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Biden Comes Under Attack From All Sides in Democratic Debate Biden Comes Under Attack From All Sides in Democratic Debate
(32 minutes later)
MIAMI — Joseph R. Biden Jr. repeatedly found himself on the defensive in the Democratic debate on Thursday over his record as well as his personal views, with the most searing moment of the night, and the primary campaign to date, coming when Senator Kamala Harris confronted him over his comments on working with segregationists in the Senate.MIAMI — Joseph R. Biden Jr. repeatedly found himself on the defensive in the Democratic debate on Thursday over his record as well as his personal views, with the most searing moment of the night, and the primary campaign to date, coming when Senator Kamala Harris confronted him over his comments on working with segregationists in the Senate.
Mr. Biden, the Democratic front-runner who was participating in his first major debate in seven years, was at times halting and meandering, but also forceful in pushing back on criticism of his record. Those attacks included a call for the 76-year-old former vice president to “pass the torch” to a younger generation, as well as questions about his positions on universal health care and deportation. Mr. Biden, the Democratic front-runner who was participating in his first major debate in seven years, was at times halting and meandering, but also forceful in pushing back on criticism of his record. Those attacks included a call for the 76-year-old former vice president to “pass the torch” to a younger generation, as well as questions about his positions on immigration, abortion and his enthusiasm for working with Republicans.
But the most dramatic confrontation was not over policy or ideology, but personal history. Peering down the stage to look at Mr. Biden directly, Ms. Harris assailed Mr. Biden for remarks he made this month invoking his work in a Senate that included a pair of notorious segregationists. She then went further, recalling that he had also opposed school busing in the 1970s. But the most dramatic exchange was not only over policy — but also personal history. Peering down the stage to look at Mr. Biden directly, Ms. Harris assailed Mr. Biden for remarks he made this month invoking his work in a Senate that included a pair of notorious segregationists. She then went further, recalling that he had also opposed school busing in the 1970s.
“There was a little girl in California who was a part of the second class to integrate her public schools and she was bused to school every day,” Ms. Harris said. “And that little girl was me.”“There was a little girl in California who was a part of the second class to integrate her public schools and she was bused to school every day,” Ms. Harris said. “And that little girl was me.”
Mr. Biden responded indignantly, calling her attacks “a mischaracterization of my position across the board” — and then returned fire at Ms. Harris, who has faced attacks from the left for her record as a prosecutor in California. Mr. Biden responded indignantly, calling her attacks “a mischaracterization of my position across the board” — and then returned fire at Ms. Harris, who has faced criticism from the left for her record as a prosecutor in California.
“If we want to have this campaign litigated on who supports civil rights and whether I did or not, I’m happy to do that,” he shot back. “I was a public defender, I didn’t become a prosecutor.”“If we want to have this campaign litigated on who supports civil rights and whether I did or not, I’m happy to do that,” he shot back. “I was a public defender, I didn’t become a prosecutor.”
The exchange was the tensest moment in the first Democratic debates, which were split between Wednesday and Thursday to accommodate the party’s sprawling field. And they illustrated both Mr. Biden’s vulnerability and the urgency his rivals feel to start sowing doubts about his candidacy with Democrats who mostly view him as Barack Obama’s vice president.
[Read our analysis: Harris makes the case that Biden should pass the torch to her.][Read our analysis: Harris makes the case that Biden should pass the torch to her.]
The back and forth was the tensest moment in the first Democratic debates, which were split between Wednesday and Thursday, with 10 candidates each night, to accommodate the party’s sprawling field. And it illustrated both Mr. Biden’s vulnerability and the urgency his rivals feel to start sowing doubts about his candidacy with Democrats who mostly view him as Barack Obama’s vice president.
At a moment when President Trump has inflamed the country’s racial divisions, the clash also went to the heart of the Democrats’ debate over whom to nominate. Should they put forward a moderate who could appeal to some of the white voters who elected Mr. Trump but who also carries baggage from an earlier political era? Or would they be more likely to win by energizing younger and nonwhite voters with a candidate like Ms. Harris, a California senator whose father is black and mother was of Indian descent?At a moment when President Trump has inflamed the country’s racial divisions, the clash also went to the heart of the Democrats’ debate over whom to nominate. Should they put forward a moderate who could appeal to some of the white voters who elected Mr. Trump but who also carries baggage from an earlier political era? Or would they be more likely to win by energizing younger and nonwhite voters with a candidate like Ms. Harris, a California senator whose father is black and mother was of Indian descent?
