Galindez writes: "When Sanders compared the invasion of Iraq to regime change in Iran, Chile, and Guatemala, he reassured the progressive base that he will not have an interventionist foreign policy."



Bernie and Jane Sanders. (photo: David Becker/Reuters)

Why Bernie Sanders Cleared a Path to Victory in 2nd Debate

By Scott Galindez, Reader Supported News

he pundits and many polls are saying Hillary Clinton won, and maybe for a week or two while Americans worry about ISIS they might be right. Maybe she did pass the commander in chief test. But let’s face it, when Democrats caucus and vote they will not be doing so based on foreign policy. Besides, Bernie Sanders did make waves on foreign policy in a manner that could just help him in the long run.

When Sanders compared the invasion of Iraq to regime change in Iran, Chile, and Guatemala, he reassured the progressive base that he will not have an interventionist foreign policy.

“The disagreement is, not only did I vote against the war in Iraq, if you look at history, you will find that regime change, whether it was in the 1950s in Iran, toppling Salvador Allende in Chile, overthrowing the government of Guatemala – these toppings of governments, regime change, have unintended consequences. On this issue I am a little more conservative than the secretary. I am not a big fan of regime change,” said Sanders as the watch party at Drake University exploded in cheers. In the debate hall there really wasn’t much reaction to anything throughout the debate. It was a reserved, establishment crowd.

But at the watch party as Sanders delivered that response you could hear “Whoa,” “Oh my,” and “Yes” coming from people who were happy to hear a candidate for the Democratic Party’s nomination for president admitting to US foreign policy mistakes in Iran, Chile and Guatemala.

When the media and the pundits try to determine who won debates, they are looking at the event through filters colored by the past. I think Bernie made a very important step in solidifying anti-war anti-intervention groups who were uneasy about some of his past votes on foreign policy. That was lost on the pundits.

“It’s the economy, stupid”

Remember when James Carville and the Clinton inner circle understood that and focused on it? Hillary Clinton can impress everyone with her diplomatic accomplishments all she wants, but they don’t pay the mortgage or the doctor bills and they won’t put your kids through college.

The big differences between the three Democratic candidates for president are not on ISIS (none of them want boots on the ground) or the Iran nuclear deal, which they all favor. The difference is how we are going to deal with economic inequality and who is best positioned to lead that fight. This is the area that Bernie Sanders clearly won in the debate. Was there a game changer? Probably not, but the seeds of doubt were planted.

One reason I think Sanders did enough is that he even polled well after the debate on the economy and economic inequality.

So who won on points? It was a Saturday night debate on CBS, so let’s use their overnight poll, since nobody else was watching – another blunder by the DNC.