Thus do the sheep fight among themselves as the wolves circle them. Where are our sheepdogs, to kill the predators before the flock is eaten?
Honestly? It's hard to believe democrats would elect an inexperienced mayor with all of 6 months military service as president of the United States.
Did they learn nothing from Obama's tenure? He too was thoughtful and intelligent. And he literally had a SCOTUS nomination removed from under his nose. He was totally inept when it came to dealing with Congress.
Why democrats would elect another rookie is hard to understand. Do they want their lunch money taken again?
9
Buttigieg lacks the experience necessary to be President. Full stop. Our obsession with the cult of celebrity has gotten the better of some folks.
Further, while I think he is a very valuable asset to the Democratic party going forward, given the negative, divisive energy pervading the far right - and remembering the relentless, racist vitriol churning away beneath the surface for a decade about President Obama - it is wholly unrealistic to believe that this country will elect a gay President.
Pick up a rubber band, pull it far to the right. Now...pull it far to the left.
What happens? The tension increases dramatically.
Eventually, the rubber band will break. This is where we are as a country.
Time to get real, man-up, and make the wise choice. As adults, sometimes we must do what serves best..even if it's not what we want.
2
If Pete Buttigieg had been even half as condescending and disparaging of his female colleagues on the stage as Amy Klobuchar was to him -- "cool newcomer" "watch cartoons" (a complete fabrication of what he said) "we have a newcomer in the White House now and look where that got us"--
this comment section would by now be filled with cries of "sexism" (and rightly so). But she gets a pass for mocking a gay man -- the first ever gay presidential candidate, an unknown name, who has built a formidable campaign in just one year.
Amy Klobuchar is all about Amy Klobuchar.
Thank you Pete Buttigieg for being dignified and focused throughout the debate and not rising to the cheap, demeaning words of your colleague.
8
Democrats would rather lose then agree to vote for a billionaire with a SOLID record that supports their policies. Time to huddle up team and look at Bloomberg and how effective he’s been on JOBS & CLIMATE. Keep pushing with your purity tests and get ready for 4 more years, you will have earned it.
4
If these Democrat contenders for POTUS don't get their act together and stop sniping at each other they will hand the election over to traitor trump on a silver platter. Make that a gold platter.
Talk about what you will do if elected president and don't criticize the other contenders for their opinions and ideas.
2
Help us Mike Bloomberg! You're the Democrats only hope in winning the Presidential election.
1
@sharon5101 yep, it's come to this for a Democrat, turned Republican, turned Independent, turned Democrat to bail this country out.
3
Dang! As a Democrat, I’m worried there’s still so many candidates who won’t give up the ghost and stay in the campaign. When the Dems bicker with each other, Trump just smugly watches and thinks the election is his for the taking. We don’t even know if we can have an honest election without interference from outside (or inside) the government. We must defeat Trump so we don’t have a repeat of the past few years where our country is so divided. We watch him in embarrassment and shame every time he opens his mouth to lie. Vote him out!
5
CitizenTM,
It’s Klobuchar or you lose to Trump.
She is the only one who can possibly beat Trump.
Black, proud, history of being a Democrat for 55 years and definitely will not vote for any of the other Democratic candidates.
1
I will never comprehend why young Democratic voters are attracted to a grouchy, intemperate, humorless, not a Democrat, almost 80 year old curmudgeon. By the way, Sanders has accomplished nothing of substance in his over 30 years as either a representative or senator. His only marketable skill is bombast, and don't we already have more than enough of that with Trump.
4
My hands-on favorite in the Democratic race is Bernie Sanders, but after Iowa I had begun to think that if Bernie faltered, Pete Buttigiegg might work out for me, but now that I've read in Common Dreams about his trip to Israel and his admiration for all he encountered there, I realized I could never support such a man. In his remarks about his trip, he does not even mention the terrible violence of Israel against the Palestinians. End of Buttigiegg for me. He has no understanding, it seems, of global affairs.
4
Bernie is a proponent of Democratic Socialism.
A lot of folks don't seem to differentiate between Democratic Socialism and Communism. They are not at all the same thing.
The Scandinavian countries practice Democratic Socialism. They are thriving capitalist states, but they also have socialized medicine, free education, free elder care/child care, etc.
Yes, the citizens of those countries pay higher taxes than in the U.S., but those people consistently rank, year in and year out, as the happiest people on the globe.
What's not to like?
9
Buttigieg lacks the experience necessary to be President. Full stop.
While I think he is a very valuable asset to the Democratic party going forward, given the negative, divisive energy pervading the far right - and remembering the relentless, racist vitriol churning away beneath the surface for a decade about President Obama - it is wholly unrealistic to believe that this country will elect a gay President at this time.
Pick up a rubber band, pull it far to the right. Now...pull it far to the left. What happens? The tension increases dramatically.
Eventually, the rubber band will break. This is where we are as a country.
Our obsession with the cult of celebrity has gotten the better of some folks. When it comes to electing the President - the leader of the free world - nothing can replace maturity, wisdom, and experience.
Time to get real, man-up, and make the wise choice. As adults, sometimes we must do what serves best...even if it's not what we want.
4
It is hard to believe The NY Times is writing about the same debate I saw last night. The one I watched had powerful full-throated denunciations of Trump and the candidates largely presented a united front, occasionally even showing kindness to each other. But poor Joe-whether it’s aging or suffering, he’s not the man he used to be. I’m sorry he joined the race, and I’ll bet he is too. I do love the thought, though, that Trump got himself impeached over a candidate whose never going to win anyway, though Trump is sure to take the credit. But any of these candidates, any of them, including Joe and the absent Bloomberg, are infinitely superior to Trump. We must support the eventual nominee, whoever she is, as though our lives depend on it. They do, and our country does.
7
Didn't watch closely, but Sanders seems to me to be the most impassioned talking about real issues as opposed to pandering for votes by talking about his deprived childhood. Will be surprised if he doesn't win New Hampshire. Biden will likely win the southern primaries. Still don't understand why Buttigieg or Klobuchar are in the race, to say nothing of the billionaire businessmen.
6
Sanders will probably win in New Hampshire. He took it in 2016 by a large margin. But that was against Clinton and according to exit polls, honesty and believable were the the deciding issues. Some of that glow may have worn of when he endorsed Clinton who he said was not qualified to be president. New comers are playing up the same socialistic views this time but updated versions. Biden only got one seemingly positive response. He told everyone to stand up an applaud
Vindman. He is someone who testified about what someone told him, nothing he had actually witnessed. He was sent to the War College, not an outpost in the arctic circle. Other than that, Biden offered nothing worth changing anyone's vote. The question is not who won this debate, but is even one of them the one who can beat Trump. Not so far.
3
I thought this was the best debate yet and that was due, in part, to moderators asking good questions and following up and allowing the candidates to fully respond. I thought all the candidates got their points across and would be happy with any of them as President. There were some tough moments for candidates such as the gun issue for Sanders, which I think he handled honestly and I respect that. I was less impressed and I must say disappointed with Buttigieg’s response to the question from the moderator with regards to criminal justice policies in South Bend relative to minorities. It appears he tried to lie about his record and was called on it by the moderator. I find this a serious misstep on the part of the candidate, one the Times has chosen not to report, though it was well-covered by commentators after the debate who also thought it was a problem and spoke to his lack of experience which could prove consequential in a head to head with our current President. Klobuchar, who still seems a little nervous on stage, gave a strong closing argument for her candidacy. Biden and Warren didn’t do anything consequential in either direction but were solid. I was impressed with both Yang and Steyer and their grasp on the issues and appreciate the different perspective they bring with neither being a career politician. Corporate media keeps saying the Democratic Party doesn’t have a strong candidate but I think the party has at least five of them.
2
We need all candidates to lead and to stress their own strengths, not attack each other. The fewer sound bites we give the GOP during debates, the better off we will be after the nomination.
2
I watched the first half of the debate. Sanders looked tired and hunched over contrasted to Biden who stood tall and straight. His "socialist" policies are too extreme and Trump will hammer that point home.
But there is an elephant in this room that no one wants to touch.
It is, is America ready to have gay president?
One night on Colbert's show, they had a clip of someone talking to an Iowa voter who was supporting Buttigieg. When the interviewer told her he way gay, she looked shocked and said if she had known that she would never have voted for him.
Trump will use this mercilessly. And I think there are a lot of people in our country who are still quietly uncomfortable with gay people. We need someone who can beat Trump, and it isn't Buttigieg. However he has an appealing persona and is young. He should run for public office. Maybe in a few more election cycles he will be seasoned, and the electorate more accepting of gays.
For the first time, I thought Steyer could be a good possibility. He really stood out. But his reparations for slavery is not a winning argument.
Biden was Biden. He sometimes has trouble due to his stuttering, but next to Trump he sounds smart and when necessary can come on strong.
There must be some sexism in voting and polling. Otherwise we would be talking more about Warren and Klobuchar. I think both are more qualified than any of the me.
5
Early in the campaign, I predicted the ticket would ultimately feature at least one of Klobuchar, Buttigieg and Booker. I still think that's true, with Klobuchar probably at the top ("President Klobuchar" sounds pretty good to me). Don't count Sen. Booker out as a draft for VP. Also, if Pete Buttigieg isn't the eventual nominee, he should have a significant place in the administration where he can season a little more; he's on the right track, but I'm coming to believe he hasn't "made it to the station" yet. But he will.
A few other comments: I would rate Tom Steyer's performance better than the pros did, and hope he finds a cabinet position. As much as I like and respect VP Biden, I think it's time to give him his Lifetime Achievement award and ask him to throw his wholehearted support behind the eventual nominee; we'll see how SC goes. (I still believe that had he run in 2016, we would have been saying "President Biden" for the last three years; sadly, I think "his last train has left the station." And while Andrew Yang appears to be a likable guy, it's time for him to give his support to someone who has can win and exit gracefully until tapped for something like Secretary of Education, perhaps. Finally, shouldn't Mike Bloomberg, the 800-pound elephant in the room (animal reference chosen consciously) be on the next debate stage?
All that said, I'll vote for any Democrat over the dangerous bully occupying the White House. But I'd rather it be the best one.
5
A vigorous debate is one of the strengths of a democracy.
3
Couldn't agree more with Yang.
Donald Trump is not the cause of all of our problems. How will these candidates address the concerns of average Americans.
It's disheartening to hear how dishonest Democrats are when it comes to the ACA. It absolutely costs more than it delivers. Why should the party of progress, make progress and then come to a dead stop?
5
An unconscious, I believe, bias against Bernie showed itself in this article which didn't reflect the most important part of Sanders' explanation of long ago gun control votes. It quoted him saying he represented a "rural state", not a sufficient explanation in the circumstances, but omitted his statement that those votes were a "mistake".
Biden gets credit, when he remembers, to say his vote in favor of the Iraq war was a "mistake". So should Sanders. A President who can't admit mistakes is vastly more dangerous than an honest guy, as we have seen with Trump. Recall that JFK saved his Presidency after the Bay of Pigs by taking the blame. He didn't try to shift it by ascribing the disaster to "systemic" flaws at the CIA and Joint Chiefs.
6
Perhaps someone who talks like a hometown-mayor is precisely what we need in the White House who understands the American people, and they understand him! It also may help in communicating with the leaders of the rest of the world.
1
I am surprised that Senator Sanders has not been touting his own record as a mayor of Burlington, Vermont.
1
Interesting to me how Buttigieg flaunts his religion.
Credible media has noted, on occasion, that Bernie prays (alone) on a regular basis.
I guess Sanders is more interested in living his beliefs than advertising them.
4
And the winner, once again: Mike Bloomberg.
6
I'll vote for the person who I think can change our nation's current direction and that includes a "cool newcomer" or a billionaire running as an outsider.
8
Already tried that in 2016.
'Nuff said
2
I’d like to strongly encourage ALL the candidates to do something really essential: lead by example.
The last thing we need (or want) these days is the angry dialog. Be positive role models.
12
Amy Klobuchar once again impressed me. I like Bernie, I’ve donated to Elizabeth and I find Pete compelling, but I’m seeing Amy more and more as Presidential and someone who can bring us all together and easily put Trump in his place, should he agree to debate, which I don’t expect him to do. Unless it’s a Republican audience with Mitch McConnell, Sean Hannity and Lindsey Graham tossing red meat to him.
22
The debate was an unrealistic one. The entry of Mike Bloomberg is still to be factored in. He has spent more on advertisements than any of the candidates on the debate stage in NH have spent individually on their respective campaigns so far. What is going to be the impact of the Bloomberg candidacy going forward after NH?
Was the big applause that Romney, former governor of a blue state Massachusetts received at the democratic debate was an invitation for him the newest savior of the party to join the Democratic party and run for president? Andrew Yang is the only candidate who is acting like an adult in the room and telling his fellow contenders not to make their campaigns anti-Trump centric. He seems to be the only one trying to focus on issues. Too bad the Democratic presidential contenders including Mike Bloomberg are mainly running to defeat Trump rather than doing something better for the country and its homeless and poor people. Hello wanna be presidents, Trump is not running to defeat anyone of you. He is in a different league by running to keep American great again. Agree with him or not but that is just what may get him reelected.
3
@Girish Kotwal It will be interesting and I expect disappointing when Mr.Bloomberg appears onstage with other candidates. Advertising allows you to share your message, debates require you to defend your message.
1
Can this be the NYT? Where is the obligatory swipe at Sanders?
Actually, thank you for an objective analysis of the debate.
Sanders handled the "question" about Hillary's continued bitterness and intrusion in this election well. He did not answer in kind but focused on the future. Biden was at his sweetest when he gave Bernie a hug and Amy came to his side. That was the display of unity that was important. It was unscripted, spontaneous and a sharp contrast to what we witnessed from the GOP in their 2016 debates. These candidates need to stand out from each other, but they retain their kindness and empathy for one another.
23
One of the best moments; Sanders did not take the bait and Biden and Amy showed magnanimity by supporting him
3
My response to Amy and her question about having a newcomer and where did that get us, well he ran against a woman with lots of political experience, and where did that get us? Go Pete!
5
Ms. Warren seemed to borrow most talking points from Sanders and others. Rarely, if at all, does she seem to have an original thought.
