Former US secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday emerged unscathed from the Democratic Party’s first debate for next year’s presidential campaign, cutting a calm and confident figure as she sparred with her rivals for the White House.
The frontrunner parried jabs by US Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and three other hopefuls, who challenged her on everything from political U-turns to gun control and military intervention in the Middle East.
However, Clinton — who took part in more than 20 debates in the 2008 White House race — appeared mostly polished and composed during a two-hour clash in Las Vegas that was heavy on substance.
Photo: AFP
An independent senator from Vermont who has drawn huge crowds on the campaign trail, Sanders also delivered a spirited performance as he appealed to the party’s left wing, urging action on climate change and attacking Wall Street.
There were some fiery moments too, with Clinton accusing Sanders — her chief rival — of being soft on gun control.
However, Clinton received a surprise boost over her use of a private e-mail server as US top diplomat — seen as an Achilles heel — as Sanders and others came to her defense.
“Enough of the e-mails. The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn e-mails,” Sanders said.
Political analyst Larry Sabato said both Clinton and Sanders emerged as winners.
“Clinton went into the debate the frontrunner and she came out exactly the same — probably strengthened in that role,” he said. “Sanders went in as the chief challenger and he came out the same — maybe even strengthened.”
Overall, the debate was spared the dramatic clashes of personalities seen in the first two Republican debates, dominated by reality TV star and real-estate mogul Donald Trump, who needled the candidates via Twitter even before they took to the lecterns.
The 67-year-old Clinton was keen to inject excitement into her campaign and show she can rally the Democratic base, while Sanders was testing whether his “political revolution” can translate to the national stage.
Sanders put forward passionate arguments for reducing income inequality, saying he is not a part of the “casino capitalist” system.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique