I was surprised at how Sanders stuck to the same basic liberal platitudes of more taxes and more spending and the socialist call for free college. The debate showed just how limited Sanders’s range is as a politician. He has a few new socialist slogans but no real plans.

When Cruz asked Sanders, “since this is a tax debate, what is the difference between a socialist and a Democrat on taxes,” Sanders answered pointedly, “I don’t know the answer to that.” I thought Sanders would have been better prepared and had something new to say. But by essentially admitting that there was no difference between a socialist and a Democrat, Sanders made an important point — one that has been made clear since last November. And that is that the Democratic Party is in the middle of an astonishing lurch to the left. With Sanders as their standard-bearer, the Democrats are embracing his positions: more government activism, more government giveaways and the nanny state unleashed.

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Regardless, the Republican Party was well represented by Cruz. Cruz generously noted that Sanders may have very well won the Democratic Party’s nomination for president last year had it not been for corruption within the Democratic National Committee. So, as Hillary Clinton fades into wacky conspiracies about a “cyber-9/11” costing her the election and is mostly silenced by her own history that disqualifies her from taking a powerful stand in the Harvey Weinstein saga, Sanders is the Democrats’ face and de facto leader. And Cruz effectively showed just how limiting that may be for the Democratic Party.