8
She is at her best on controlling the corporation. If Warren would stop all the PC nonsense, she could win with economic populism.
I do want to say to the readers of the Times that you’re the main reason I’m subscribing to this paper. Your comments remind me that there are still good, thoughtful people in america. It’s so utterly sad to me that your system of electing the president (electoral college) so often forces the candidate of the minority into the sensible majority.
What might our world look like if the person who won the popular vote in the last 20 years had actually won? Would america have invaded Iraq and killed tens of thousands of innocent people? Would we have seen children in cages at the US border?
26
@Jim Anderson, correct on all counts. Thank you!
3
Would a Bernie nomination turn out a few hundred thousand more voters in Florida and the Midwest who just want to see Phish play the inauguration?
5
Billionaires and millionaires harping about income inequality, LOL.
11
@M
And oddly enough, or maybe not that odd really, Mr. Sanders had dropped "millionaire" from his rant (now that he is one), and focuses on billionaires who make maximum limit contributions to Mr. Buttigieg's campaign. I used to be in Mr. Sander's corner in 2016, but this time around he just seems like an opportunist.
2
Watched part of the debate. Honestly, I think the debates are worthless - primarily an opportunity for the Press to analyze the horse race.
As far as Klobuchar - her aggression turns me off, and her story of her grandfather and father has nothing to do with her qualifications for President. I have some dang good stories of my grandparents too - doesn't mean I should run for President.
I'm still voting for Buttigieg in the Idaho primary, but voting for anybody Blue in the general election.
16
@Pat Boice
"I'm still voting for Buttigieg in the Idaho primary, but voting for anybody Blue in the general election."
My version of your comment, Pat Boice: Whomever I wind up voting for in the Oregon Democratic primary (I'm still undecided), I'll still be voting BLUE come November.
2
Commenters here "know" Bernie's socialism will destroy him if he's the Democratic candidate - but he outpolled Trump in 2016 and he's outpolling Trump head to head again in 2020, even when he's labeled Socialist. This poll was in a VOX article today:
The poll: Calling Sanders a socialist doesn’t change much
Data for Progress (a Progressive Think Tank) used the Lucid survey sampling platform to test 3 different versions of a Sanders/Trump polling matchup. The survey was from January 9 to January 19 of 2020 and ran these 3 polls:
No information: “If the 2020 U.S. Presidential election was held today, who would you vote for if the candidates were Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump?”{Sanders 47%, Trump 41%)
Partisan cues: “If the 2020 U.S. Presidential election was held today, who would you vote for if the candidates were Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican Donald Trump?”
(Sanders 45% Trump 43%)
Socialists and billionaires: “If the 2020 U.S. Presidential election was held today, who would you vote for if the candidates were Democrat Bernie Sanders, who wants to tax the billionaire class to help the working class and Republican Donald Trump, who says Sanders is a socialist who supports a government takeover of healthcare and open borders?”
(Sanders 47% Trump 42%)
I seems Voters in Presidential Elections and DNC debates aren't freaked out about Socialism like Establishment Democrats from the time of McCarthy anti Communism. Sanders is a stronger candidate than they think.
27
@Saint999 I'm not freaked out by socialism, but he problem is that the election is again likely to be decided by handful of states which may be freaked out.
2
@Saint999
Interesting info, Saint999. Seems to me one reason Bernie runs under the Dems' tent is precisely to create a buffer between his Socialist politics and the public's perception of him as Socialist.
Do you think these poll numbers would break out the same way if Sanders ran as a third party candidate where his DSA credentials would be front and center?
2
For those of you who think Mayor Pete is The Guy, I challenge you to read between the lines. Firstly, Pete's (and Amy's... and Joe's) attacks on M4A are literally insurance company talking points; I submit the crazy proposal that this might have something to do with them being corporate owned, just like the Repubs. But even more disturbing, if you actually explore Pete's past, not only has he literally never done anything for his poor or minority constituents, he's never indicated that their concerns have ever crossed his mind. He's a sweet-talking, billionaire-owned, consultant (with his talents he could have done ANYTHING; he CHOSE to work for a company that helps dictators commit genocide) who can speak many languages, the latest of which is the language of the Left. I won't even get into the Democrats' overlap with the Republican love of imperialist foreign policy.
Would Pete be better than Trump? Sure -- the bar ain't set high. Maybe our party (if you're a fellow Dem) should have higher standards. Pete is an empty amoral fraud, and most of the other "moderates" (in America, being to the left of genghis khan makes you a moderate) aren't much better. Don't get me started on Biden's exceptionally bad record on everything.
Is it a surprise the corporate media love Pete? I think not. He won't change anything.
24
It’s clear after this debate Bloomberg is the best choice. He’s effective, strong on jobs, climate, and liberal policies. More then any other in that stage. Bernie is nice but can’t get anything passed.
Ps Warren can spare us all the hypocrisy on wealth(I’m not). She’s worth 12 million and lives in a 3million dollar home but pleads how she can relate. Yea right.
7
@J I think you forget FDR and the new Deal. He was ' born with a silver spoon' and surely you don't think Bloomberg who is trying to buy the election is not immensely wealthy. So Warren can also be wealthy and relate to those less fortunate. She certainly didn't start out that way.
2
@J, I am not a rich Democrat, but luckily (and with hard work) I'm a comfortable one. What is the party's problem with wealthy Democrats, especially those (like myself, frankly) who are putting our money where our principles are? I'll never be a Republican, but you money-bashers are making it hard to remain a Democrat.
1
@J
Yup. Black voters in South Carolina and working class white people in swing states are going to be so energized by a billionaire who ran a totalitarian police regime.
Bernie is objectively the only one who has a prayer of neutralizing Trump's faux populism (with real populism), and we are the broadest and most diverse coalition, despite the media's intellectually dishonest "bernie bro" smears. Plus, Bernie has the added advantage of actually proposing anything remotely meaningful in the fight against the extreme wealth and corruption of the plutocracy.
As far as legislative jam is concerned, you should know by now that the Repubs will pursue a scorched earth policy regardless; after all, this is the party that in pursuit of short-term service to the master class is trying to bring about the end of organized human society within this century via climate disaster.
However, he can use the bully pulpit and his army of workers to take the fight to them; and he can and should push executive power to the limits. That's the game the other side plays; he might as well use those tactics to accomplish reforms that will be difficult for Repubs to take away without uprisings.
This is Our Revolution.
Let the smug liberal retorts commence.
"The debate came at a moment of tumult and anxiety for Democrats, whose leadoff contest in Iowa on Monday turned into a fiasco of technical breakdowns, stalled and fumbled vote-counting and accusations of electoral illegitimacy from multiple presidential campaigns.”
and later i saw a head referring to a shaken democratic campaign “hurtling” toward new hampshire.
this is nonsense. the only tumult and anxiety has been in the press, which is once again assuming its role as catspaw for the president. there was certainly a fiasco of technical breakdowns, but the count was not seriously challenged, and who cares if the results are a few days late. only the press, which had promoted the caucus as the most exciting event since the constitutional convention itself, and was left with egg on its face when it flopped.
i suppose you could say that candidates who had jetted to new hampshire were “hurtling” through the air, but the issues that concerned them were not really any different considering the three-day delay in iowa vote reporting, and friday’s debate went off smoothly.
the press has become emotionally overwrought, and its oohing and aahing over the iowa vote was unforgivable. i wish that the times , which ought to set an example, would calm down and do some simple reporting on the issues, without describing them as though they were part of a baseball game.
13
@cliff barney, I'll pile on and add that some of the Times' younger reporters seem rather shallow in their coverage. I hate to feel this way, and the NYT is still in the top 5 of the best there is, but I'm feeling a bit unsure lately. I'd also suggest, sir, that you please try to use the caps key occasionally - it would make your post much easier to read.
1
The gloves are off and the claws have come out. They will destroy each other.
1
@Brewster’s Millions But, they WILL support whomever wins the nomination.
1
I love Mayor Pete (and he has my vote) but he is anything but “cool”.
4
"Sanders and...Buttigieg...appeared in the best position among the top candidates to win New Hampshire and perhaps take command of the race."
With his persistently extremely low support from youth and minority communities, hard to see Buttigieg "taking command of the race" after NH.
Sanders, on other hand, was recently polled as within 5% of Biden now in South Carolina - down from B's previous 30 percent lead...which another big loss could impact more.
Biden support may be shifting to Buttigieg now, as Biden's right liberal campaign falters - but hard to see it working for Buttigieg in a lot of states beyond NH.
7
As a resident of New York I am tired of the rolling grenade in the White House and our problems in every category. I vote for Como because he has done a lot for Buffalo.
Where there is a breakdown of the government is Republicans who are too scared to do the right things because of a loud mouth narcissistic bully.
He does not respect the truth or the press. When I am criticized that’s life not an opportunity to demean people with different opinions.
I am involved with government, the IC DoD and foreign governments and their IC’s
I am more connected globally and more qualified than any other candidate especially the tyrant.
It is time to return to a democracy and I will run for president on the Democratic ticket with everyone’s support
1
Challenging Mayor Pete over contributions from all parties highlights a a failure of the democrats, inclusivity.... to a certain level. All women are invited but, ooh, you are against abortion, well, er, perhaps you need to look elsewhere. You’d like to donate, yes, thanks, sign here. Wait, you are a billionaire or even a proper millionaire? Sorry, perhaps you should park your moolah somewhere else.
Dems need to get off their high horse and take the cash, truly welcome all people and live with the success that can come. Absolutism is the other side’s hallmark, Democrats don’t need to fall into that trap. Encompassing policies that broaden rights that accept all voices should be the hallmark. Take the millions or more. Let the PACs get set up. Win for a change. Its okay.
7
Moderators (and media) manufacturing fights between candidates do a great disservice to the country.
22
@Jim Anderson
This is now the SECOND of your comments, succinct and straightforward, with which I agree...Thanks again for "taking the words right out of my mouth." LOL.
1
The candidates and the media have hit a new low with this debate. Though they nominally discussed topics, the questions seemed to be all about trying to highlight candidates small differences on the issues or why each one could win. It would be nice to see journalists encourage the candidates to explain in more interesting detail their ideas for the country. It would also be nice if the candidates listened to each other. Do we really need to keep hearing about experience, geography, political leaning, race gotcha questions, gender, etc.? We've heard it all before.
19
Lol...Please disregard first posting.
Spaced on Liz, and forgot that Mike wasn't even on stage.
Lol...no wonder Tom won the oligarch contest.
Mea culpa.
Don't play Debate drinking games. Lol....
4
They are all cut from the same cloth as Trump. Not a single one is there to serve anyone or anything more than their own hunger for prominence and power, and to live off the spoils of power granted them by taxpayer sweat and toil and lobbyists graft.
They are all running on the exact same fuel as Trump: EGO and an unquenchable lust for POWER. It's all grand theatre and demagoguery. Not a one truly gives a good nothing about the working man and woman, the hungry child, the crumbling infrastructure, the collapse of public education, the theft of the Social Security and Medicare.
They all make me sick. This is why over 45% of eligible voters simply won't and don't vote. Because they know every word out of these candidates mouths, have no more validity and honesty than our present petty tyrant's, just prettier window dressing.
Their tongues are equally forked and their every word a calculus to winning, the only game in Washington, and America at large. Win at any cost.
These egomaniacs all want to wear the same kingly or queenly crowns and to parade their ephemeral glory as they board Air Force One, or prepare their inaugural balls.
4
@Augustus Caesar I respectfully disagree. Bernie has proven his bona fides over the past half century, and I believe Amy's closing statement was sincere and heartfelt. Elizabeth worked hard to create to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Of course it takes an outsized ego to run for President. But people with unusually strong self-confidence and physical energy levels *can* do good for the rest of us mortals. Anyone one of the candidates on last night's stage would be better for us than the dangerous, vindictive con-man and his court of simpering toadies now in the White House.
Vote! If we don't then we deserve what we get.
24
@Augustus Caesar a very negative, anti-democracy post. Don't vote for anyone cuz they are all bad?! I promise to not vote for emperor but President of the United States is at stake.
3
The moderators have no guts. Didn’t ask hard questions
6
@Nycdweller - it was ABC, the Disney network. Just what I expected from them.
2
As it’s been said in many places here I certainly hope when it matters we all come together to support the nominee. If I’m honest, Bernie is too liberal for me, but the system of checks and balances will moderate him. Further, I will vote for him without hesitation if he is the nominee. In the meantime, I prefer Amy, Bloomberg, P, and maybe Warren. The road is ahead is still long...let’s not fall victim to the paradigm shift that trump and his gop cohorts have set in motion. The pendulum must be stopped.
16
@Kevin Amy was far and away the best candidate on the stage last night.
5
@John
I couldn't disagree more. Amy Klobuchar is all about Amy Klobuchar. In that respect, she is much like Mr. Trump.
1
It's always funny to watch the debates, read the commentary during and after, and then read the stories that call out the winners and losers of the debates. If you wait a few weeks or months and look back at the accuracy of all that punditry, it will have a pretty poor track record.
Look at what people always say about Amy Klobuchar. She wins all these debates, supposedly, but her campaign never takes off. And it won't this time either.
If I were in charge of the primary process, I'd get rid of the debates. They make a big deal out of nothing much. The candidates just give sound bites and pick paragraphs out of their stump speeches. A good debate performance says nothing about how good a candidate is, nor a bad one how bad.
13
I don't understand why pundits continue to refer to the two wings of the Democratic Party as the "left" and the "center." Wouldn't the real "center" be somewhere between those two positions? Why can't the media be accurate, and describe the Wall Street and corporate funded and beholden representatives in the party, those who have waged undeclared wars, have supported the surveillance state, and shipped jobs overseas as the "right wing." This labeling is a ruse.
6
Trying to make the results of these debates is a false "horse race" perspective that only intensifies the "divide" in the Democratic Party. The apparent camaraderie shown among the candidates last night was heartening.
What the media seems to ignore is that regardless of whom the party ultimately nominates, multiple interviews with both moderate and liberal voters in general reveal that they will vote for the Democrat. It's clear that beating Trump is the overarching motivating factor in the election.
