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Twelve Democrats face off in largest primary debate in US history Warren under attack as Democrats spar in largest primary debate in US history
(about 3 hours later)
Twelve Democratic candidates took to the stage on Tuesday night for the largest presidential primary debate in modern US history, and the first since the launch of an impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump’s efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate leading rival Joe Biden. Elizabeth Warren came under sustained attack from her Democratic rivals during Tuesday night’s presidential debate, a reflection of the threat her ascendant candidacy poses to the crowded field of candidates competing to take on Donald Trump in the 2020 US election.
The fourth debate in the race to find a Democratic challenger to Trump in the November 2020 election saw Biden and the Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren square up for the first time since Warren surged into a virtual tie with the former vice-president in many Democratic opinion polls. Twelve Democratic candidates took to the stage in Westerville, Ohio, for the largest presidential primary debate in modern US history, and the first since the launch of an impeachment inquiry into the president’s efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate leading rival Joe Biden.
Why the battle for the suburbs is Democrats’ key to winning 2020 Trump, abortion and attacks on Warren: the Democratic debate's key takeaways
The debate opened with a round of questions about the House of Representatives’ rapidly unfolding impeachment inquiry, as the Democrats unloaded on the “criminal in the White House” and the “the most corrupt and unpatriotic president we’ve ever had”. The debate saw Biden and Warren clash in one of the most explosive moments of the debate, the first since she surged into a virtual tie with the former vice-president in many Democratic opinion polls. Yet Warren also found herself the target of barbs from other candidates, mainly from moderates, over her leftwing positions on healthcare, taxes and big tech.
Biden, who has been dragged into the impeachment maelstrom, defended his conduct as vice-president. The debate opened with a display of unity over the House of Representatives’ rapidly unfolding impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump, with the Democrats unloading on the “criminal in the White House” and “the most corrupt and unpatriotic president we have ever had”.
Biden, who has been dragged into the impeachment maelstrom by Trump’s unsubstantiated claims that he and his son were involved in wrongdoing in Ukraine, defended his conduct.
“My son did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong,” Biden said, arguing that Trump’s baseless attacks reveal Trump’s fear of running against him in a general election.“My son did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong,” Biden said, arguing that Trump’s baseless attacks reveal Trump’s fear of running against him in a general election.
“He’s going after me because he knows if I get the nomination I will beat him like a drum,” Biden said.“He’s going after me because he knows if I get the nomination I will beat him like a drum,” Biden said.
The ideological divide over healthcare flared early in the debate, as several trailing candidates rounded on Warren, the ascendent frontrunner who has embraced Bernie Sanders’ Medicare for All healthcare plan but, unlike the Vermont senator, has resisted efforts to pin her down how she will pay for the multitrillion-dollar plan. There was another rare moment of unity later on after Sanders, 78, the oldest candidate in the field, thanked his supporters and his rivals for their well wishes as he recovered from suffering a heart attack two weeks ago.
Tuesday night marked the first time Sanders, 78, the oldest candidate in the field, returned to the national stage after suffering a heart attack two weeks ago and has been recuperating at home since having stents inserted to open a blocked artery. “I’m healthy, I’m feeling great,” Sanders said before inviting the audience to attend his Bernie’s Back rally in New York this weekend, at which New York congresswoman Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez is set to give him her coveted endorsement.
But ideological divides over healthcare – and the attacks on Warren – flared early in the debate. The Massachusetts senator has embraced Sanders’ Medicare for All healthcare plan but, unlike Sanders, has resisted efforts to pin her down how she will pay for the multitrillion-dollar plan.
Sanders has acknowledged that implementing Medicare for All would require raising taxes on middle-class families. Asked explicitly whether she would raise taxes to pay for the plan, Warren again avoided the question, insisting instead that the overall cost Americans pay for healthcare would go down.Sanders has acknowledged that implementing Medicare for All would require raising taxes on middle-class families. Asked explicitly whether she would raise taxes to pay for the plan, Warren again avoided the question, insisting instead that the overall cost Americans pay for healthcare would go down.
Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who escalated his attacks on Warren’s healthcare plan ahead of the debate, seized on her pivot: “We heard it tonight: A yes or no question that did not get a yes or no answer. Your signature, senator, is to have a plan for everything, except for this.” Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, escalated his attacks on Warren’s healthcare plan ahead of the debate, seized on her pivot: “We heard it tonight: a yes or no question that did not get a yes or no answer. Your signature, senator, is to have a plan for everything, except for this.”
Warren fired back that Buttigieg’s healthcare plan – ‘Medicare for All who want it’ – was actually “Medicare for all who can afford it” and would leave millions of Americans uninsured. Warren fired back that Buttigieg’s healthcare plan – “Medicare for All who want it” – was actually “Medicare for all who can afford it” and would leave millions of Americans uninsured.
“At least Bernie is being honest here,” interjected the Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar, a moderate who has has not gained traction. “The difference between a plan and a pipe dream is something you can actually get done.”“At least Bernie is being honest here,” interjected the Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar, a moderate who has has not gained traction. “The difference between a plan and a pipe dream is something you can actually get done.”
Tonight’s battle for the Democratic presidential nomination converges on Ohio, with a dozen candidates meeting on stage at Otterbein University in Westerville, an affluent suburb north-east of the state capital, Columbus – making for a crowded debate. On Warren’s idea for a wealth tax, Texas congressman Beto O’Rourke said it can appear that Warren is “more focused on being punitive and pitting some part of the country against the other instead of lifting people up”. “I’m really shocked at the notion that anyone thinks I’m punitive,” Warren replied, and then reprised a version of the speech that helped catapult her onto the national stage when she ran for senator in 2012.“You made a fortune in America, you had a great idea, you got out there and worked for it, good for you,” she said. “But you built that fortune in America. And I guarantee you built it in part using workers all of us helped pay to educate.”