Ms. Harris’s offensive also represented an effort to jump-start her campaign, which started with great promise in January but which has flagged as she has wrestled with whether to run as a progressive or appeal to her party’s moderate wing. Mr. Biden’s initial advantage in the Democratic contest is attributable in part to his strong backing from African-Americans — votes Ms. Harris needs to win to secure the nomination. Ms. Harris’s offensive also represented an effort to jump-start her campaign, which started with great promise in January but which has flagged as she has wrestled with whether to run as a progressive or appeal to her party’s moderate wing. Her campaign has for months been privately consumed with Mr. Biden, whose initial advantage in the polls is partly attributable to his strong backing from African-Americans – votes Ms. Harris needs to win to secure the nomination.
It was not on matters of race alone that Mr. Biden found himself under biting attack. When Mr. Biden delivered a laudatory account of his own skills as a congressional negotiator, boasting that he had coaxed a tax increase out of the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, he earned a swift rebuke from a fellow moderate, Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado. Mr. Biden did not appear as unsteady as he has in some other recent public appearances, but he also may not have fully convinced Democrats that, as their nominee, he would be able to parry Mr. Trump’s hectoring attacks next year. Unlike some of the other candidates, he did not try to interject himself into the conversation.
And it was not on matters of race alone that Mr. Biden found himself under biting attack. Rivals on both the left and the center dismissed Mr. Biden’s narrative of his political career as a case study in steady leadership, and repeatedly questioned the most fundamental proposition of his candidacy — that he is uniquely well suited to unite the country and wring progress from a sclerotic Washington.
When Mr. Biden delivered a laudatory account of his own skills as a congressional negotiator, boasting that he had coaxed a tax increase out of the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, he earned a swift rebuke from a fellow moderate, Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado.
“The deal that he talked about, with Mitch McConnell, was a complete victory for the Tea Party,” Mr. Bennet said, arguing that Mr. Biden had made foolish concessions to Republicans on government spending without getting much in return. “That was a great deal for Mitch McConnell. It was a terrible deal for America.”“The deal that he talked about, with Mitch McConnell, was a complete victory for the Tea Party,” Mr. Bennet said, arguing that Mr. Biden had made foolish concessions to Republicans on government spending without getting much in return. “That was a great deal for Mitch McConnell. It was a terrible deal for America.”
And without condemning Mr. Biden by name, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, too, rejected his deal-making ethos and called attention to his history of taking more conservative positions on abortion rights — including his past support for a ban on federal funding for abortion, known as the Hyde Amendment. Mr. Biden only renounced his support for the measure this month.And without condemning Mr. Biden by name, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, too, rejected his deal-making ethos and called attention to his history of taking more conservative positions on abortion rights — including his past support for a ban on federal funding for abortion, known as the Hyde Amendment. Mr. Biden only renounced his support for the measure this month.
“When the door is closed, negotiations are made, there are conversations about women’s rights and compromises have been made on our backs,” Ms. Gillibrand said. “That’s how we got to Hyde. The how the Hyde Amendment was created — a compromise by leaders of both parties.”“When the door is closed, negotiations are made, there are conversations about women’s rights and compromises have been made on our backs,” Ms. Gillibrand said. “That’s how we got to Hyde. The how the Hyde Amendment was created — a compromise by leaders of both parties.”
It was Ms. Harris, however, who did the most to elevate her candidacy: at one point she was the top trending topic in search on all of Google in America.
In addition to confronting Mr. Biden, she repeatedly chastised Mr. Trump, gently criticized Mr. Obama for his deportation policies and generally reminded Democrats why they were so intrigued about her candidacy in the first place.
Yet just as Senator Elizabeth Warren did in the first Democratic debate on Wednesday, Ms. Harris also delighted Republicans by raising her hand to indicate her support for eliminating private healthcare in America, an issue on which she has struggled to explain her views in the past.