On that basis, it was significant that all of the candidates addressed the importance of turnout in November. Overcoming voter suppression in red states is a critical factor in that effort.
While many of us may have a favorite candidate or two at this moment, defeating the GOP in the White House and in the Senate by any means possible is the most important factor in voting this year. The Democrats can and will unify around this by election time in order to do so.
Four more years of Trump and McConnell will undoubtedly turn our democratic republic into an authoritarian regime, and destroy the principles and institutions on which our nation was founded. We cannot and must not allow that to occur. Register and vote Blue on Nov. 3rd!
12
This was Klobuchar's best debate so far, but that's really not saying much. She continues to claim that she's the best to be able to gain cooperation from Republicans, but that's easy to say and harder to do. Sure, on pieces of legislation, maybe she can get some to cross the aisle, but if she were President and trying to get an entire agenda enacted, that's a whole 'nother ball game.
But just what is her agenda? "More of the same" would be the title of her White Paper I imagine. And that's not what most Americans want. She's quick to knock MFA, saying we can't afford it - like every other "moderate" claims - but fails to explain how her plan would work, or how much it would cost. And of course the media doesn't press her or any of the "moderates" to explain their plans or their costs. It's like "Well if we just keep doing what we've been doing things will be great!". But that's the thinking that got us Trump.
Buttigieg is guilty of the same charge. He sounds really good, but doesn't really explain how he's going to enact this "moderate" agenda, nor how much it will cost. And then of course there's the matter of his poor record on racial issues. He and Amy are now the Establishment's "Great White Hopes", and the MSM will do their best to carry them, but the voters won't be fooled.
Sanders continues to prove that he's the most legitimate candidate, unwavering in putting forth his FDR-rooted agenda without apology. It's time the MSM started giving him fair coverage.
8
The biggest beneficiary from last nights debate was President Trump. If Biden doesn’t emerge as the favorite, the Democrats will lose the election in Nov. Mayor Pete’s a joke, Bernie is being cast as a Socialist, and Warren can’t seem to find any momentum. These debates are weakening the candidates’ credibility among those moderate voters who could swing Democratic. Bloomberg’s lucky he hasn’t had to go through those painful events!
4
No, I don’t like the resulting unfettered outcome of Citizens United but I’m getting so tired of anyone thinking that five dollar donations are going to wrest the White House and Senate away from Trump and the Republicans. Unlimited campaign funding is a fact of life until it isn’t and it will take every dollar to win in November. Democrats must counter Republican spending. Five dollar donations, while admirable, won’t get it done.
Never take a knife to a gunfight!
.
3
@@russangle - "Never take a knife to a gunfight." True, but the way this ridiculous system is set up, if I'm donating, say, $100 to a candidate, it's better for them as twenty $5 donations than one of $100. As I said, ridiculous, but true.
I don’t care if Sanders can best Trump. Our country will be in just as a precarious place with Sanders as with Trump; just from the other side. He’s ideas are preposterous and would kill American innovation and drive. People are rightful to be afraid of hopelessly naive ideologues. Socialism only works on paper and not in the real world because it ignores human nature and the fact that you can’t plan everything top down.
4
@Stefan Don't forget, we're electing a President, not a King. If Bernie is elected, congress will force him to tone down. If Biden is elected congress will push him to "evolve" into a more progressive stance. So, don't worry, be happy. And Vote Blue, no matter who.
5
@Rita Prangle Right on! Because we now have an out of control egomaniac for president, people forget that the president is not a dictator. he can only push his views through Congress when he owns them.
1
@Stefan
Wal-Mart is doing a pretty good job of planning everything “top down”. So also is China. But that is not Socialism, do we want a dictatorship? What dictators are not good at are innovation and human rights, and anticipation of the needs of the future. What makes a society worth saving? What are the values that enhance quality of life? How do we move toward the common good? Isn’t the common good the principle upon which the US Constitution is based?
You can plan everything top down and people will fall in line, but that is NOT Socialism, but that seems to be where we have gotten to with the current administration. Socialism, equality and the common good may indeed align more accurately with the dreams of our founders. The capitalistic dictatorial system we have now fails. This is not a defense of Bernie Sanders. A socialist dictator is as bad as a capitalist one.
1
Mayor Pete is the only candidate who truly inspires me with his high intelligence, pragmatic, and youthful energy. He has my vote. The rest are too old, tied up in Washington and out of touch with ordinary Americans.
Mayor Pete won rural counties and suburbs where dems need to do well to beat Trump. Bernie or bust only won in big city college towns which are democrat strongholds. Amy has no charisma, sick of listening how we should vote for her because she is a woman moderate from a midwest state.
7
Many of us in Minnesota would prefer that Senator Klobuchar restrict her debating skills to the Senate Floor. The less then full time Senator was absent from 39.1% of floor votes since January 2019.
7
@Reggie she has been a great Senator and is admirably a centrist. Not a bad thing if she wants to pull the center to the left.
Klobuchar is the only one who had the case and the data to convince that she could win - and bring the ticket with her. She's the one. This was the first time I actually heard Pete talk - I wanted to like him, but he was full of hot air and winding talk - except his comment on the weaponization of a father and son relationship, which was perfect. Otherwise, I don't see how he got where he is, on the merits, at all!
5
Klobacher's attack lines always come off as ones she's prepared in advance. They went after Buttigieg way more than Sanders, which only shows how seriously they take his candidacy. I'm 67, and I'd love to see the Democrats finally run someone who isn't eligible for an AARP card.
6
Klobuchar is the one for the presidency.
She's experienced, tough, sensible and realistic.
5
Trump's re-election should be the only topic of debate among the Democratics...the DNC should advise all candidates to concentrate only on the defeat of Trump. The voters need to know who will defeat Trump. Everything else goes on the back burner of this campaign. Then, when a Democrat makes the State of the Union Speech in January 2021, all those topics that are now onsuming precious time can be addressed as 'The Way the Nation will go Forward.
2
The debate looks awfully similar to that Game Show that used come many years ago - The Weakest Link. The weakest players band up together to take on a strong player. That's exactly what has happened here today
2
We are waiting for Mike Bloomberg to enter the debates.
These are getting stale with
not much new information and no truly strong candidate emerging.
4
Amy Klobuchar all the way! I was disappointed that the NYTs, who endorsed her, wrote so little about her in this article. Forget Biden, forget Sanders. She is articulate, smart, optimistic, and has realistic proposals.
6
Sad, ( now seem to very much dislike the word, go figure) that some of these candidates are so intent on winning elections that they are shooting themselves in the foot.
I think most Americans want to have a change in the front page.
We are so disgusted with the vulgarity, the insults and politicians missing the point.
Disgusted with our politicians that have turned into “pack” animals not speaking up or defending what they have to feel in their gut is wrong and is hurting our country.
They do this to protect themselves in their positions and to not attract unwanted attention on twitter and commentators.
We have lost respect for these people, they have no principles anymore, if they any had any- they’re out the window.
I hope that this will result in these pack animals not earning the right to remain in their jobs when the American people vote and I hope the new president that we will elect in November will demonstrate that they too are truly ready for a new/ different tone on the front page.
Steyer and Yang are just taking up time and space. Buttigieg is just the former mayor of a city of 100.000. Bernie is a proud Democratic Socialist. Biden is a proud centrist who may be past his prime. Warren does not seem presidential. Klobuchar has talent, but she might be better suited to be Veep. Bloomberg should not be allowed to buy the nomination. The Dems don't really have a star. I think it will be a long time before anyone secures the nomination.
2
Phenomenal closing statement by Klobuchar. I hope NH voters will give her a second look.
4
Sanders bought down a peg or two for his fervent gun support, his claim to be a purist in fund-raising, all the while allowing PAC support for him, and same-old same-old canned replies.
But if you won't hear much criticism if any reading "Who Won" reviews. Me thinks there is a media bias built in.
2
Your headline should be "Amy Klobuchar Take the Lead." She was the clear winner of the night and had she not had to sit through the impeachment trial while she on an upswing, she might have been one of the top contenders in Iowa as well. Report the story, don't follow a predetermined narrative.
6
The debate was rigged. Why was Mayor Pete, who won Iowa and is one of the front runners, put at the end of the stage? Why was Biden, who lost bigly in Iowa, at the center of the stage? Rigged.
5
Medicare for all has never been tried in the USA so to say it wont work ignores the fact similar programs like it in other parts of the world have worked.
The gun problem is a old vote and no longer should it be an Issue. note; I was at Sandy Hook CT. before and after the shootings in 2012 and am a gun control supporter.
I say to Mr Biden the president has already eliminated you form the process because of your son Hunter.
6
Rather than talking almost completely about the conflicts on stage, I think that you should also have mentioned the collegial humor that was often expressed as well as Steyer's unifying comments about how any one of the candidates on the stage would be a vast improvement over D.T. and how all the Dems share a support for the whole list of liberal causes that the Republicans are opposed to, from healthcare to climate change.
32
Any of the candidates would be a major improvement over Trump. The point was made that getting out the vote is key. I also was happy to hear all candidates mention the crisis of climate control as a priority. To describe the debate as "the most contentious" yet would not be my evaluation. I heard a lot of support among participants, along with expected challenges in this kind of format. It was, after all, a debate.
26
Mayor Pete's ability to lock up large numbers of people of color as Mayor is going to continue to haunt him until he comes up with something more profound than just pivoting and talking about something else. The interesting thing from this week of the Democrat's election mess is it looks like Joe Biden is the one who's losing the most from Pete's Iowa success. I think Klobuchar did well. She's clearly experienced enough and I thought she was very effective telling her story at the end of the debate.
The biggest question for me with this group of Democrats is that which of them can bring everyone together to go against Trump & the GOP. The front runner was not a Democrat until 2015. The party doesn't want him to win. The other progressive keeps making errors on the campaign trail that have really hurt her campaign. The pre-election favorite has faded and most likely isn't going to recover. The rest are still a bunch of unknowns on the national level. Only time will tell.
8
This debate was pretty civil and respectful from what I could see. They talked a lot about unity and coming together early on for whoever wins the nomination in order to beat Trump. I feel like the media is trying to make this into more of 'fight' than it really was. I will be voting for whoever is nominated as we all should unless we want the very well known alternative.
66
@M At this point, I'd vote for a deer tick before I'd vote for a Trump Republican. That Party, the Party of my ancestors since the Ripon Convention, has been hijacked by the descendants of the very rebels my ancestors whipped in the Civil War.
Other candidates aren’t getting the flare that Bernie Sanders is getting because Bernie is honest about where he stands. Bernie is all the way left and he owns that fact, the other candidates are tip toeing around policy and trying to lean towards the middle and maybe that’s not what the people want. Trump was elected because of his all the way right leaning policies, not once did he claim to be in the middle and that’s what people liked about him.
35
@LN
I like Bernie.
Trump will destroy him.
Time to really take a hard look at Michael Bloomberg.
The more I educate myself about him, the more I’m convinced that he is the only one who can defeat Mr. Trump.
8
Bernie supporters need to think about the tactics they are using to try to win over other democrats. Trashing other candidates, spreading conspiracy theories, accusing anyone who disagrees with them of being corrupt and corporate and afraid, and comparing Bernie’s populist appeal to Trump’s populist appeal. You should know that Trump’s “populist appeal” is what many of us hate the most about him.
4
Actually Bernie is closer to democratic ideas. It’s just the right wing of the party has shifted the party to the right. Bernie represents traditional Democratic party ideas. Let’s move back to the “center”.
3
The highest temperature ever recorded on the Antarctic continent was 64.9 degrees. That was yesterday.
At a time when the climate crisis is only being accelerated by the polices of the current administration, one question that sort of mentioned climate is journalistic malpractice. The moderators should be ashamed of themselves.
75
@Marc Weiss Agree. Protection of the environment and nature is of the highest importance.
Yes, the moderators should be ashamed of themselves for basically ignoring the issues surrounding the preservation of the planet, just as all the candidates tonight should be ashamed of themselves for continuing to fly on private jets.
If any of the candidates up on the stage tonight want to be taken seriously on their supposed environmental stance, they should start by practicing what they preach.
@Marc Weiss
I personally come to dislike the entire drawn out primary battle.
1
Completely avoided immigration. Again.
19
@M That's probably a good thing since they are so far removed from reality. This is Trumps trump card and it isn't going away. Open borders and sanctuary cities are going to take down any Democrat who hides behind politics.
1
Amy Klobuchar deliberately misrepresented Pete Buttigieg's response to the impeachment "trial" in the senate. He never said anything about changing the channel to watch "cartoons". He said he understood the fatigue and cynicism that overwhelms us in such moments, but he said that we should never allow that to paralyze us, that we should always rise on such occasions to protect our ideals and our democracy.
"Watch cartoons instead" was never what he said. Amy Klobuchar was dishonest in her assertion. What's worse, she knew she was being dishonest and that didn't seem to bother her.
48
@TheOtherSide Whatever he said, and I don't recall it like you do, was refreshing. The proceedings were politics at its worst. IF there were no TV cameras it would have been over in three days.
1
Very best ticket against Trump (this is a tip for Dems) would be Sanders/Warren.
Dems have enough intelligence to realize this? NO.
21
@johninlansing529
Maybe not (I think more and more are coming around).
But all of us non-D's voting on the Democratic ticket do.
We can help Dems (and America) win the election.
4
No, but we have enough intelligence to know that moderate states will NEVER vote for someone who wants open borders and then wants Americans to pay for health care for whoever decides to walk across. They won’t vote for that.
And neither will they vote for someone who wants the Government to take over all the electrical companies. They just won’t vote for him. Why would anyone think that?
4
I, also, would be happy with Sanders/Warren or vice versa.
4
Why so much gloom and doom here? I saw three or four candidates I could vote for. Don't wait for a vision from above showing you who is most "electable." Choose one who comes closest to embodying your beliefs and send them a few dollars. The perfect candidate doesn't exist. You don't have to love the person. Just do your civic duty. And if you don't vote in November, please keep your mouth shut regarding politics for the next four years.
63
I think Senator Warren did really well. Her responses addressing abortion, childcare, and racial inequalities are spot on. As a minority woman, I'm so glad she's my candidate. Also, Buttigieg's South Bend record (imprisoning more African Americans for pot) and taking money from 40 billionaires are not looking good for him.
