The Democratic debate in Brooklyn took place last night, and while it was more intense than previous debates no real new ground was covered. It has become clear however what this contest boils down to.

If you are a Democrat you have a choice between Hillary, the smart kid, and Bernie, the good kid. This isn’t to apply that Hillary has no moral compass or that Bernie has no intelligence but that is the big picture choice.

If you believe that the presidencies of Bill Clinton and Barak Obama were emblematic of administrations that pursued policies which were good for the country in an ethical way, then Hillary’s moral compass is probably good enough for you.

If you believe that there are fundamental flaws to how our system handles economic and social justice then Bernie is probably a better choice.

Any president, no matter how pressing the issue will rely on input from advisors before making a decision. The idea that the presidency is like a debate where issues are thrown out and decisions must be made in a split second simply isn’t true. Still if you have a strong concern that ideological firmness may lead to errors in broader policy, for instance perhaps being against trade worsens the security of allies, then you should probably stick to Hillary, who will have a broader grasp of how issues interlock. On the other hand if you believe that a weak ideological base can allow logic to justify bad decisions, then Bernie should be your choice.

Personally I am supporting Bernie because I believe in long term balance. I don’t believe any individual, group, or ideology has all the answers. If we had 50 years of Sanders style policy then it would create problems. The last strongly ideological president we had was Reagan. And we have had decades of center right policy, so it is time to seek that balance. We need to focus on the priorities of the left to do that, we need a strong ideological focus to serve as a counterpoint to the exclamation point Reagan created.

Sanders and Clinton differ in degree on issues. Hillary would increase regulation of the financial sector and work toward campaign finance reform, Bernie would compromise and be more business friendly than people expect. There are premature issues that can get people very excited, like electability. On the one hand you have a Jewish Socialist, on the other a person that many in the country think should be in jail, how can you define electability at this point? But one does have a firm ideological filter and the other has a broader grasp of issues.

It’s the head vs. the heart.