The Slatest

The Best Part of MSNBC’s Democratic Forum Was This “Stupid Thing”

The three candidates running for the Democratic nomination gathered in Rock Hill, S.C., on Friday night for a we-swear-it’s-not-a-debate forum hosted by MSNBC. The night didn’t provide much in the way of drama—or hard news per se—but it was sharp, well-produced, and generally informative for any voters who haven’t been paying close attention to the race to date.

It also had a lightning round of “stupid” questions (Rachel Maddow’s word, not mine) that were welcome moments of brevity and levity in conversations that (rightly) focused on serious issues like climate change, U.S. military intervention abroad, and the death penalty. Perhaps more surprisingly, all three candidates charmed—in their own particular way—in segments that might otherwise have been cringe-worthy.

Martin O’Malley proved he really is a presidential candidate straight out of central casting—from the end of the last century:

Bernie Sanders nailed his grumpy-but-beloved old man shtick:

Hillary Clinton was, well, Hillary Clinton:

Read more of Slate’s coverage of the 2016 campaign.