36
@Lia B He didn't imprison them. He's a mayor, not a dictator. He can't tell the police not to arrest people doing something that's against the law, no matter how unfair that law may be.
3
@Lia B The police more heavily patrol high crime areas. In Bloomington poorer Black communities have significantly higher crime rates. Therefore, Black Americans are more likely to get caught in the net. Systemic racism? Yes. But not just with the police. Years of housing discrimination, job discrimination, and underfunded schools have contributed to the creation of these communities.
Biden should not worry about Pete's lack of support by minorities.
He should worry about lack of support for him from just about every one.
30
Bernie and Amy rocked the debate tonight.
30
After tonight, I'm rooting for a Sanders/Klobuchar ticket. Two friends from opposite wings of the party that are both authentic and steadfast in their beliefs. I think that ticket would satisfy voters (like me) who want a working class battering ram as well as voters who want a steady presence. That is your unifying ticket to beat Trump.
60
Mayor Pete shines with his intellect and energy. The rest of the top contenders look like they belong in retirement, angry and tired.
43
@Reasonable Mayor Pete reeks of phoniness. Everyone else is at least authentic to some degree.
59
@Chris
Maybe not condescending to his colleagues, not taking cheap shots the way Klobuchar does ("cool newcomer" etc), never making it personal, answering questions only when asked and not interrupting others on the stage (the way Klobuchar does), keeping his focus on his plans and not playing to the gallery for laughs and applause...
Yeah, respect is now the new phoniness? Nobody is more phony than Klobuchar with her rehearsed zingers and her canned family stories.
@Reasonable: This food fight should inspire Americans to impose criteria for running for President. And by "criteria" I mean more than a pulse and moderate command of the English language.
For me, Klobuchar won the night. Bernie was his usual boring self. Warren was ok. Yang so interesting. It breaks my heart to say it, but Biden should quit the race. He's just so out of step. Nevertheless, his calling the audience to stand and honor
Lt Colonel Vindman was a wonderful tribute. Steyer was really good at working to keep everyone honest...on how hard to beat Trump on the economy and how no one had talked about race.
Buttigieg was disappointing.
Michelle Goldman hopefully feels a little better after tonight's debate..while they did take digs at each other, most of them were deserved and all seemed focused on beating the vile tin pot dictator living in our White House. I felt better, and I have had really dark thoughts about where Trump is taking us. Of course, I've had hope before that were dashed.....
14
Sanders response to Amy Klobuchar should have been: "Maam, Obama care has done wonders, I agree, and why you think that we should not do better?
Whats your point ? Or are you still prosecuting."
12
And then her response should be.... then why rid ourselves of it instead of just building on the concept? And then she should say ...people just don’t want their taxes raised to pay for health care for illegal immigrants.
And then she should say.. you’ve been in Congress for thirty years and have accomplished nothing of note. What makes you think you’re going to start now?
3
Liberals, like Sanders and Warren, are ideologists who follow their hearts and will push to always do what's best, even if it means never actually getting anything done.
Centrists, like Buttigieg and Biden, are pragmatists who follow their heads and are willing to make concessions to get things done, even if it's not what we ultimately want.
Neither faction is ideal, making the only question-- which one can beat Trump?
13
@JT Bernie beats Trump by the widest margin in poll after poll. Look it up and decide for yourself.
2
@JT Are you going to tinker around the edges with climate change? Physics will not wait for us.
4
@Joel That's today. When voting time comes around America will not take Bernie over Trump. I can promise you that. Polls right now are meaningless and proven to be no indicator of success.
1
Klobuchar is back on my list with her strong performance tonight. By process of elimination, she should get a nomination. But I'm leaning as VP to Bloomberg, who I think now is the only candidate who can possibly beat Trump. Only possibly; it's difficult to turn out an incumbent. See Prof. Alan Lichtmann's creditable 13 Keys to election prediction. The Democrats have so few Keys in their favor at this time: no recession, no unpopular war, really, no substantial third-party challenger, no substantial primary opponent to Trump... and it remains to be seen if the Ukraine scandal hurts him, and whether the Democratic nominee is sufficiently charismatic.
One thing is crystal clear. The Democrats must get out the vote. All of it.
28
Yes because we should all believe Lichtman's garbage analysis of how elections work and assume it as the end all be all of electioneering. Bloomberg can't buy an election, as much as he desperately wants too, and Lichtman can't predict the future. Stop looking for voodoo help, and vote your conscience. If you like a candidate, vote for them, ignore the rest of the trash pseudoscience that men like Lichtman are spreading, or else we might as well give up without trying. This is why we have primaries, to figure out a candidate, not to presuppose what will happen head of time.
1
Why are some of the candidates afraid of letting Mike Bloomberg on the stage?
Why are they afraid of someone self made? Someone who is living the American dream. Why is that strike against him? Let's hear his ideas. Mr. Bloomberg is sharp and smart.
And he can defeat Trump which is what world needs. It must be a Democratic victory. But no matter who wins the nomination the others must support him or her. It will be sad day if the ego centric evil racist wins a second term.
31
Bloomberg does not represent true democratic ideologies, he only wants on the ticket because trump took the republican ore and he would not stand a chance. Coming from someone who has sat through Bloomberg being major of New York where he was enacting and pushing things like stop and frisk which discriminates minority’s groups and actually showed no real progress in lowering crime. Where he ignored groups who called for his investigation into the corrupt correction officers of rulers island smuggling drugs and knives, to which he ignored due to him wanting their votes.
2
@Northernd
I think it is because of his record as a Mayor. Which I did not like. Sold out Manhattan to the developers and weaponized the NYPD.
But as a President I think he warrants a look - if he is willing to go mano-a-mano with Trump.
3
@Northernd Bloomberg can't defeat Trump, and he isn't onstage this time because he isn't running in New Hampshire. He should have joined the race earlier if he wanted to have a shot.
5
Every Democratic candidate shifts to a more moderate stance after they win the primary. This will not play well for either Warren or Sanders, whose supporters will feel betrayed.
And strong or not, Biden made one of the most important observations of the evening - if the Democrats don't win the Senate, it don't mean diddly.
21
If you want to win the next elections, you have to live for the future and focus on the future.
Please, absolutely never again say that your main objective is to defeat Trump.
If that’s your the most important objective, then this country would be better off without you in the White House.
Your objective must be how to help 340 million fellow Americans become the best people they could be and how to motivate them to focus on such a goal.
Your objective is how to restore the team spirit and national unity.
Your objective is how to balance our rights with our obligations.
Your objective is how to control our greed and desire for more materialistic things.
The true happiness cannot be bought. The happiness is the result and consequence of the correct system of values. The happiness doesn’t come from the things we don’t have but from appreciating what we already have and finally learning how to enjoy in it.
If you are thinking about Trump for a single second, he is destructing you from understanding the big picture.
23
@Carl
What do you think who promoted the uncontrolled greed and piled up the enormous national debt at expense of the future generations to personally enrich themselves?
2
Too bad Tulsi Gabbard was not on that stage. In my opinion, she's pretty much the only one who had a chance to beat Trump. But she was unfortunately and unnecessarily ostracized by most mainstream Democrats and the mainstream media. When will the Democrats ever learn? Tulsi was their golden ticket and they blew it.
15
@Ashley totally disagree. She presented as an odd duck and unlikable. Perception is everything.
36
@Ashley
I originally thought so - and donated to her campaign. She blew it with some crazy ideas from her Svengali.
(I'm a yogi - so her Hinduism didn't bother me, in the contrary, made her interesting)
2
@VA Perception and presentation are pretty much the least of my concerns. Policies, ethics, integrity, and honesty are the qualities I look for in a candidate. Tulsi has them all.
1
Democrats need a moment of healing. We’re all really angry to see our country go down the drain toward despotism.
Democrats need to unite and reinvigorate democracy into this country. United we stand, divided we fall.
Whether the moderates or progressives take it, if we all compromise with each other, there’s no stopping the party of the people. Power to the people, right on!
23
This is not a surprise that Pete Buttigieg is under attack by rivals since he is the leader. But he is way more calm and collected to respond to their attacks. He will continue to focus on the agenda and how he can make America better for everyone.
51
@Jaque
He scares me. Ambition not tempered by experience or principles. He comes across like a wind-up doll, totally programmed and without conviction. And his premature claim that he had "won" Iowa with only 62% of the vote counted, without an ounce of humility or restraint, was a turn off.
7
If Amy K were Andy K, he would be ahead by a mile.
26
For Democrats their are two serious front runners, Sanders and Biden.
What exactly does Buttigieg say of substance and backs it with facts? His talk is a conversation in hyperbole, parabola non-sense. "We need to dissociate from our past and look to he future" What past, what fact and what scenario and how are you going to do that if you are going to do anything?
IVY leagues has produced lots of lemons as can be seen from last 24 years and they all crave position of authority, Buttigieg is one more lemon. If Democrats give him any position of authority, then Democrats have put a big nail in the coffin for themselves.
Afterall, Toyota produces lemons.
Amy Klobuchar is a ex-prosecutor and prosecutor are notoriously known for keeping score card of how many have they incarcerated irrespective of the evidence. Minorities under no circumstances will like to see a ex-prosecutor in any administration and I am sure Donald's team is digging up dirt of her wrong-doing ... matter of time.
23
Glad to see Bernie stay on message, not get knocked off, solid as a rock. Bernie is still my guy.
Steyer did well.
So did Yang, Warren
Klobuchar also did well though I will never vote for her, I’m tired of the “we have to settle” schtick. You have to have a vision and then lead people if they aren’t yet there.
52
@unreceivedogma
A “vision” is not going to help one get policy like Sanders’
passed through the senate. It could actually set back the Democrats for a long time. Imagine the “economy” “holds out” for another year, Sanders wins with a repub or close dem majority senate and gets absolutely nothing passed for 4 years and inevitable recession comes. The dems will be written of as impotent and incompetent by the still powerful GOP/FOX machine, Sanders is 1term and hopes for realistic progressivism will be lost. We DO have to settle NOW. It’s the only move possible. Whoever wins won’t get anything through now. All about the senate.
We need to think more about where we’ll be in 10 years than, next year. This cannot be the POLICY cycle, it can only be the get Trump out and plan for the future cycle.
If it was 2016 and a pretrump world, I’d be for Bernie.
The world has changed and it’s gonna take a longer more skillful path to get to what Bernie & Elizabeth want than just “going for it” in 2020.
9
Buttigeig is so vague. Does anybody know what he stands for?
I think that’s why he comes off as so scripted with regard to the “I’m the new kid in the block” and the “unity” thing. Beyond that, he has little to say.
I find his work at McKinsey to be unexplained and therefore troubling. His 40 billionaire supporters is deeply troubling: he’s owned. At least with Mike Bloomberg, though a billionaire, it’s his own money.
55
@unreceivedogma Bernie or bust, yep got Trump elected the first time, will get him reelected. Most swing voters are not for socialist policies that will never get past the senate.
2
I suspect you know, but don’t want to acknowledge it that receiving the max contribution of $2800 hardly makes you “owned” by billionaires.
6
@unreceivedogma He's explained his work at McKinsey. The Times has covered it extensively. You've chosen to ignore it. Fine. But don't make things up.
6
The Democratic Party is making a big mistake. It is pushing the outward leftist bounds. Instead this is a perfect opportunity to appeal to more voters who don't have far left views but who don't like Trump. Those people will not vote for a socialist or anyone close to being on the left fringe. They will vote for a centrist with the right message. For example, a candidate who said they would be very strong on border security, but at the same time create an easier path toward legal immigration and citizenship would immediately siphon off a lot of votes from Trump even if pushing socialized medicine. Similarly, a candidate with a platform of greater educational choice by promoting charter schools and vouchers would chip away at more voters. Instead, the party continues to only promote polarizing leftist policies that have no chance of appealing to the center. 40+ years ago good politicians knew how to find common ground / compromise, but today it seems that they only want to appeal to the extremes in their base. Based on the rhetoric of all of the current Dem candidates none are likely electable in a general election. Unless a few change and provide a platform that seeks common ground on some issues with center-right voters, or a new candidate emerges we'll have four more years of Trump.
15
The problem with this message is it’s tell people not to vote for who politically aligns with you views but vote for who everyone else Might like.
3
@Eric You're behind the curve: check out Pew Research. America is so polarised that there are VERY few real independents left. What we need is Bernie to dig out ALL the vote: swinging central in hopes of winning by scooping up both the remaining independents is a loser's gamble.
2
@Eric do not mistake socialism for Marxism. Marxism and corporate capitalism are parallel paths to feudalism under the dictatorship of a hereditary oligarchy. Socialism is a greater emphasis on economic egalitarianism. The EU countries and other countries in the Pacific are semi-socialist. In those countries, life expectancy is longer, higher education is cheaper, and there is a greater per capita ratio of small, family-owned businesses and farms. America is falling into the cesspool of hereditary oligarchy, and the public education system is deliberately kept poor, lest the people realize that they are becoming serfs to corporate capitalists.
It was only to be expected that everybody on that stage tonight, in subtle and not so subtle ways, were going to go after Mr. Buttigieg, now that he is rising in the polls. Amy Klobuchar was perhaps the most ferocious in her mission to take him down.
But he kept his cool. He did not take the bait. He did not condescend, answered the questions as comprehensively as he could, never raised his voice, and maintained his composure. He did not take personal affront.
Wise, steady man.
46
Amy Klobuchar is the most Presidential of all the candidates; this Independent will vote for her in the Primary; this will be my last chance to have a vote in saving my former party; otherwise, gulp, it’s Trump 2020.
13
@JRS
Says a lot about a person to turn from Dems to Rep in the Trump years.
4
I have no idea why anyone cares about the few people in Iowa or New Hampshire who participate in these events.
Totally meaningless to reflect on 1990s issues when there are so many current issues to deal with.
Bloomberg is absolutely right to stay out of these early states.
10
It’s not about going to small states, it’s about doing the ground work, meeting the people of the nation, gearing their concerns, doing town halls, figure in four ways to address the concerns of your country. When you don’t show up, you already lost.
