Young Turks host John Iadarola is predicting that the second night of the Democratic presidential primary debates in Detroit will be less “substantive” than the first night and warned viewers to prepare to be “gaslit.”
“I’m going to guess that’s going to be less substantive and it’s going to be focused more on the individual personalities,” Iadarola, who is host of news show “The Damage Report,” told Hill.TV.
“I would say prepare yourself to be gaslit,” he added.
While Iadarola said Tuesday night was dominated by a fierce debate over “Medicare for All” between centrist Democratic contenders and their progressive counterparts, he questioned whether a similar clash would play out Wednesday night among the lineup’s centrist candidates.
“Will it really be a substantive disagreement,” the host on the liberal network said.
He predicted former Vice President Joe Biden, the frontrunner in the race, would argue in favor of expanding the Affordable Care Act “if Mitch McConnell’s feeling in the right mood.”
The remarks were a shot at Biden’s more centrist politics on healthcare. McConnell is the Senate majority leader and has sought to repeal the ACA.
Iadarola said the health plan offered by Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is also “not that dissimilar from what from a lot of the centrists are pushing these days.”
At Tuesday night’s debate, progressive heavyweights Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) defended “Medicare for all” policies from centrist criticisms.
The debate also underscored divisions within the primary field on immigration and who is better equipped to take on President Trump in the 2020 election.
Former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock went after Sanders over his Medicare for All proposal, a government-run health insurance program that would in turn eliminate the Affordable Care Act along with private insurance.
“It used to be Republicans who wanted to repeal and replace, now it’s Democrats,” Bullock said.
Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, another centrist Democrat, also didn’t hold back.
“You might as well FedEx the election to Donald Trump,” Hickenlooper said when arguing why he thought Sanders could not beat Trump.
Biden and Harris are set to take center stage for Wednesday night’s debate, setting up a rematch after the two sparred over Biden’s civil rights record during the first Democratic debate.
Biden has since regained much of his support he lost in the days that followed their high-profile battle and allies have said he will be looking to rebound from his previous lackluster performance.
—Tess Bonn
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