of the concerns addressed to him would become reality. He did an excellent job of hiding it, but ultimately all of the objections raised to him are valid. Bernie, on the other hand, was not lawyerly. He was honest. When he was asked whether or not a person should continue to pay obscene premiums, whether or not a small business owner should have to pay for their employees’ healthcare, and how the United States can stop the ursury that is being commited by pharmaceutical companies, he gave a simple answer. Now, I have to admit that Bernie was too unprepared when it came to evidence and countering that of Cruz’s. If I was Bernie, I would have mentioned that the failures of the UK’s NHS is often the fault of budget cuts by Conservatives who have a disturbing fascination with the United States system, that the United States consistently wastes money with excessive testing, while Cuban doctors have become world-renowned from practicing cheaper, actually holistic medicine[1]. I would have pointed out that sometimes instant gratification is unhealthy, that a waiting list is acceptable for non-emergency conditions. I would have noted that the higher GDP per capita of the US when compared to Western European countries is misleading because GDP per capita is a mean, and, in the case of the US, has been greatly skewed upward due to a massively unequal wealth distribution, where the %1 own 35% of the entire wealth of this country. In addition, a poor person in Europe is better off than the US. They can, without constantly struggling in a cutthroat environment, find decent healthcare, a modest home, high-quality public transportation, and free internet access[3]. Finally, I would have said that the Urban Institute study was flawed by their own admission, as it assumed that drug prices would increase by 50%, while in actuality they would decrease significantly due to increased governmental negotiation power. I would have pulled out the Berniecare plan, and showed that under it, a family and a small business would pay less than under the current system, simply due to the decreased costs of bureacracy and no need for a profit. All of these facts would have made Bernie Sanders’s arguement much more potent. However, in the end Bernie’s main strength is speaking to the heart, not overwhelming the public with endless streams of data. And, perhaps we should accept that. We need more of his kind in Congress, a politician that can win over the minds of ordinary working-class Americans, who, in a manifestation of false consciousness, voted for an alt-right-backed con man, just because the latter promised change. Go on, Bernie. You’re one of the only shining lights in the dim halls of American politics. We need you more than ever. Notes [1]As opposed to the psuedoscience that is often disguised as holistic medicine. [2]Socialized medicine is the state ownership of hospitals and state employment of healthcare professionals, like in the UK, while single payer is merely public insurance guaranteed to all citizens. [3]Quickly becoming more neccessary in the modern world.