2
Yes, indeed, now that it has finally become clear to the corporate media and the DNC that Biden is not a viable candidate--something that was obvious months ago--they will do everything they can to push forward Mayor Pete and halt Bernie's advance. If the pathetic Democrats actually manage to nominate Pete, they will lose and lose handily to Trump. And they will deserve it. But, wait, why nominate the guy taking handouts from billionaires, you can always nominate billionaire Mike! The Republican party may be a "criminal organization," as Noam Chomsky has put it, but it is hard to think of an organization more worthy of contempt than today's Democratic party. As in 2016, they would rather lose to Trump than nominate a mild New Deal social democrat. Contemptible.
41
@Andrzej Warminski Mayor Pete is the antithesis to Trump, he won rural regions and suburbs in Iowa where dems normally don't do well. Keep up the Bernie or bust which elected Trump the first time and we will see Trump reelected.
6
@Andrzej Warminski
Yes Petes taken 2800 bucks apiece from 40 billionaires,
About $100,000 out of Pete’s $75 million.
Whew , they must have some big time corrupt stuff going on.
4
@Andrzej Warminski
Remarkable comment!
Thank you.
3
Warren can’t attack because she is victim of the double standard, women who attack are “shrill” and men who attack are “strong”, and she had some decline in her polling after going after others. Some things don’t ever change.
23
@CTMD She is a lost cause because she couldn't explain how she would pay for her medicare for all program, not because she is a woman.
2
As I continue to see the calls for ending the Democratic infighting, I would like to kindly remind everyone that this, after all, a primary. This is a primary where some of the candidates represent near-polar opposite views on the issues in comparison to one another. AOC was right when she said that, in any other developed nation, she and Joe Biden would not be members of the same party. For example, AOC would be NDP and Joe Biden a Liberal in Canada, or Labour and Liberal Democrat in the UK, et cetera. We need to accept that the Democratic Party is going through an identity crisis. Will the Democratic Party return to its roots dating back to the days of FDR, or will the Democratic Party continue to represent a neoliberal ideology ever-present since the Clinton Administration? These are the two factions that are seeking the nomination, and the candidates are perfectly within their rights to make the case for their ideology and against other ideologies.
33
@Alden Henrie Ever since Carter, actually. The Democratic Party establishment went Wall Street after the Cuomo knockout in '72 by Nixon dirty tricksters and the resultant McGovern fiasco. Voila, antitrust enforcement just coincidentally disappeared. It's been Davos "Democrats" ever since. Loss of unions, loss of real wage gains, loss of relatively secure employment, rampantly accelerating inequality, reckless deregulation, sabotaging of good government. The ushering in of the Reagan Restoration. With complicit Democrats.
25
@Alden Henrie There's very little difference in policy among those candidates were on that stage.
1
Good for Stephanopoulos revisiting Cokie Roberts childhood poverty question-noting that today 1 in 5 preschoolers are living below poverty line even though we’ve had 10 straight years of economic growth. Great Inclusion and let's hope focus stays
66
@That's What She Said How we take care of the most vulnerable among us, children, the impoverished, the disabled, the imprisoned, the unemployed, the wounded military and military families, etc., is the most pertinent indicator of the health of a human society. We're not doing so hot. We need to track the Care Average as much as the DJ Industrials Average.
20
@Rocky This. Totally agree. Americans are duped into believing that GDP growth and the Dow Jones are measures of the economy, and they are extremely inadequate ones.
If a person with 1 billion in the bank and a homeless person stand next to each other, and the billionaire doubles his income, their average income would've increased by 500 million. GDP figures show the same thing and it is long overdue to be thrown into the bin as a measure of prosperity.
Child poverty, access to quality healthcare, social mobility, education levels, measures of life satisfaction are all far more important and get close to no attention
27
Warren took the high road and demonstrated true leadership.
Warren is not out of the race. She is the only candidate showing strength across the entire country and not just in pockets.
We only have Iowa's tainted results, so far. If the media would stop trying to railroad her, like they did to Hillary, she'll stay strong.
She is the best chance against Trump. She can reach across all demographics (except tax dodgers).
A self-described socialist, like Bernie. will not resonate with the Mid-West, Deep South, or South.
19
@Gus Let's get past labels, that few seem to understand, anyway, and focus on policies. Sanders and Warren share a lot of positions on policy, regardless what they're called or how they label themselves. They would both take on corruption, though they might describe its many manifestations somewhat differently. I think we'd be lucky to have either one as president.
4
@Gus
Yet the man won the Midwest last primary and polls ahead of Senator Warren currently in the Midwest, Deep South and or South.
Have you looked at the NYT donor map? Sanders is crushing it in all four corners of 'merica.
Guess we'll see soon enough who resonates with whom and where.
Best of luck to all of us.
6
I thought it was a pretty good debate. I think Biden did fine. Sanders did well. Buttigieg did mostly OK. I just don't think he's electable. But I could be wrong. I never thought we would elect a black man with the middle name Hussein. I would feel better about Buttigieg if he were black and gay, not just gay with a problematic record on racial issues. I thought Klobuchar did really well, and I hope this will give her a big boost. I still want to ask Yang what will happen when the robots decide we don't deserve our allowance and I hope Steyer will soon devote his time and money to helping the other candidates, and Democrats in general. I'm also curious to see what happens when Bloomberg is on the scene. I like his ads. As a performer, Elizabeth Warren is STILL the best candidate, although she is not my top choice. She sounds like she basically wants to ban billionaires which is absurd considering that 1: billionaires are people too with the same rights as the rest of us, and 2: as long as Citizens United stands, it takes boatloads of money to get elected. At least Bloomberg comes by his money honestly and has done a lot of good things with it. But the bottom line is, good showing all, and I would vote, unhesitatingly, for ANY of them.
28
I like Amy Klobuchar but I am very troubled by her attacks on Buttigieg.
First of all, she completely misrepresented Buttigieg's statement on the impeachment. Here is what he said about the impeachment:
"If you are watching the news right now, if you're watching what I'm watching right now, and feeling exhausted — I know I am. I live and breathe politics, and I feel exhausted," ... "And it's almost designed, I think, to make us want to switch it off and walk away,"... "It's almost designed to give us that sense of helplessness or hopelessness, especially with the Senate GOP telling us that this is all a foregone conclusion, that we would just walk away from it all." He asked the voters to "put away the hopelessness, to reject the cynicism, take things into our own hands, and build that better future."
In one word, he was really calling people to see through the act of the Republican senators and reject the cynicism.
Secondly, I am also disappointed that she compared Pete Buttigieg to Trump as a newcomer. There is absolutely nothing comparable between Buttigieg and Trump and she should apologize for that.
For Senator Klobuchar to take someone's speech out of text is dishonest and beneath her. I am disappointed that the media did not point out these problems with her attacks.
72
@JGM
This is the time of the year when so called consultants tell candidates what to do. And because the consultants have been there before, and most candidates have not, they listen. But most consultants get most things wrong.
2
@JGM - Whenever I hear Klobuchar I become less and less interested in her candidacy. She is truly annoying. If she becomes the nominee I will do what I did with Hillary - hold my nose and vote for her.
1
Presidents are not elected but chosen. So when things are so dire things change. But as history has been written a revolution group has overturned goverment. we have to look at our choices. As to where a group claimes total victory or do they not represent all but a few. And that few representatives of the USA or another country. Humm. Russia sent fleets in to protect America when England was at war with us .May be they dont want any other powers involved or its a world of the few playing us against each other so a few rule .Yes thats it.
@Rick A Russian fleet protecting us during the Revolution or the War of 1812? References, please.
Bernie is the strongest candidate against Trump. Because He has 0 scandal in 40 yrs. Bernie is compassionate, caring, and presidential, direct and honest. Bernie is the EXACT OPPOSITE of Trump. He can't be cornered as he has conviction and is a fighter. He has built an organization that is rolling and ready to go. Trump doesnt stand a chance if Bernie is the nominee.
57
@Marcel
Recall Hillary Clinton was the "exact opposite" of Trump (in every way - she was even not male).
Didn't work out well.
8
@Erasmus
Hillary and Trump are both bona fide members of the oligarchy that is currently in charge of American politics.
Interesting side bar: Trump and the Clintons have actually been friends for decades. If you google their names, you'll find lots and lots of photos of them attending each other's social events.
4
@Erasmus
One of those candidates rates higher than the other two in trust, honesty and yes, likability.
One of these things is not like the others...
(Do Aussies get Sesame St. references?)
Glad to read the rain has begun down under.
Hope it brings relief.
1
If these debates have any future, I would suggest going forward, that there is only one moderator prohibited from asking any questions at all whose only purpose is to introduce the candidates. From then on, all questions should come from the audience, at random.
After this debate and all the others especially the debacle at CNN, it is clear the handpicked moderators ask ridiculous questions framed in such a manner that they sound like ones that were submitted from their corporate sponsors.
16
Everyone seems to look at this and see Democrats ripping one another apart. Did anybody watch or read transcripts of any of the Republican debates from 2016? Tonight we saw a degree of respect, professionalism and decency that present-day DC culture has all but annihilated. And we saw news anchors make their best efforts to kneecap each candidate with "gotcha" questions in a shameless and counterproductive bid to boost ratings. Today it was Pete's turn in front of the firing squad, but we've seen it happen to Warren, Biden, Harris and countless others.
Wake up, America. They are dividing us. They want Trump to win. Trump means big ratings and big bucks for news corporations.
40
The level of disdain that Klobuchar shows for Buttigieg is quite remarkable. It actually appears that she thinks that the presidency is something that people deserve and do not need to earn during a campaign, which President Hillary Clinton (oops) would vehemently agree with. Klobuchar is getting outplayed by a newcomer and it is driving her mad. Keep the staplers away.
Warren once again proving to be so powerful when she sticks to a unifying message, which she can deliver with a credibility far beyond any other candidate.
33
Carlos,
Klobuchar 2020 can save the Democratic Party.
6
@Carlos Klobuchar has no charisma and was accused by her staff of bullying. Sick of listening to her saying we should vote for her because she is a moderate woman from the midwest. Mayor Pete is the only one who inspires me with his calm intelligence and pragmatic approach that will unite a divided country.
2
@Joseph B Agreed on Klobuchar, but I love Bernie.
Among the Democrats, I tend toward Yang, but it was Buttigieg and Klobuchar who moved in my own private polls in this debate. Buttigieg dropped a little because his answers tend to be vague, and he seems not to be able to overcome the leap from thinking like a mayor to thinking like a President. Klobuchar keeps saying clear and sensible things much more often than the other candidates. She just seems more direct and sane than the rest, so she rises a little. This is not a strong slate, but something could still develop out of this. Honestly, though, with 225,000 new jobs in January, wages rising, the economy cranking for just about everyone, and the acquittal now complete, the President is going to be hard to beat.
4
@Nathan I agree that Trump will be hard to beat but it doesn’t help to actually think that the “economy is cranking for just about everyone”. It is not! The press needs to start publishing the reality instead of repeating what the Administration puts out.
11
@Nathan
I suggest you read the just released report by the CBO on the impact Trump's trade wars have had on the overall economy and consumer's pocket books, virtually wiping out any gains in tax cuts they may have made. Also, the slightly more than 2% average GDP of this deregulated economy is no more and if I remember correctly, less than Obama's time in office. The shallow view of the economy typically presented by the Adimistration and too often in the media covers a lot of warts and is overblown.
16
@Nathan: The economy is not working all that well for folks whose income is less than $50k. The costs of housing, food, fuel and health care have far outgrown Americans' median income.
This was Klobuchar's night, everyone agrees, and she is nowhere in the headline.
Biden and Sanders are already past their life expectancy and we need a 2 term president. Biden will fumble while Trump cuts him up, or just yell and take credit for things a bunch of people did. Sanders does not appeal to moderates or Superdelegates.
Buttigieg ran a place a quarter the size of Staten Island, is not accountable for his PD, back pedaled on legalizing drugs, and if he can't stand watching the impeachment, he won't have the stomach for D.C. For every other job, you hire the most experienced person, with a proven track record, not the one who sounds the best at the interview!
Bloomberg, Yang and Steyer, have no business being in this race.
Warren has the right experience, got in for the right reasons, has plans and outlines for how she will pay for them, isn't afraid to take on corruption. Refuses to be bought and is tough enough to take Trump down. She will be UNDER the age of life expectancy AFTER 8 years. She brings energy, integrity and decency.
Klobuchar has all of the above, plus she wins in places we need, passed the most legislation in the hellish gridlock of congress, and people on both sides will work with her. She can bring in moderates, independents, and much needed senate votes in red states. She was lacking charisma and connection but she got there and nailed it tonight.
The New York times endorsed the right two.
Keep your eye on the ball.
18
@AP
So, when were Biden and Sanders supposed to have died? Saying they're "already past their life expectancy" makes them seem like quarts of milk past their expiration date. That's ageism. It's stereotyping at best and prejudice at worst.
13
@AP
Bloomberg and Yang have all the right to be in the race. They can win against Trump, which I do not see Warren/Biden do. (As much as I would praise their win).
2
@Linda It will take more than 8 years to fix all that led to Trump being elected, but I think it is acceptable to want 8 years of stability and good health. I am in my 50's and in poor health. I would disqualify myself to run for any office. My comments are based on statistics, not hate.
To me as an outsider from Europe it seems unfortunate that Elizabeth Warren no longer has the lead, as I had the impression she could convince Americans to try a more progressive approach. I do not think Sanders will be able to do that.
60
@Elisabeth
It was why I supported her as well. I think she was a good bridge to progressive policy but the media here hit her hard on M4A so she felt she had to make a bridge to it. By doing so she lost the progressives who felt she was being disingenuous. It makes sense because that is what normally happens. Because they run on the left and move to the middle.
6
@Elisabeth neither Warren nor Sanders are remotely electable in a general election. Steyer, Buttigieg, and Bloomberg are the party's only hope (IF they moderate their message).
4
Maybe. But I think the reason why Warren no longer has the lead is because of her lack of candor concerning various matters. It's true that the male politicians in the room, and even those outside of it and across the aisle, are less than forthcoming about things themselves. It's a clear double standard, yet I still wish for a more honest figure to rise to national prominence. In the meantime, the danger resides in the White House.
