4 out of 5 Democratic candidates agree—Snowden should face the courts

(credit: Joe Raedle, Getty Images)

After last night's Democratic presidential candidate debate, the first of the cycle, privacy and information security appear to be grabbing all the headlines. That's because perhaps the most controversial Democratic talking point—Hillary Clinton's use of an Exchange 2010-hosted private e-mail server while acting as Secretary of State—came and went as quickly as some of the Republican candidate campaigns (here's looking at you, Rick Perry).

After the first commercial break, moderator Anderson Cooper asked Clinton directly about the e-mail scandal for which she will be testifying in front of Congress next week. Clinton admitted her wrongdoing ("Well, I've taken responsibility for it. I did say it was a mistake," she replied. "What I did was allowed by the State Department, but it wasn't the best choice."), but she proceeded to then call the entire affair simply a talking point of the Republican National Committee.

Anderson then pointed the topic at Clinton's primary competitor, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Rather than jumping at the opportunity to attack, Sanders reinforced his campaign ethos of focusing on core issues and avoiding commonplace political machinations. "Let me say something that may not be great politics," he began. "But I think the secretary is right, and that is that the American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn e-mails." After a brief response from the other candidates, it was the last mention of the situation throughout the entire night.