The pep rally in miami
referee's report card for the 8th democratic debate

March 10, 2016 - Latin America was front and center at last night's Democratic Debate in Miami. The candidates were asked about Cuba, Mexico, and what is to be done about immigration in the United States.

​Ballotball.com was playing referee. We didn't pick a winner--you, the voter, should decide that for yourself. What we DID do is help keep the bout civil by calling penalties in real time. Scroll down to see who was penalized the most, and to the bottom of the page for a full explanation of the penalties.

The Contenders

hillary clinton

current delegates - 1,238 (2,382 to win)

Pledged delegates: 766
Super delegates: 472
52%
4 penalties

Failure to answer: When asked if she thought Republican front runner Donald Trump is a racist, Hillary Clinton gladly too the opportunity to attack Trump’s rhetoric and “demagoguery”, but did not answer  the specific question of whether or not he was a racist.

Failure to stay on topic: Clinton was penalized for her response to a criticism that she is too close to Wall Street and that she will not have the independence necessary to combat money in politics. Clinton spun the issue into an attack on Sanders for siding with the Koch Brothers and voting against the Export Import Bank.

Failure to stay on topic: Clinton was asked about Elizabeth Warren’s criticism that there is a “revolving door” between the leadership of big financial institutions and the Democratic appointees for the Secretary of the Treasury. In response, Clinton said this was a problem, but then she turned to attack Sanders for spending too much time attacking President Obama’s appointees and not enough time attacking the legacy of George W Bush.
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Failure to answer: Clinton was asked whether or not that as president she would meet with Fidel Castro, anti-Castro dissidents, and consider Raul Castro a dictator or a president. She said that she would meet with dissidents and that both Castros “have to be considered authoritarian and dictatorial” but did not specify whether or not she would meet with them.

Bernie sanders

​Current delegates - 572

Pledged delegates: 549
Super delegates: 23
24%
3 penalties

Failure to answer: Similar to Hillary Clinton’s answer, Bernie Sanders declined using the word “racist” to describe Donald Trump. He attacked Trump for insulting Mexicans, Muslims, women, and African Americans, but did not specifically state whether or not racism was to blame.

Failure to stay on topic: While responding to a criticism about his position on immigration, Sanders turned the discussion to confronting Clinton over how she was attacking him on other things like the auto bailout in 2008.
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Failure to answer: Sanders was asked to “explain the difference between the socialism that you profess and the socialism in Nicaragua, Cuba, and Venezuela.” Sanders spent most of his response explaining that just because the United States didn’t like a particular government in Latin America, it didn’t mean they had a right to invade them and force regime change. He made one comment saying that he hoped Cuba would one day be more democratic, but made no substantive explanation for how his version of socialism differs from the countries mentioned.

The Penalties

With the NBA season heating up, we've instituted some new basketball rules for the debate.

Candidates can receive a foul for the following infractions:

  • Failing to answer a question
This one is pretty self explanatory. Candidates might have a good reason to avoid the question, but this is a debate and if you're not here to answer the questions, then it's just a televised press conference. 

  • Failing to stay on topic
For instance, in an earlier debate, Lindsey Graham was asked about his opinion on the right of bakers to refuse to cater a gay wedding. He responded: "Whether you're the wedding cake baker or the gay couple or the Baptist preacher, radical Islam would kill you all if they could."

  • Candidates can receive a technical foul by comparing their opponents to the Nazis.
​​This rule might be controversial due to the innumerable times Donald Trump's opponents have compared his xenophobic policies to Nazism. However, going back to the first debate, we, at Ballotball, have held a zero-tolerance policy towards Nazi comparisons. We flagged Lindsey Graham for comparing ISIL to the Nazis, and we were watching Governor Mike Huckabee closely after he compared President Obama to the Nazis after he agreed to the Iran nuclear deal (this didn't happen during a debate, so no penalty was issued). The reason for this rule is threefold:
  1. Nazi comparisons are lazy. If you'd like to compare Donald Trump's ban on Muslims entering the country to a historical precedent, why not try McCarthyism, or the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, or the Jim Crow south? Instead, people always grab the low-hanging fruit of the Nazis to make their point.
  2. Nazi comparisons ignore the fact that there are still Nazi parties alive and well in many countries. They have not receded to the dustbin of history and currently have at least one member sitting on the European Parliament. 
  3. This is a debate. And nothing shuts down a debate faster than a Nazi comparison. It is our strong opinion that such comparisons send all parties to the barricades and prevent anyone from actually communicating. Disagree strongly, and make your case the best you can, but leave the Nazi metaphors at home, please.