6
Thank you NY Times reporters for the coverage and analysis. It's always valued and adds to my understanding of the candidates and their positions. So refreshing to hear these truly intelligent and capable Americans vying to lead the nation. Outstanding patriots and talented capable leaders.
19
Look at Pete's answers on race and you'll understand why he will never be the Democratic nominee. He was having a great debate until the moderator called him out on drug arrests that disproportionately impacted African Americans during his tenure as mayor and he retreated like a hit dog, not even raising his hand to speak for the most of the remainder of the debate.
God forbid this man make it to the general election -- Trump will annihilate him.
199
Klobuchar’s support among black voters is even worse than Pete’s.
And Pete (like Bloomberg) is easy to attack because they have actual records of governing a city. Has Klobuchar spent her time battling racism in her state? Has Sanders? Please.
157
@Eric Hughes My point was about his response, not his record. I personally think it's silly to blame Pete for nationwide trends that started 20 years before he came into office. That being said the question is going to continue to be raised and it's concerning that he still can't answer it without stuttering nonsense platitudes or shutting down.
I repeat, Trump will rip Pete to pieces.
52
@Eric Hughes Sanders has a lifetime of battling racism not only in his state, but all over the country. It might help if you had an iota of Bernie's historical work, and it is very easy to look up.
100
Mayor Pete seemed to come off as very naive tonight while Joe Biden struggled to hold his own. Klobuchar, Sanders, and Warren looked very strong. I just can’t help but wonder how far a male equivalent of Klobuchar would be right now.
54
@Noah
Or how distant a female equivalent of Mayor Pete would be.
12
After watching most of the last two debates and confirming it is now clear the MSM have "annointed" Mayor Pete as their new choice of the "status quo" candidate to replace a slumping Biden, which has given him an obvious bump in the polls, as much as I try, in Buttigieg, I really see nothing more than an "empty suit" whom when asked tough questions, responds with pre-scripted lines and generalities and ultimately really nothing of consequence in real concrete policies. The idea that he claims he could still enact meaningful policy with healthcare and climate change despite accepting considerable campaign donations from many billionaire donors including those in the fossil fuel and healthcare industry, is laughable.
I guess "Mayor Pete " has still not learned when you are in bed with Oligarchs and they give money to your campaign,
they will expect considerably more in return for that money and it definitely does not include anything that disrupts the way they conduct their business.
After watching him for awhile, I have concluded don't be fooled by the image, "Mayor Pete" has turned into just another corporate/establishment moderate trying to convey he is something else, he is not.
86
@Deus The MSM has not anointed Pete. In fact, this paper ran several negative stories in the week leading up to first caucus.
It was actually his 1st or 2nd place win in Iowa that has boosted his exposure.
I for one am very interested in his clear, articulate manner of speaking and find his youth and calm demeanor to be a refreshing contrast to trump- and sanders too. Done with the shouting and no I don’t want a revolution. Just some roads, bridges and affordable healthcare. Yes Yes has has has has jJ
18
@Deus What evidence do you have that Buttigieg is in bed with Oligarchs? Sounds like Trump...
11
@Deus - Perhaps Powers That Be are grooming Buttigieg as sacrificial lamb to the political slaughter by GOP, as legions of billionaire business tycoons would vastly prefer - and will enthusiastically if covertly finance - another four years of Trump's ruinous tyranny rather than face an ascendant Sanders or Warren.
6
The left always divides itself. This is how the right wins.
33
@Prestwick...Its an American debate. The Republicans do the exact same thing i.e. Trump vs. everyone.
3
And they get a lot of help from the media with division. They undermined Hillary Clinton every chance they got.
5
These Democratic debates have devolved to celebrity roasts without the humor. Too much ego, too little love, no wit.
15
Amy Klobuchar proved once again that she can beat Donald Trump at his game and run him off the stage. Vote Amy!
29
@MDR
Sorry but she comes across as smug. ME ME ME ME ME. On second thought it would be a battle of the all about ME Trump and all about ME Klobucher. Sigh
19
@MDR She couldn’t beat Biden in Iowa.
19
@MDR I agree! It would have been nice if the NYT could have included her in the photo of the candidates on the stage. Looking at it, you'd think there were only four candidates, not five.
She had a great night and she is a contender. Please NYT ... don't ignore her. She was half of your own endorsement.
6
The Democratic debates are bordering on a sublime waste of time for everyone. The horse has been beaten to death after 6 network hearings enriching the networks and no one else.
12
@NOTATE REDMOND Well said. Its almost as though the moderators are on the Trump team.... divide whenever possible as opposed to looking for substantive issues.
12
"Look, here's the deal..."
"I...did this, that, and the other thing..."
Enough Joe, your history is OK but what about tomorrow?
Pete is the smartest guy in the room; your day will come.
Let's go with Bernie and Amy, he's got an army, she's got the middle.
53
Contentious Dems ripping each other apart. It's why I'm not watching.
5
There are two people on that stage that have the best chance of beating Donald Trump and for very different reasons:
Amy Klobuchar and Bernie Sanders
And they’d make a great ticket, too. They’re so different but Bernie has the movement and Amy has what it takes to appeal to voters in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
63
@BlueBird
They are also the candidates who use humor to their best advantage. Bernie and Biden have a Lemmon Matthau vibe but two running mates in their late seventies is not a good idea.
11
@BlueBird Maybe. I also wish Bernie-Romney were a possibility.
5
@BlueBird , I'm no fan of Klobuchar's policies, but she at least believes in what she says. I think a Sanders/Klobuchar ticket would do very well in the general. Sanders would bring the fight to Trump best and I think is best positioned to expose him as a fraud. Klobuchar can assuage the feelings of voters who just want a return to normalcy.
9
Biden wants us to forget his stands on busing, the Clarence Thomas nomination, his vote on the Iraq war, and his opposition to making it easier for people to declare bankruptcy to please the banks headquartered in Delaware but he wants us to remember Sanders' votes on gun control equally as far in the past.
And Sanders was honest about saying his votes reflected the predominant feelings in his state at the time. This is in contrast to Senator Gillibrand's explanation of her A grade NRA when she was congresswoman from upstate NY that she was unaware gun violence was much of a problem until she became a senator.
33
Once again, the lone minority on stage--Yang--gets completely shut out by the media and debate mods.
Ultimately, these debates don't provide any real substance, just quick sound bites and media driven narratives.
21
@Scott There really are too many of them to give anybody time to say anything substantive. Hopefully after NH they stop letting more than four onstage at a time.
12
@Scott
I think Yang is just having a lot of fun. Probably made a bet with a friend that Americans are stupid enough to support him (a total unknown) if he promises every family that $1,000 per mo., which theoretically will solve all their problems. I'm sure he's flabbergasted to still be in the running, but smart enough to know he has zero chance of even winning a primary. A fun ride, paid for by donors, lots of publicity, what's not to like?
I noticed the candidates were not asked the most important question: "If you are not the nominee, will you support and campaign enthusiastically for whoever is the nominee of the Democratic Party?"
The Republicans cannot reelect Trump. Only the Democrats can do that and, unfortunately, that is precisely what they have been doing. For starters, Democrats will have to immediately stop with the circular firing squad routine, the only thing they have been adept at all year.
They have to stop lecturing and start listening to voters. Unless you respond to people's values and needs as they define them -- not as you believe they should define them -- you will change precisely no one's mind. Aspirational politics are actually counterproductive in the current environment.
The Democrats need to stop defining anyone who supports Trump as the Devil, whose very thoughts are contagious. Either interact with them and change minds/votes or lose.
To defeat Trump Democrats must be laser-focused on the objective of defeating Trump, not on what "category" is due a turn at the Presidency or who has the most noble vision that, even if its proponent were elected, would stand no chance of being implemented in the Washington of 2021. They must understand this is an election for President, not an election for God.
These non-debates are the Democrats' version of The Apprentice. with the punditocracy, twitterati, and commentariat getting to feel good saying "You're fired!" and "You're hired!"
16
Every four years, for both Republicans and Democrats, these presidential primary debates seem a sham. They are presented as serious and informative, debating policy points to help voters choose a candidate.
But anyone who chooses a candidate based on debates is fooling themselves. They are like a beauty contest. You get only the most superficial look at candidates from watching debates. The questions are always predictable. The answers as well. The delivery can sometimes be unpredictable, but what does that really tell us? Not a lot.
It reminds me of my glory days years ago as a debater in high school. My partner and I won a lot of awards -- more due to him than to me. We were good. But did we really know how to do anything to address the issues raised by our topics? No. We talked a lot, but it was only talk.
Talk doesn't matter. Action does. Ideas are good, but ideas are a dime a dozen. Plans too. Every candidate has their plans, and they have a stultifying sameness. As former boxer Mike Tyson said, "everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth".
What will happen to these candidates when they have setbacks? When people complain and resist? When they fail? That's what matters.
Barack Obama had trouble with that. Steve Jobs said, "I’m disappointed in Obama. He’s having trouble leading because he’s reluctant to offend people or [tick] them off." He added, "Yes, that’s not a problem I ever had.” Neither has Donald Trump.
24
Senator Klobuchar was all fired up tonight which made her argument against the party veering wildly to the left and losing everything in the process, seem particularly compelling. This reader was very moved by her story of the mourner in tears at the passing of FDR telling a reporter, no, he didn't know the president, but the president knew him. At breaks Bernie could be seen turning his back on all the other debaters, as if he had no use for them. If it's true as Hillary recently suggested, that his peers in Congress have always disliked and found it impossible to work with Bernie, that may be because Bernie doesn't hide the fact that he holds all of them, without exception, in such low esteem. In fact Bernie's so resembles Trump with his outlandish displays of egotism, that he might as well be running on the slogan: Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire - vote for Bernie!
33
@Leigh
Ironically, Bernie's platform is the one that bears the closest resemblance to FDR's, away from which the party has veered wildly.
59
Leigh, yeah, Amy Klobuchar cribbed that story about Franklin Roosevelt from someone and used it in Iowa a few days ago as well. As far as I can tell, it's not a true story. And it doesn't make much sense. Amy Klobuchar doesn't know the common people any more than Donald Trump. Both of them have been elites all of their adult lives.
15
@Leigh
The story Amy Klobuchar told is a well-known one which I suspect she rehearsed, like the rest of her closing speech. That doesn't detract from her sincerity or from how moving it was. But to take Hillary Clinton's statements about Sanders at face value strikes me as odd. She's still unable to admit (or see?) that she ran a poor campaign, taking winning as a foregone conclusion. It's bizarre for someone as disliked as she was by many of us who felt forced to vote for her as the lesser of two evils to bad mouth Sanders, who campaigned for her 39 times in 13 states once she was the candidate. I think you're mistaking Bernie's honesty for arrogance.
18
I hope no-one cares who "really" won in Iowa: Sanders and Buttigieg did well and are extremely close, and Warren and especially Biden were disappointed. That gives us plenty to think about, and now there is no need to worry about it anymore. At some point, representatives from the leading campaigns should probably go out there for a low-key event and draw straws to see who gets Iowa's handful of delegates. For God's sake, let's not do any recounts.
14
Sanders' repeated references to billionaires are sheer demagoguery. There are about 600 billionaires and Sanders hasn't missed a chance to slam each and every one of them. You'd think the 600 were responsible for every bad policy decision ever made.
No one calls out Sanders for this nonsense because everyone on the podium feels the need to pretend that the 600 are the root of all evil. That kind of demagoguery should be attacked as scapegoating and as a means of ducking the hard questions. But that doesn't happen because Democrats are as scared to say anything positive about the rich as Republicans are to say anything positive about the poor.
Everyone running for President is trapped by stereotypes and they all hold their tongues because political correctness rules--for both parties, not just the Democrats..
35
Gross wealth inequality is a historic destabilizer of nations and the logical endgame is a violent revolution when so few have so much and so many struggle. Inequality isn’t leveling off, it is accelerating.
The rich game the tax code, set the policy agenda in DC where they wield outsized influence thru donations, and stifle honest debate thru control of the media or fake astroturf lobbying and powerful but agenda-ridden think tanks. The have opted out mostly of the social contract, and are indifferent to the plight of the masses in the world, and economy they have shaped.
In such a historically rich nation, why should people have to choose between food and lifesaving drugs, or trade a college degree for a lifetime of crippling debt, or have to work two or three below-subsidence level jobs to make ends meet, or deny medical care because of fears of bankruptcy? Or live near polluted water or air or soil? This is the world the rich have created for us. It’s time to wrestle back control of our faltering democracy.
78
@Xoxarle An excellent, well-reasoned & calm response. Let's hope Democrats read & reflect & get past all the stereotypes and fake facts to choose the best and get behind whoever wins.
7
Billionaires are not the root of evil, they are symptoms of evil system, that allows few to be a billionaires while leaving other to survive. That is point of Bernie.
16
Several candidates made a point of saying "out begging for money". That was directed to one candidate, Buttigieg. And his response was borderline delusional, basically saying it's ok. What else can he do?
But the bottom line I think will always be the same, excluding Yang, (whom I really like more & more). That is if you want to try and change this country for the better, and not keep going down the same road, there are two people that will do that, Sanders or Warren. The rest, it will be basically business as usual. And if you want the same ol' same ol' with some tweeks here & there, than Klobachar is probably the best. Even if she eats salad with a comb & yells at her staff. But she won't do much about health care. She won't legalize pot. She'll keep voting to increase the defense budget. But yes, anything is better than the travesty in the White House now.
40
I would even take Biden at this point and he's the weakest Democratic candidate, in my view. We need to vote Trump out no matter what. I can't stop thinking about Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman. And not just him, but Marie Yovanovitch. All the good men and women of integrity who have been ousted for precisely that reason: they pledged their allegiance to our country and not Trump.
120
@Kristin it's not going to happen with the current pool of candidates. Unless someone new who is a centrist and more competent enters the race, Trump has got this in the bag. None of the current candidates are electable in a general election (even against Trump). Can we get Bob Iger to enter the race? Or Jamie Dimon?