If Mr. Biden spent much of the debate on defense, so at times did the ascendant left wing of the Democratic Party, as a group of moderates led by Mr. Biden raised doubts — and repeatedly expressed something verging on alarm — about Democrats’ embrace of the far-left ideas pioneered by Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.If Mr. Biden spent much of the debate on defense, so at times did the ascendant left wing of the Democratic Party, as a group of moderates led by Mr. Biden raised doubts — and repeatedly expressed something verging on alarm — about Democrats’ embrace of the far-left ideas pioneered by Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
Mr. Biden rejected Mr. Sanders’s demand for a single-payer health care system and said that seeking to expand coverage more incrementally was the more pragmatic approach. Two lesser known rivals, Mr. Bennet and former Gov. John Hickenlooper of Colorado, warned more ominously that Mr. Sanders and others who espouse his ideology could damage the Democratic Party and the country’s economy. Mr. Biden rejected Mr. Sanders’s demand for a single-payer health care system and said that seeking to expand coverage more incrementally was the more pragmatic approach. Two lesser known rivals, Mr. Bennet and former Gov. John Hickenlooper of Colorado, introduced themselves to Democrats with stark warnings that Mr. Sanders and others who espouse his ideology could damage the Democratic Party and the country’s economy.
“If we don’t clearly define that we are not socialists,” Mr. Hickenlooper declared, “the Republicans are going to come at us every way they can and call us socialist.”“If we don’t clearly define that we are not socialists,” Mr. Hickenlooper declared, “the Republicans are going to come at us every way they can and call us socialist.”
And Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., raised reservations about creating new universal college tuition benefits, suggesting that could end up providing unneeded financial support to wealthy students.And Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., raised reservations about creating new universal college tuition benefits, suggesting that could end up providing unneeded financial support to wealthy students.
Yet Mr. Sanders had ample company onstage from Democrats aligned with his vision for health care and much more, including Ms. Harris of California and Ms. Gillibrand, both of whom raised their hands to endorse the replacement of private care with a “Medicare for all” system.Yet Mr. Sanders had ample company onstage from Democrats aligned with his vision for health care and much more, including Ms. Harris of California and Ms. Gillibrand, both of whom raised their hands to endorse the replacement of private care with a “Medicare for all” system.
For his part, Mr. Sanders defended his agenda with plain enthusiasm. From his first comments of the night, he said voters were demanding “real change” from their government, and suggested without naming names that opponents like Mr. Biden were offering paltry half-measures.For his part, Mr. Sanders defended his agenda with plain enthusiasm. From his first comments of the night, he said voters were demanding “real change” from their government, and suggested without naming names that opponents like Mr. Biden were offering paltry half-measures.
Americans, Mr. Sanders said, deserved a president who would “stand up and tell the insurance companies and the drug companies that their day is gone, that health care is a human right.”Americans, Mr. Sanders said, deserved a president who would “stand up and tell the insurance companies and the drug companies that their day is gone, that health care is a human right.”
And capturing the mood of ambition among liberals, Ms. Harris — a progressive running on somewhat more traditional Democratic policies than Mr. Sanders — struck a defiant note early in the debate when moderators asked whether Democrats had a responsibility to detail how they would pay for their plans.
“Where,” Ms. Harris countered, “was that question when the Republicans and Donald Trump passed a tax bill that benefits the top 1 percent and the biggest corporations in this country?”
The forum grew unruly at times as many of the candidates sought to interject comments when they were not called on to speak, creating a din that eventually prompted Ms. Harris to deploy a line she plainly had at the ready.The forum grew unruly at times as many of the candidates sought to interject comments when they were not called on to speak, creating a din that eventually prompted Ms. Harris to deploy a line she plainly had at the ready.
“America does not want to witness a food fight — they want to know how we’re going to put food on their table,” she said to applause.“America does not want to witness a food fight — they want to know how we’re going to put food on their table,” she said to applause.
To the surprise of exactly no one, President Trump sneaked a look at the Democratic debate in between meetings with world leaders in Osaka, Japan. And to the surprise of exactly no one, he professed not to be impressed.To the surprise of exactly no one, President Trump sneaked a look at the Democratic debate in between meetings with world leaders in Osaka, Japan. And to the surprise of exactly no one, he professed not to be impressed.
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Mr. Trump evidently passed a television set just before joining Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. “All Democrats just raised their hands for giving millions of illegal aliens unlimited health care,” he (or perhaps an aide) quickly typed out on his Twitter account. “How about taking care of American Citizens first!? That’s the end of that race!”Mr. Trump evidently passed a television set just before joining Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. “All Democrats just raised their hands for giving millions of illegal aliens unlimited health care,” he (or perhaps an aide) quickly typed out on his Twitter account. “How about taking care of American Citizens first!? That’s the end of that race!”
