--- title: Democratic Debate: Sanders, O'Malley Spar Over Gun Control description: The former Maryland governor strikes early and hard canonical: https://time.com/4156158/democratic-debate-bernie-sanders-martin-omalley-gun-control/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-12-20T02:25:58.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-05T08:40:30.221Z article:section: Politics og:title: Dem Debate: Sanders, O'Malley Spar Over Gun Control og:description: The former Maryland governor strikes early and hard og:url: https://time.com/4156158/democratic-debate-bernie-sanders-martin-omalley-gun-control/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9dba3db3d235eb89/698876380a4a228f429c79ae/democratic-debate-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5326 og:image:height: 2996 og:image:alt: Dem 2016 Debate og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Dem Debate: Sanders, O'Malley Spar Over Gun Control twitter:description: The former Maryland governor strikes early and hard twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9dba3db3d235eb89/698876380a4a228f429c79ae/democratic-debate-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Bernie Sanders, Martin O'Malley Spar Over Gun Control > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=6b6b97da-a81b-4146-ad86-5f6ed8b61888&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Watch the Democratic Debate in Less Than Four Minutes [Watch (HLS stream): Watch the Democratic Debate in Less Than Four Minutes](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/MP9tBH0u.m3u8) (4:00)  _Published 2015-10-14. In case you missed it_ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 20, 2015 2:25 AM UTC In case you missed it by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Dec 20, 2015 2:25 AM UTC Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders fired back at former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley during Saturday’s Democratic debate over gun safety legislation. O’Malley said ISIS training videos encourage lone wolves to purchase assault weapons like those used in the massacre in San Bernardino, Calif., because of the flip-flopping in Washington that both of his colleagues on the stage represented. “We need common sense gun safety,” said O’Malley. [Read More: Democrats Clash in Final Debate of 2015](http://time.com/4155432/democratic-debate-third-data-breach/?xid=homepage) A visibly perturbed Sanders responded by first asking the moderators to better lead the conversation, and later by defending his own willingness to challenge gun lobbyists in his own state and in later in Washington. Sanders argued he lost his Congressional race in the late 1980s because of his willingness to take on “gun people.” “Please do not explain to me coming from a sate where Democratic governors and Republican governors have supported virstually no gun control,” Sanders snapped at O’Malley. “Do not tell me that I have not shown courage in standing up to the gun people or voting for instant background checks.” Earlier in the debate, former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton argued guns alone will not help Americans stay safe in the efforts to thwart ISIS terrorists. “Arming more people, to do what, I think is not the appropriate response to terrorism,” she said. ## Transcript Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Democratic candidates for President of the United States. [ APPLAUSE ] So I would change our approach to the Middle East. We need a new paradigm in the Middle East. I think being the first women President would be quite a change. Protect the main street economy from recklessness on Wall Street. I would push to separate out these too big to jail, too big to fail banks. When millions of people begin to come together, And stand up and say, our government is gonna work for all of us, not just a handful of billionaires. I would lead, working with both parties in the Congress, and working through them in the traditional way that our Constitution says. Senator Sanders, will you say anything to get elected? I think that, like most people that I know, I have a range of views, but they are rooted in my values and my experiences. [ MUSIC ] What democratic socialism is about, is saying that it is immoral and wrong that the top one tenth of one percent in this country own almost 90 %, almost as much wealth as the bottom 90 %. We need to separate the casino speculative mega bank gambling. We have to ensure with our money Me from the commercial backing, mainly reinstating glass [ UNKNOWN ]. And that's a huge difference on this stage among us as candidates. I did. I'm with both Senator Sanders and Governor O'Malley in putting a lot of attention onto the banks. And the plan that I have put forward would actually empower regulators. Is to break up big banks if we thought they posed a risk. But I wanna make sure we're gonna cover everybody. Not what caused the problem last time, but what could cause it next time. Senator, senator- Congress does not regulate Wall Street. Wall Street regulates Congress. There's no doubt that when Putin came back in and said he was going to be president, that did change the relationship. We have to stand up to his bullying and specifically in Syria. I will do everything that I can to make sure the United States does not get involved in another quagmire like we did in Iraq. The worst foreign policy blunder in the history of this country. I believe that as President I would, not be so quick to pull for a military tool, I believe that a no fly zone in Syria, this time actually, Secretary, would be a mistake. You have to enforce no fly zones, and I believe especially with the Russian airforce in the air it could lead to an escalation because of an accident, that we would deeply regret. [ MUSIC ] Do I think that a gun shop in the state of Vermont that sells legally a gun to somebody and that somebody goes out and does something crazy that that gun shop owner should be held responsible? I don't. Is Bernie Sanders tough enough on guns? No. Not at all. I think that we have to look at the fact that we lose 90 people a day from gun violence. This has gone on too long and it's time the entire country stood up against the NRA. On the other hand, where you have manufacturers and where you have gun shops, knowingly giving guns to criminals or aiding and abetting that, of course we should take action. It's fine to talk about all of these things and I'm glad we're talking about these things. But I've actually done them. It's time to stand up and pass comprehensive gun safety legislation as a nation. [ APPLAUSE ] The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn emails. Thank you. I'm not taking a backseat to anybody on my values, my principles. And the results that I get. When you have 11 million undocumented people in this country we need comprehensive immigration reform. If there would be a major difference between my administration and the Obama administration it would be in the use of executive authority. In this debate we tried to deal with some of the very tough issues facing our country. That's in stark contrast to the Republicans, who are currently running for President. 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