NEW YORK: Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders face off Thursday in a closely watched US presidential debate ahead of the key New York primary in the increasingly acrimonious Democratic race for the White House.
The former secretary of state holds a double-digit lead over the Vermont senator in polls and needs a big win in next Tuesday's primary after losing seven of the last eight contests to her leftist rival.
The Brooklyn-born, self-described Democratic socialist is similarly dreaming of a shock win in Clinton's adopted home state to keep alive his dream of wresting the nomination from the Democratic frontrunner.
It makes for a dramatic showdown in a state in which both claim close ties. New York is the state that elected Clinton twice to the US Senate, and Sanders was born and brought up in Brooklyn.
"I think it will be lively," Clinton predicted of the debate -- their first since March 9 and scheduled at Sanders' insistence, looking to close his trailing gap behind the former first lady.
Addressing a huge rally in New York's Washington Square Wednesday, Sanders attacked Clinton for her ties to Wall Street, her support for trade deals that have cost US jobs and for the 2003 Iraq invasion.
"This is going to be tough primary for us but when I look at the thousands of people who are here... I think that if we have a large voter turnout on Tuesday we're going to win this state," he said.
The 68-year-old Clinton and 74-year-old Sanders have traded increasingly heated blows in recent days.
Sanders, whose call for a revolution has ignited a passionate youth following, was forced to backtrack after questioning Clinton's qualifications for the nation's top office.
Clinton has lashed out at Sanders over gun control and immigration reform, and accused him of dodging questions on the campaign trail.
Comments
Comments are closed.