The 10 candidates who took part in last month’s third debate in Texas all qualified for Tuesday’s event, along with the Hawaii representative Tulsi Gabbard and Tom Steyer, a billionaire activist who is making his first debate appearance. Sen. Elizabeth Warren talked the most during the #DemDebate, followed by Joe Biden ⏱️ https://t.co/LoHaSt6ZKy pic.twitter.com/E1zZERWWB7
Also participating were the US senators Cory Booker and Kamala Harris, former housing secretary Julián Castro, the tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang and former Texas congressman Beto O’Rourke. After a tempered performance for much of the debate, Biden also laced into Warren after she touted as a major accomplishment the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau despite fierce resistance from Wall Street and Washington.
“I went on the floor and got you votes,” Biden, who was vice-president at the time, shouted as he jabbed his hand in Warren’s direction. “I got votes for that bill I convinced people to vote for it. Let’s get that straight.”
Warren, with a steely expression, replied: “I am deeply grateful to President Obama who fought so hard to make sure that agency was passed into law.”
The audience gasped and Biden chuckled, as if to acknowledge the slight. “You did a hell of a job in your job,” he said.
The New Jersey senator Cory Booker warned that the Democrats risked playing into Trump’s hands: “Tearing each other down because we have different plans is unacceptable. I have seen this script before.”
The three-hour spectacle also touched on Trump’s widely-condemned policy in Syria, as well as a range of other Democratic priorities, including guns, reproductive rights and the supreme court. But there were no questions from the CNN/New York Times moderators about key issues such as the climate crisis, LGBTQ rights, immigration or voter suppression.
Tuesday night’s battle for the Democratic presidential nomination converged on Ohio, with a dozen candidates on stage – the largest ever number to debate on the same stage – at Otterbein University in Westerville, an affluent suburb north-east of the state capital, Columbus.
Trump won Ohio by 8.5 percentage points in 2016, the widest margin of any “swing” state. The margin of victory in traditional battleground states is typically much closer, as it was in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, the three midwestern states that delivered Trump the White House.Trump won Ohio by 8.5 percentage points in 2016, the widest margin of any “swing” state. The margin of victory in traditional battleground states is typically much closer, as it was in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, the three midwestern states that delivered Trump the White House.
The packed stage and tangle of competing story lines created a contentious atmosphere, and the Democratic-led congressional impeachment inquiry was a frequent theme. The 10 candidates who took part in last month’s third debate in Texas all qualified for Tuesday’s event, along with the Hawaii representative Tulsi Gabbard and Tom Steyer, a billionaire activist who was making his first debate appearance.
The impeachment inquiry focuses on Trump’s efforts to pressure Ukraine to investigate his unsubstantiated allegation that Biden improperly tried to aid his son Hunter’s business interests in Ukraine. Trump has repeatedly tried to turn the focus on Biden with vociferous attacks on his integrity. There is no evidence that Biden or his son were involved in illegal activity. Also participating were the US senators Kamala Harris, former housing secretary Julián Castro, and tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
Hunter Biden broke his silence on Tuesday in his first interview since the formal impeachment inquiry into Trump was announced in late September. In the ABC interview, which aired hours before the debate, he admitted to “poor judgment” in taking a paid position in a Ukrainian gas company – but denied doing anything wrong.
Tonight's Democratic debate in Ohio: five things to expect
Meanwhile, Biden has seen his once solid lead in opinion polls in the Democratic race diminished by Warren, a leader of the party’s progressive movement, who has steadily risen over the past two months.
Sanders will be seeking to assuage concerns about his health and convince audiences that he is mentally and physically fit to be president, one of the most demanding jobs in the world.
His health problems highlighted his age and that of the other top White House contenders – Biden is 76 and Warren is 70, while Trump is 73 – in a race featuring a debate about a generational change in leadership.
Younger Democratic candidates, including Buttigieg, 37, and Yang, 44, have argued it is time for new leadership in a Democratic party driven by the diverse grassroots energy of younger activists.Younger Democratic candidates, including Buttigieg, 37, and Yang, 44, have argued it is time for new leadership in a Democratic party driven by the diverse grassroots energy of younger activists.
Buttigieg, who has struggled to break into the top tier of Democratic candidates nationally, began running a new digital ad on Tuesday in Iowa contrasting his healthcare plan with that of more progressive rivals. Sanders’ health problems highlighted his age and that of the other top White House contenders – Biden is 76 and Warren is 70, while Trump is 73 – in a race featuring a debate about a generational change in leadership.
Addressing the question of age, Warren vowed to “outwork and out-organize and outlast” Trump or “whoever the Republicans get stuck with” as a candidate for the November 2020 election. Biden said he is running in part because of his long record and experience. With age comes wisdom, he said.
The Democratic National Committee again will increase the fundraising and polling criteria to qualify for next month’s debate in Georgia. So far, only eight of the 12 candidates participating in Ohio would qualify, according to a CNN analysis. Nineteen contenders remain in the Democratic race overall.The Democratic National Committee again will increase the fundraising and polling criteria to qualify for next month’s debate in Georgia. So far, only eight of the 12 candidates participating in Ohio would qualify, according to a CNN analysis. Nineteen contenders remain in the Democratic race overall.
Reuters contributed to this report
DemocratsDemocrats
US elections 2020US elections 2020
US politicsUS politics
Joe BidenJoe Biden
Elizabeth WarrenElizabeth Warren
Bernie SandersBernie Sanders
Beto O'RourkeBeto O'Rourke
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