@Eric
Bob Iger is a centrist? A Democrat? Isn't he the Disney guy? Just what we need, a show biz guy who keeps his eye on the bottom line. At least he hasn't had his own reality show.
3
@Kristin
I support progressive policy and will support whoever wins. I hope everyone else will as well. We are facing neo-fascism and they must be stopped.
First they came for the immigrants, then they came for the socialists. Then they came for my neighbors. I never said anything and then they came for me and no one was left to speak for me.
Don't let this happen here.
16
Reading these comments tells me all I or anyone needs to know about why the dems will once again find a way to lose an election to an utterly degenerate liar.
Bernie will never win! joe is just old. Pete is a white Obama w another issue too many will not accept. Bernie really is a socialist.
Is there any dem leader that can loudly declare that patriotism will be kicking dt to the curb. That nothing else matters?? Let’s get behind someone who can win.
This ain’t that hard.
I say let’s bring back Carville and get this done.
13
Huh. I actually thought this a less contentious debate than the last. After days of Trump talk I found this group civil and serious plus willing & able in a few cases to actually think on their feet.
51
Bernie, whom I will be voting for, is both a candidate and a desperately needed revolution all in one. I will always love Elizabeth Warren the most but she has no chance of winning. Amy Klobuchar is an effective senator but a lousy puffery filled shamelessly self aggrandizing candidate. Buttigieg needs a lot more experience and a lot less billionaire funding with strings attached. Biden is a decent man but he represents the politics of yesteryear, not the politics of tomorrow. Steyer is a classy and elegant statesman whom I will keep my eye on assiduously. Andrew Yang should be America's first Secretary of Advanced Technologies.
104
@WGM I don't think so. Warren's campaign just now tweeted that they have a huge surge of donations.
4
@Lia B As did Klobuchar. $1 million right off the mark.
@WGM Why exactly can't Warren win?
Does anyone else rather doubt that Trump will even agree to debate the Democratic nominee?
84
@Julie . . . I'll be amazed if he does, since there's absolutely nothing he'll gain by it.
22
Julie, do you think the presidential debates are what people use to make up their mind who to vote for? I hope not. They're meaningless.
4
@John Smithson
No, and I certainly didn't suggest that. But there was talk tonight about going toe-to-toe with Trump, and I was just wondering if anyone else doubts it'll happen--in the flesh, anyway.
6
Bernie and Liz need to come together and agree on a virtual co-presidency and unite those who have forward thinking and humanitarian, anti corruption intent. What people want is strong Social Security and strong Social service such as providing good, comprehensive health care for all.
The corruption runs very deep and the Gang of Oligarchs, GOP, backers use their hoard to constantly seek to regress the progress and liberation of women, minorities and the rights of most Americans and to institute every firm of slavery, debt, racial incarceration and they use wedge issues at every turn.
Democrats should stand United for social and economic justice and the actual pursuit of Justice through truth, and the moral pursuit of life, liberty and justice through the principles of the Kingdom of Heaven Christ taught in the Sermon on the Mountain.
36
@Tom Paine Yes, Yes, Yes. This is the answer.
2
Six months of debates, uninterrupted by a single audience question, write-in, text or phone caller. The Iowa caucus has been nullified by incompetence. This reality show has been dominated by the press. I may sit out the election and let the collective commentariat vote in my place. After all, I am clearly unworthy in comparison to the editorial boards of the mainstream media.
13
@Mike, No one should sit out this general election, including you, Mike. If many Dems follow your logic there is no chance of defeating Trump.
31
@Rob D any chance is long gong.
1
How can Senator Warren state that the Republicans "hate the corruption as well?" I thought she was paying close attention to he impeachment hearings.
17
@Mike She was talking about the US voters, not the Senate. Polls indicated greater support for impeachment than how the Senators behaved.
8
I don’t think the Democrats can coalesce around any of these candidates. Whatever surface show of unity emerges will be undermined by an enthusiasm gap of the kind that hurt Clinton in 2016. Progressives see the party establishment as having been corrupted and rudderless, just clinging to power for powers sake, and the establishment and center right Democrats are likely rattled by Sanders and Warren. And Sanders would be relentlessly opposed by the media, Republicans and powerful corporations whose wellbeing he threatens.
Really, Trumps only barrier to a second term is a sharp downturn of the economy, or the kind of gross idiocy that either lands us in a war, or mismanages a major natural disaster. Americans seem mostly content in an economy that works for only for the overlord class, and lack the imagination to grapple with weighty solutions to very consequential issues.
25
@Xoxarle These are the candidates we've got and it'll be up to us to coalesce or not. I was very surprised at the Iowa results but it seems that we are beginning to hear the voice of the electorate and I look forward to hearing more. There is no one candidate who is assured of 'beating' Trump, not your favorite or mine. I will vote blue no matter what and I hope others will as well. Vote your hopes in the primary, vote blue in the general, may the best candidate win and, finally, focus on Congress!
4
@Xoxarle These are the candidates we've got and it'll be up to us to coalesce or not. I was very surprised at the Iowa results but it seems that we are beginning to hear the voice of the electorate and I look forward to hearing more. There is no one candidate who is assured of 'beating' Trump, not your favorite or mine. I will vote blue no matter what and I hope others will as well.
1
@Heather, Mike Bloomberg.
1
Nominate the candidate that most Republicans would vote for.
Otherwise lose bigly in 2020.
15
Allen Mills, I'm not sure it much matters who the Democrats nominate. The Democrats will vote for him or her, and the Republicans will vote for Donald Trump.
5
@Allen Mills
CIVICS 101 -first regain Presidency as
all policies--promises and wishes first need Congressional approval.
And only candidate who will not incite Trump’s base is Joe Biden, however, the realist know, with almost near certainty, current leading candidates will cause republicans to rise from their graves to vote against them.
1
Most Reps will vote for Trump. So, they should not be a factor in selecting Dem candidate.
4
Tom Steyer totally gets it. He completely embraces the mentality needed to campaign against Trump. Steyer has earned my vote.
18
At this point, Trump is so disgusting that I will vote for ANY DEMOCRATIC candidate. Just stop the infighting between Democrats......
Anything but Trump!!!!
116
It's the debt, stupid!
If Trump runs the government in the same way he ran his business, he will end up by bankrupting both!
How many Democratic presidential candidates is needed to come up with those two simple sentences?
31
The swag Boston Globe, WBZ TV, and Suffolk University poll results showing Buttigieg’s numbers increasing by over 105% in three days would seem to be the greatest increase in polling success for a presidential candidate in U.S. history.
The differences in polling by that polling methodology — between Sanders and Buttigieg, IMHO, could be either a miracle or a manipulation.
22
Having watched the debate I can say that Senator Klobuchar impressed me the most (best closing speech too) and VP Biden tanked much to my chagrin. I kept thinking, "C'mon Joe". But he faded. As a die hard Dem I've donated to Buttigieg, Yang and Klobuchar. Sadly, I'm still on the fence. Which gives me great fear. If I'M still undecided combined with Trump's post impeachment approval bump plus the Iowa debacle...I'm beginning to plan how my life could survive another 4 years of this insanity. The good news is that after 2016 nobody I know is taking anything for granted. But we are scared.
39
I personally think you have less to fear than you believe. One of the moderators noted that turnout in Iowa was not extremely high, but I think things will change in general. Liberal voters would choose any of these candidates (all of whom I believed had good moments tonight) over the current president, so the primary is less of a concern. Thus the average turnout. In November I think you’re likely to see the most massive turnout by liberal voters in modern American history.
18
@Srocket The good reason to be undecided is that any of them would be fine in the White House, and we can elect any of them if we can avoid getting divided. So it's perfectly legitimate to just watch, and figure out what we like best about each of them. Positive attitude, right?
The scary part is, you're right, a Republican victory is not at all implausible.
6
@Srocket I think we are all wondering how to survive 4 more years. The vital thing is not to leave but stay and fight.
I would, and absolutely will, VOTE for ANY of these fine individuals. United we stand, divided we’re Trumped.
It’s that simple.
182
@Phyliss Dalmatian
Great slogan, Ms Dalmatian. You do have a way with words (and especially with ideas!).
4
@Phyliss Dalmatian
I agree with you 100%, Ms. Dalmatian. You speak for me as well. I'm also sorry that, living as you do in Kansas, the Electoral College system virtually ensures that your vote will be wasted.
Meanwhile I worry terribly that far too many Democrats are so hung up on ideological purity that they'll refuse to stand united.
4
This debate was ridiculous. Enough with the excuses for why people can't move up in the world. Not one mention of personal responsibility, not one. So anyone that makes a career of bad choices that's fine, not your fault at all, we'll just hand you a check. Education was discussed but zero mention of staying in school. Why can't they make personal responsibility a part of the conversation? Oh right because they're all too busy promising free everything.
17
@E If you'd like to really see a solid example of someone who never mentions personal responsibility, look to Trump. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING is ever his fault. Why can't he make personal responsibility a part of the conversation? Oh right because he's all too busy promising free everything... for himself.
35
@E
They are promising a "rescue" and seriously misleading Americans into believing they are owed (entitled to) something, and it will be coming just as soon as the candidates get elected.
4
In order to blame the personal responsibility, we need to figure out what role the personal responsibility does play. And that is difficult to assess. But if the poor kids have much tougher time to attend good school, to attend college, to have proper access to healthcare, I'll say that is the problem, no matter what role of the personal responsibility
2
Commenter Michele writes, "Oh for Pete's sake (and Bernie's, and Amy's, and Elizabeth's, and above all our own), stop trying to manufacture personal drama and conflict. Analyze their thoughts, consider their positions, talk about their IDEAS. That's your job, not prodding us to think they insulted one another. This isn't "The Apprentice".
Unfortunately, these non-debates actually are the Democrats' version of The Apprentice. with all the punditocracy, twitterati, and commentariat getting to feel relevant and good saying "You're fired!" and "You're hired!"
18
@Steve Fankuchen I think it's more the nature of the debate format, and the "media is the message" issue. From the Kennedy=Nixon debates onward, and increasingly, with our celeb/social media culture, politics became entangled with entertainment.
I still think one can glean (& sometimes better than that) the core beliefs & character of a candidate. IF one is willing to listen, consder & not be deceived or overly influenced by appearances and personal personality preferences.
1
Pete's answer to why drug arrests increased for blacks under his watch: "because we were fighting murders and gangs."
What?
20
@areader so I suppose the question should be: in a largely African American city like Gary, Indiana, with a high level of low-income residents, will more people who happen to be African American be likely arrested if you increase vigilance on criminal activity?
3
When your maximum focus is on identity politics it is difficult to focus on other facts, which could be why you don’t understand. We get it, you’re woke, and if that is the hill you want to lose to Trump on then thanks for nothing.
9
areader, Pete Buttigieg said that drug arrests rose because drugs were commonly part of other crimes that they were focusing on, like gangs and murders. Not because they were arresting people for drug use or possession alone.
15
Mostly a good debate performance by all on the stage. I strongly support Sanders, but I will vote for any of the candidates on that stage. Joe Biden's line that' children are the kite strings of the nation' (or something to that effect) was a nice phrase.
45
If Amy Klobuchar doesn't agree with M4A, meaning it's okay with her that 40k human beings suffer and die and leave grief behind them, so that the insurance industry (it can't really be called Health Care )can continue it's unbridled, exponential greed, that she's the one being divisive ? I'm unclear who decides who's being decisive and who has policies that should be standard.
14
@Maggie
160 million satisfied customers is a bogus statistic that falsely conflates those with good plans with those with substandard plans with high deductables that they pay alot to get, just because they all get them through their employers. Many of the latter type just might prefer medicare for all (not medicaid by the way.)
3
Why is Tom Steyer still on the stage? And Andrew Yang?
With respect to both of them, who each seem like fine men, we no longer have time for this. They can't beat Trump and that's all that matters now.
47
@shstl I disagree. Steyer has made it clear that the health of our planet is his number one concern, as it is mine. He might well be the only candidate that can beat Trump. I am glad he was included.
12
@shstl I think that after tonight, you’re right. It was import to have Andrew Yang’s voice, but he isn’t seeming presidential. I guess we still have Yang’s ideas in the race, presented by Buttigieg as his own.
4
@shstl If that's your criteria "they can't beat Trump and that's all that matters" then the stage should be empty. I can hardly wait to hear Bloomberg. Getting desperate.
4
I support Warren because she has clear policies that she is unafraid to modify if needs be, she has shown her capabilities by creating a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau despite opposition from Tim Geithner and Wall Street, she can give back zingers to the loud mouth in the WH, she has unashamedly admitted that she was a Republican once but changed as she became examined how the Republican designed bankruptcy law was hurting the little people.
She is a woman who has faced male domination but still managed to go toe to toe with the males in Washington.
She is also conciliatory as she has not attacked Sanders even though she has said that she is a capitalist. Neither has she attacked her fellow senator Klobuchar.
I would love to have a woman in the WH. Clinton was a flawed candidate who I voted for reluctantly. But Warren will energize women from both parties.
Please people give her a chance.
71
@Meenal Mamdani
Yes, please voters of early states, stop being pundits. Vote for the person whose values you agree with and whose intelligence and competence you can trust to dig us out of this swamp pit. Give her a male sounding name in your head - Eli or something if that helps.
8
@Meenal Mamdani I think Warren did great too. She came across as passionate and honest. Her responses are thoughtful, and she's taking no money from the billionaires.
5
I am proud of all of these Democratic Party candidates tonight. I would vote for any of them in November. They are well spoken, compassionate, understand that health care is a human right, the planet is headed for demise and put people before maximizing profits.
President Trump should be shaking in his shoes because any of these candidates could destroy his little mind in 2020.
Our biggest challenge is in the access to the voting booth and in assuring that every American can cast their votes in every election.
I am so much more hopeful tonight than last after hearing our President stand up before the cameras and speak utter virulent nonsense.
Go forward Elizabeth, Joe, Andrew, Tom, Bernie, Amy and Pete. Thank you for your ideas, plans and putting it all on the line.
New York Times please give our Candidates the attention they deserve over the next few months.
We do not need to hear much more about the orange man in the White House. We need to hear more about the future.
These folks are our future.