He then sat with Ms. Merkel and went ahead with the same criticism of Democrats as reporters were invited in the room. “They didn’t discuss what they would do for American citizens,” he said. “That’s not a good thing.”
For Mr. Biden, who leads the field in national and early-state polling, the first debate was as much about reassuring his party’s voters that he is up to the task of serving as commander in chief as it was about firing off a pithy one-liner or demonstrating fluency on any policy matter.
Mr. Biden’s aides have been irritated by the focus of their rivals and the news media on his 35-year record in the Senate, and were hoping Mr. Biden could use the forum to remind primary voters of perhaps his most powerful asset: his service as Mr. Obama’s vice president.
[The latest data and analysis to keep track of who’s leading the race to be the Democratic nominee.][The latest data and analysis to keep track of who’s leading the race to be the Democratic nominee.]
Having stumbled in some of his public remarks since entering the race in April, Mr. Biden must vindicate his supporters’ claims that he would be the safest bet to defeat Mr. Trump. What alarms some of his supporters is that his garrulousness and pride have also led him to display defensiveness and at times to strain to prove his liberal bona fides on issues they would rather not engage on, especially with lesser known candidates in the race. Having stumbled in some of his public remarks since entering the race in April, Mr. Biden was trying to vindicate his supporters’ claims that he would be the safest bet to defeat Mr. Trump. What alarms some of his supporters is that his garrulousness and pride have also led him to display defensiveness and at times caused him to strain to prove his liberal bona fides on issues they would rather not engage on.
Mr. Biden’s supporters were also worried about what might be his biggest vulnerability — his own indiscipline — rather than about any line of attack from another candidate on the stage. But attacks were possible, too. Mr. Sanders has already gone after Mr. Biden for backing a number of free-trade pacts, and some of his advisers were counseling him to do so again on Thursday. Mr. Biden’s supporters were also worried about what might be his biggest vulnerability — his own indiscipline — rather than about any line of attack from another candidate on the stage. But attacks were possible, too, and they came steadily on Thursday night.
But others took the opportunity first. Representative Eric Swalwell of California used his first chance to speak to target Mr. Biden, recalling that he had once urged Democrats to “pass the torch” to a new generation of leaders. Mr. Biden began chuckling before Mr. Swalwell finished his critique and eventually said: “I’m still holding on to that torch.” Representative Eric Swalwell of California used his first chance to speak to target Mr. Biden, recalling that he had once urged Democrats to “pass the torch” to a new generation of leaders. Mr. Biden began chuckling before Mr. Swalwell finished his critique and eventually said: “I’m still holding on to that torch.”
Two other low-profile candidates were just as pointed in their critiques of Mr. Sanders.Two other low-profile candidates were just as pointed in their critiques of Mr. Sanders.
[We tracked down the 2020 Democrats and asked them the same set of questions. Watch them answer.][We tracked down the 2020 Democrats and asked them the same set of questions. Watch them answer.]
Mr. Hickenlooper called Mr. Sanders’s “Medicare for all” proposal unrealistic. “You can’t expect to eliminate private insurance for 180 million people, many of whom don’t want to give it up,” he said.Mr. Hickenlooper called Mr. Sanders’s “Medicare for all” proposal unrealistic. “You can’t expect to eliminate private insurance for 180 million people, many of whom don’t want to give it up,” he said.
Mr. Bennet went even further in targeting Mr. Sanders, noting that he could not even get single-payer coverage passed in his own home state.Mr. Bennet went even further in targeting Mr. Sanders, noting that he could not even get single-payer coverage passed in his own home state.
“Vermont rejected Medicare for all,” Mr. Bennet said.“Vermont rejected Medicare for all,” Mr. Bennet said.
Mr. Sanders rejected the attacks, noting that the polls show him faring well in a general election and arguing that the best way to defeat Mr. Trump was to expose his populist rhetoric as hollow — by providing voters with the genuine article.Mr. Sanders rejected the attacks, noting that the polls show him faring well in a general election and arguing that the best way to defeat Mr. Trump was to expose his populist rhetoric as hollow — by providing voters with the genuine article.