Ed Markey and Seth Moulton used their Ed Markey Seth Moulton primary debate on Thursday in Needham to argue over who best represents the Democratic Party as the Sept. 1 primary nears. The third and final primary debate was an hourlong event, and it came after two statewide polls this week showed Markey up by double digits.
Seth Moulton, 47, apologized three times during the debate and said “sorry” if he hurt anyone and that was not his intention. He also said transgender athletes should be allowed to participate in girls' sports, while Markey said transgender children should not have been thrown under the political bus after the 2024 election and added, “We should have been loving those kids.”
Needham debate exchange
The candidates often agreed broadly on policy, but each cast the other as the inferior choice to carry the party’s banner on Capitol Hill. The debate was co-hosted by WCVB, WBUR, and The Boston Globe, and it was less feisty than their last showdown, which included personal attacks, interruptions, accusations of sexism, reprehensible behavior, and vague allegations involving Jeffrey Epstein.
Moulton said his apology was tied to the way his earlier remarks landed with transgender children after the 2024 election. Markey leaned into that split by framing his defense of those children as part of the party’s values fight, rather than just a policy disagreement.
Markey on AI safeguards
The candidates also split over artificial intelligence. Markey said he uses whatever is inside his iPhone or his iPad when asked about AI and said, “It doesn’t make any difference whether it’s called Siri or it’s called Claude.... we need to build safeguards around it.”
Moulton answered that Markey’s response showed why the race needed a new generation of leaders to regulate the technology. He later called the response “potentially disqualifying.”
Markey defended his remarks by comparing AI protections to car safety features, saying, “An automobile, regardless of the make, needs seat belts, needs airbags, needs brakes.” He also said, “Doesn’t make any difference what the make of the car [is].”
Sept. 1 primary
Markey name-checked Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Aya during the debate as he tried to define his place inside the Democratic Party. With the primary days away and statewide polling showing him ahead by double digits, the debate gave Moulton one last chance to change the race before Massachusetts voters decide on Sept. 1.
