At the risk of already having buried the lede, let me put it as bluntly as possible: the first Democratic presidential debate of the 2016 cycle was a complete and utter rout. Knowing that she faced the highest possible expectations, that she would be graded by unforgiving standards, and that as the front-runner she had the most to lose, Clinton turned in a bracing, formidable, approachable, nearly flawless performance that was in almost every respect stronger than any she delivered in 2007-2008. It was, by a wide margin, the best night (or day) of her campaign so far. She didn’t just win or even win decisively. She kicked ass from here to Sunday.

Grade:A
Hillary Clinton

Polished, carefully modulated, and bursting with her favored buzz words. Buoyed by a crowd clearly on her side from the get go, she found a winning rhythm and confidence after a slightly slow beginning. Remained at the center of attention and handled it deftly. Took over the evening with surprising early aggressiveness, pushing Sanders to the far left on capitalism, then to the right on guns, fully secure in her superior debating skills. Was prepared for all media questions and opponent attacks. Displayed the calm, cool “I got this” demeanor on issues foreign and domestic. Showed off a chipper sense of humor when appropriate. While too synthetic and brittle defending her flip flops, political pandering, Keystone chronology, Wall Street ties, and private server, she didn’t create any fresh problems for herself. Demonstrated how tough it will be for this foursome to rattle or dent her—a toughness that will test the Republican nominee if she makes it to the general. Conservative Clinton haters will nitpick her facts, superciliousness, and style, and will suggest the CNNers went easy on her, but they will be in denial. She was in it to win it.

All the rest, B- or lower.

WASHINGTON — President Obama signed a bill Wednesday night making an important change to Obamacare that will prevent health insurance premiums for 3 million people from going up next year.

The Protecting Affordable Coverage for Employees Act seems like an unlikely Washington success story: A bipartisan health care bill passed by both chambers without a single no vote and signed by the president with no controversy or fanfare.

Except it's actually not that unusual. For all the raucous debate over repealing Obamacare, such technical fixes can happen. Since the Affordable Care Act was first passed along party lines in 2010, President Obama has signed at least 14 bills making substantive changes in his signature legislation of his presidency, according to an analysis by the Congressional Research Service. Eight of those have been Republican bills.

"I think here the White House certainly doesn’t want to announce with big fanfare that the Republican Congress has led on making changes on the president's health law," she said. "And the Republicans don't want to say that they’re fixing it, because they want to repeal it entirely."

When I first had the opportunity to work for Hillary Clinton in 2006, many of my progressive friends asked if I was comfortable with her Iraq War Resolution vote.

My answer then was the same as it is today: I won’t let the perfect be the enemy of the exceptional.

No one ever, anywhere agrees with every single thing a politician stands for or does. For that matter, no one ever, anywhere agrees with every single thing any person stands for or does.

We make judgments about people based on complex criteria and always with imperfect information. We balance the good with the not so good. We condemn and we forgive, we attack and we praise, we try to distinguish the forest from the trees. We can never truly know another person’s thoughts, so we attempt to divine the person’s core by interpreting their words and deeds, which can often be contradictory. That is the case with family, with friends, with colleagues, and no less with public figures.

Hillary will make an exceptional president. On women’s rights alone, her impact will be history-changing. As the father of a young girl (born during the 2008 campaign), nothing matters more to me.

I’ll conclude with a pithy observation from Lane Hudson, another blogger friend from the early days:

The same people criticizing Hillary for taking a position opposing Keystone XL pipeline and the Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal are the same people who wanted a Warren or Sanders challenge to pull her to the Left.

America’s trade policy may seem remote and technical, but it has a significant impact on the strength of our economy and the lives of millions of Americans. If the businesses you buy from everyday also sell their products to customers abroad, they are more likely to expand and support jobs here at home.

Why is that? Ninety-five percent of the world’s consumers live outside our borders. Our Made-in-America products and services are in demand, making American exports a vital pillar of our 21st century economy. In fact, exports played an indispensable role in America’s resurgence from the Great Recession. So, when the rules are fair, Americans can out-compete anyone in the world.