For most of the time I was watching Sunday’s Democratic debate between Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden, I was trying to figure out why it was so frustrating. Sure there were ideologically illustrative moments — as when Sanders argued that coronavirus stems from a larger emergency of health and economic inequality that requires a systemic response, versus Biden wanting to focus on the outbreak as a discrete challenge. And there were newsworthy moments — as when they tried to portray slivers of each other’s historical records as endemically problematic, or when Biden promised to have a woman as running mate if he’s the nominee (a commitment Sanders refused to make).

Those elements and more would usually be catnip for folks like me, looking for meaningful grist for our meaning-making mills. And yet… somehow, I guess on an emotional level, the debate felt at best unsatisfying and at times downright absurd. Why? I’ve got five theories. Here they are:
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5. I miss Elizabeth Warren
Okay, this is a personal point but I think it applies more broadly, too. It’s not just that Warren was my candidate, but I think she would have threaded the needle of this moment on this stage — outlining her detailed, comprehensive plans and pointing out the differences between her and her opponents but also highlighting where they agree and keeping her true enemy in her sights. Warren would have done what neither Biden nor Sanders did — explain with precise and devastating clarity exactly how Trump’s failed leadership exacerbated this pandemic. And bear in mind how elegantly she eviscerated Michael Bloomberg — not finger wagging or screaming at him but posing sharp, simple questions and points with painfully plain implications. I feel like Warren is the candidate we needed on this stage and the leader we need in this moment and we, as a party, blew it by not nominating her.