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Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton face off in a televised debate Thursday in Brooklyn.

(The Associated Press)

The Republicans have held a dozen presidential debates. What do you remember about them?

Let's see, there was Donald Trump saying Fox News moderator Megyn Kelly had "blood coming out of her wherever." (That actually happened after the debate, but close enough.) Then there was Trump talking about the size of his hands -- and the size of something else: "If they're small, something else must be small. I guarantee you there's no problem. I guarantee." How about Trump not ridiculing Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul's appearance? "I never attacked him on his looks," he said, "and believe me, there's a lot of subject matter there."

These made-for-TV events arguably pushed Trump, a reality-TV star and first-time candidate, to the front of the GOP field. But what about the Democrats' debates?

They've had nine face-offs. What do you remember about them?

We'll give you a minute.

The Democrats' debates have been relatively staid affairs, focusing mainly on policy matters rather than the candidates' looks or the size of their body parts. This much is hard to dispute: They haven't helped former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at all.

It's easy enough to understand why. It's not that she's a bad debater. Anyone who watched the Democratic front-runner coolly thrust and parry during her appearance before Congress' Benghazi-investigation hearing last year understands that she handles herself quite well when put on the spot.

It's that in the history of political rhetoric, no one has ever been inspired by a pragmatist. Working across the aisle, evolving on issues as circumstances change -- embracing realpolitik. This makes the political world go around, but it leaves people outside the Beltway cold, even disgusted.

Her opponent, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, has owned voter passion in these primaries. A back-bencher his entire career in Congress and proud of it, he has outlined a soaring vision of free college education, Wall Street brought to heel and new trade deals that will restart American manufacturing glory.

Are any of these goals do-able? Well, that's up for debate. Stuart Rothenberg doesn't think so. The long-time political analyst says Sanders has a lot in common with Republican insurgents Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. He writes in Roll Call:

Like Cruz, Sanders is an ideologue who resists compromise. And like Trump, Sanders has simple answers to complex problems and sounds as if he doesn't appreciate the dramatic, and often deeply unsettling, consequences that his policies would produce.

"Break up the banks," roars Sanders, as if that would solve part of the nation's economic problems without creating any new ones.

"It's Time to Make College Tuition Free and Debt Free" asserts Sanders (on his website) without discussing the ramifications of doing so or acknowledging the true cost or the inevitable disruptions.

Rothenberg knows this simple approach is by design. What Sanders has going for him is that Democrats want to believe in his vision. And when people are asked to choose between their dreams and hard realities, they tend to pick their dreams.

Will Clinton try to puncture the Sanders bubble at Thursday's Democratic presidential debate in Brooklyn? (The New York primary is next Tuesday.) She knows it's a dangerous undertaking, like trying to slip a collar onto a wounded bear. But she knows she has to do it -- she's lost six straight primaries and caucuses -- and she's been working herself up to it.

"In recent days, Clinton has kept up the pressure on Sanders," the Los Angeles Times' Chris Megerian wrote this week. "While she's stopped short of saying Sanders isn't qualified to be president, she's clearly questioned his readiness."

She's done this indirectly -- by sending out to reporters the transcript of Sanders' interview with the New York Daily News editorial board, in which the Vermont senator struggled to come up with specifics on how he would break up big Wall Street banks and what that would mean for the economy.

And then, when asked about sending out the Sanders interview, she's done it directly. "I have noticed that under the bright spotlight and scrutiny here in New York, Sen. Sanders has had trouble answering questions," Clinton said. "He's had trouble answering questions about his core issue, namely dealing with the banks. He's had trouble answering foreign policy questions."

Sanders, for his part, chides his Democratic critics for their small thinking. He has declared time and again that a "political revolution" is necessary to create a fair, truly democratic, forward-moving society, and that his campaign is step one in that revolution.

A lot of Democrats -- even in Clinton's home state of New York, where her lead in the polls appears to be narrowing -- believe Sanders is right. On Wednesday, more than 25,000 people turned out to hear Sanders speak in New York City's Washington Square.

"When I look at an unbelievable crowd like this, I believe we're going to win here in New York," he said.

Maybe he can, no matter how things go in Thursday's debate.

* The New York Democratic presidential debate is at 6 p.m. PT (9 p.m. ET) Thursday on CNN.

-- Douglas Perry