Clinton: Yes, I'm a Progressive

Sanders has an unrealistic definition, she complains
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 4, 2016 8:39 PM CST
Clinton: Yes, I'm a Progressive
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders greet the audience before the debate.   (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders hit upon a familiar theme of late early in their debate Thursday night: Who is the true progressive on the stage? Clinton for her part quickly busted out what is becoming a common line: "I am a progressive who gets things done," she said, before adding, "The root of that word, progressive, is progress." She criticized Sanders for deeming himself the "self-proclaimed gatekeeper" of who gets the title and said that by his definition, almost nobody in Washington would qualify, including President Obama. Then came a tougher shot: "If we're going to get into labels, I don't think it was particularly progressive to vote against the Brady Bill five times."

Sanders, though, said his definition of a progressive isn't "radical," though he added that a progressive must be willing to "wage a political revolution," reports the Atlantic. "What we need to do is to stand up to the big money interest and the campaign contributors," he said, in what the New York Times live blog considers a "tacit shot at Clinton and her donors." And as for President Obama: "Do I think President Obama is a progressive? Yes, I do." (More Hillary Clinton 2016 stories.)

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