65
@Sandell Reichard . . . But all Joe Biden keeps talking about is the past. What exactly does he plan to do as President other than restore decency (which any of these candidates will do) and re-enact the Obama years?
7
Sanders gave an impressive performance tonight. Yes he knows how to articulate critical problems for the US. The US does need a path to universal health care. The US does need to negotiate with enemies instead of kill terrorists (like Soleimani). Yes, the US should lead efforts to fight climate change.
I don't agree with his idea to tax wealth at 8% per annum. I believe he demonizes the health insurance industry too much. (We need to find a way to transition away from health insurance.) I don't agree with demonizing the big oil companies. (We should simply force them to transition to less polluting sources of energy.)
We should involve industry in finding solutions. For example, Exxon Mobil at one point was developing algae to provide fuel for airplanes. We need to try EVERYTHING in our fight against climate change, including the ideas of oil companies when they help.
Above all, I worry that the left of the Democrats is ignoring one of the most important policies to limit climate change. That is to achieve zero population growth for planet earth. If we had done that in 1972 when "Limits for Growth" came out, the population of Earth would be half its current level.
But Sanders may be the best we have. It is the right change in direction, if we can still argue about details.
Of course, I want to see how Bloomberg holds up in a debate. Hope he will be present in the next debate.
23
One cannot win the elections by intentionally dividing America along the partisan, racial, ethnic, gender, wealth, educational, cultural, sex, age or regional lines.
The unifiers have the same set of principles for all the people regardless of any specifics.
That’s how you fight against the racism.
One cannot eliminate the racism by insisting on the racial differences.
10
“One cannot eliminate the racism by insisting on the racial differences”.
Nor can you eliminate racisme by sticking your head in the ground and pretend it’s not a prevalent part of America’s history and present. We have to be able to talk about is frankly before we can make the changes. It seems to me you’d prefer to sweep it under the rug.
10
@Kenan Porobic
"One cannot win the elections by intentionally dividing America along the partisan, racial, ethnic, gender, wealth, educational, cultural, sex, age or regional lines."
Really? Isn't that what Trump did in 2016?
9
@TyroneShoelaces
No, he didn't but the Democrats did.
Trump extremely harshly criticized probably a dozen white male Republican presidential candidates during the GOP primaries but nobody accused him of partisanship, hatred toward the Caucasians or the sexism.
However, after he equally harshly criticized Obama, they accused him of the racism toward the African Americans.
After he criticized Hillary Clinton they accused him of sexism.
It means his political opponents intentionally divided America along those lines in order to win the elections.
Shouldn’t the NYT be pointing out that Democratic voters, at least those in Iowa, do not seem to be excited by this year’s crop of nominees? Turnout for the caucuses was down about 1%, not a big drop, from 2016, and 30% from 2008. One would think that such a large, diverse (politically, not racially or ethnically) field would bring out a lot of voters. Be interesting to see what happens in the upcoming states this month.
5
@luxembourg Maybe they just don’t care so much who the nominee will be because the D candidates are so much better than the occupant, and know they will support whoever it ends up being.
4
@luxembourg 2008 voters were unemployed and had time to caucus, a process that takes all day. Now under Trump a lot more of them are employed... and are working two jobs to make ends meet.
4
@Meerkat typo
Maybe. But almost half of Sanders suppor ters are indicating, at least at this time, that if Bernie does not get the nomination, then they will not support the nominee. The other candidates, who are actually De ocrats, by and large say they will support whoever is nominated.
1
Bernie was so passionate tonight. I can’t wait to vote for him in my state primary and the general election.
Sanders 2020
82
When asked about what he would say when DJT attacks him for being a democratic socialist, he could have also added: do you know who else was a democratic socialist? Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Go Bernie!
32
The most transparent and forthright candidates on stage were Sanders and Steyer. The others used a lot of caveat language to mask the limits of their planks.
Are all the candidates on stage better than Trump? Of course! But a primary isn’t only about better than Trump. It’s about a better future. Full stop.
79
Could just one candidate demonstrate the way they’ll tie Trump in knots with his own evil rhetoric?
Tom Steyer got it right — 1) Any of these contenders is a good choice, B) Trump is who they need to battle, III) And just like 1992, “It’s the economy, stupid.”
15
Nominating Sanders, if he wins the primaries, would be doing what the voters want.
Anyone (including Biden) can label that whichever way they each -- I call it democracy.
82
And I call it stupidity.
Please look up what Frank Zappa had to say about the composition of the universe.
8
@not Nominating Sanders, if he wins the primaries, would be doing exactly what TRUMP voters want. No one can speak for all the voters. However it appears that a centrist would be a more viable candidate.
5
@Robert Frank Zappa Forever!
Well, I think Frank would've played for Bernie's White House.
2
Mr. Steyer was surprisingly impressive. The only one on the stage that I could vote for. Bloomberg and Gabbard were not there so...disappointing how the Democratic party has handled things so far.
10
@Mark I agree, I have been learning as much as possible about all the candidates and his agenda is mine, save the planet for our children and grandchildren. He is a business man who could easily defeat Trump in a debate. I've already cast my vote in the primary for Tom Steyer.
2
@Sigrid Price
Yes, the more I hear and learn about Steyer, the more I like him.
2
What stands out the most is that nobody asked the most important question, at least the most important if your goal is actually to defeat Trump:
"If you are not the Democratic party nominee, will you nonetheless support and campaign enthusiastically for whoever is the Democratic candidate for President?"
The Republicans cannot reelect Trump. Only the Democrats can do that and, unfortunately, that is precisely what they have been doing. For starters, Democrats will have to immediately stop with the circular firing squad routine, the only thing they have been adept at all year.
Second, they have to stop lecturing and start listening to voters. Unless you respond to people's values and needs as they define them -- not as you believe they should define them -- you will change precisely no one's mind.
Aspirational politics are useless, actually counterproductive, in the current sociopolitical environment. In the Washington of January 2021, it is more likely Bloomberg, who actually knows how to govern, can accomplish something than anyone else. And most likely to beat Trump.
The Democrats need to quit defining anyone who supports Trump as the Devil, whose very thoughts are contagious and fatal. Either interact with them and change minds/votes or lose.
To defeat Trump Democrats must be laser-focused on the objective of defeating Trump, not on what "category" is due a turn at the Presidency. They must understand this is an election for President, not an election for God.
12
Message to ABC hosts: Please stop repeatedly saying: The Best Political Minds in the Game". This sloganeering undermines the notion of objectivity and reliable facts. Bravado from a empty-headed host is unhelpful. Nonetheless, some credit is permitted for bringing us Rahm Emanuel and Chris Christie's remarks & observations. Is that justifying blowing your horn with the slogan quite so often ?
3
@C Fletcher The last thing we need is Rahm Emanuel's remarks and observations. He has no credibility whatsoever.
11
While I wholeheartedly support Elizabeth Warren based on policy, her understanding of complex financial issues, and that she's been consistent throughout her political career, I think Amy Klobuchar had a very good night.
159
@M She did. She's relying a lot on her personal family history. Family drama may sway a lot of people.
1
@M - Klobuchar's grandparents' life story has nothing to do with her qualifications for President. I don't like her snarky comments.
If, by some miracle, she wins the nomination she has my vote, however.
You would hardly know Warren finished third in Iowa, ahead of Biden and beat expectations. There seems to be a hunger in the media for ‘moderates’ to prevail, going by who gets the attention.
122
Warren beat out both Klobuchar and Biden yet the latter two get more mentions individually than she does.
Senator Sanders' answers were simply electrifying! I stand in awe of the man and his views.
He is brief and to the point.
No beating around the bush.
I am so glad to be able to vote for him in California next month.
205
Yes, I completely agree. No pandering either which always sets him apart from all of his competitors.
Go Bernie!
57
@EB
As a physician who supports Medicare for all, I was glad that he at least touched on that it was not all about money but also what kind of health insurance system will provide the best healthcare.
And he also touched on the question of how it is every other industrialized country can guarantee health insurance but ours, the wealthiest country in the history of the world and which, according to our president, has the best economy in its history somehow can't afford this. I've never heard any of the other candidates answer this question.
33
The 2 women endorsed by the NY Times Edi board were left behind by the Iowa voters. The debate tonite probably will not change the fortunes of those left behind.
39
@Girish Kotwal
While I agree with the first part of your comment, I think Biden’s story will have to wait until they get to some states with any minority voters. I do not think that there are any whiter states than IA and NH. NH is 92% NHS, with 1% blacks and 2.5% hispanics. But by month end, yes, we will have a good idea.
4
@Girish Kotwal I only leave them behind based on policy. I am unequivocally for M4A. no one in this country, where there is currently a profit based insurance industry with CEOs taking their multi million $ yearly salaries first, should be without health care. It's barbaric. if only one woman would say unequivocally they support M4A without restrictions, now. I would support them 100%. this is nonnegotiable for me and many others
10
I really hope Steyer ends his vanity project soon. He adds nothing.
As for the rest of them having their support group - not one of them seems like they’d beat Trump. Maybe we Americans deserve this...
15
Oh for Pete's sake (and Bernie's, and Amy's, and Elizabeth's, and above all our own), stop trying to manufacture personal drama and conflict. Analyze their thoughts, consider their positions, talk about their IDEAS. That's your job, not prodding us to think they insulted one another. This isn't "The Apprentice".
297
@michele
Agreed! They all had important things to say and I would be happy with several. They were all outstanding.
We have real hope now of having a decent government.
Stop stirring up fights for drama.
18
@michele
Unfortunately, Michele, these non-debates actually are the Democrats' version of The Apprentice. with all the punditocracy, twitterati, and commentariat getting to feel relevant and tough saying "You're fired!" and "You're hired!"
3
@michele Well said.
7
The fallacy in Mr. Sanders and Ms. Warren's constant diatribes against any billionaire "buying" the nomination is that it represents the free enterprise system at its best when the billionaire EARNED those billions by building a wonderfully successful business. They have earned the right to use their money in whatever way they want, including the funding of their own campaigns to bring their expertise to bear for the benefit of their country.
Trump was heralded as the answer to breaking the gridlock in Washington DC because he was a successful businessman. Unlike Trump, Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer really ARE successful businessmen where Trump is a fraud who squandered the millions he inherited and then turned to the Russians to fund his way back from repeated bankruptcies. Now they're calling in their notes on him.
The idea was right, but the execution was defrauded. Its time to put a gifted executive in the White House, one who has demonstrated executive success. Recognize what is represented by the billions they have EARNED in their lives. It doesn't disqualify them. To the contrary, those billions are the best credentials they bring to the battle.
32
@Howard M. Cohen
Trouble is, the government isn't run like a business.
33
@Howard M. Cohen "Earning" the right to buy policy is feudalism at best. Dollars are not votes- dollars can be acquired through exploitation, but votes by individual people have to be earned in the people's interest.
Managing a business no more qualifies someone for governing real lives than rights of succession or status as a warlord. It amounts to just as much either way.
36
@Howard M. Cohen "Its time to put a gifted executive in the White House, one who has demonstrated executive success. Recognize what is represented by the billions they have EARNED in their lives."
Mr. Cohen, the United States Government is not a securities investment firm.
29
Sanders won this easily. He reiterated his key points passionately and, more importantly, Buttigieg blew it.
His repeated attempts to evade the question about why African American arrests increased, in his town, under his watch wasn’t just obvious, it was PAINFUL to witness.
343
@Halboro No. And Pete didn't "blow it." It's been so long since you heard anyone speak in complete sentences, giving complete thoughts and not pull cheap shots or send out campaign managers to make false claims. You are stunned.
Maybe you needed to be better acquainted with other facts and their relationship with POC. Maybe someone should have asked DA Klobuchar why she kept a young man of color, who had not be tried, why she wouldn't allow him to attend his mother's funeral? Or perhaps ask Sanders why he didn't defend the only POC legislator in Vermont when she was attacked to the point she resigned her position to protect her family. He responded that it was "state matter" and he couldn't speak to that.
What's painful is the distinct bias, while allowing other candidates to get a "by" on these same questions. You know what that is? Pathetic.
27
@Halboro
It sounds PAINFUL. Perhaps next time he could simply point out that arrests are made to reflect violations of the law, irrespective of skin color.
14
@Ted Christopher "Perhaps next time he could simply point out that arrests are made to reflect violations of the law, irrespective of skin color."
Are you saying the only reason why African Americans were arrested at disproportionate rates in South Bend, and the reason why those rates increased under Buttigieg, is because they commit crimes at higher rates?
62
Stong night for Amy Klobuchar. It she had been this good in earlier debates she might be farther up the ladder now. I thought her calling out Mayor Pete as being the "cool newcomer" was apt, pointing out that we have a newcomer in the White House now and look where that got us. Pete makes the same point, over and over that he will bring something fresh and new to the job....but he fails to say exactly what. It's always easy to criticize the people already working in office and promise something new and better, but I have to wonder if he could really handle the actual job. His comment about preferring to watch cartoons rather than the Impeachment trial, was telling. Does he have what it actually takes to do this job? I'd like to believe him but I have doubts. There is a lot to be said for actual experience and for that I'd turn to Joe Biden.
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@Christa
If interrupting, talking over and talking out of turn, and condescending to others is the barometer, she had a strong night. As she asked: who does that?
5
Bernie won again. I just love his honesty and smarts and deep caring for the workers and all races and all sexes and that he is running to fight for everyone to have a good life. My heart is full thinking of the goodness of such a human being. He gives me hope in mankind in this wretched oligarchy we now suffer in.
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@cheerful dramatist
The only problem is that he espouses a political philosophy that has done more to reduce the human condition to wretchedness than any other in history. Yes, socialists believe they will be giving everyone the good life, but then they proceed to destroy any chance at a good life once they have enough power to implement their "great leap forward to collectivism."
25
@Jose Pieste I think that's a hard sell to most of Europe, particularly those parts with thriving worker-managed collectives like in Spain and Italy.
17
@Jose Pieste
Bernie's democratic socialism is that of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Iceland and others. Not too shabby, I would say.
42
Any of these fine candidates and their desires for better and more progressive public policy would make a superior replacement over the current basket case of spite, resentment and revenge that currently occupies the Oval Office.
We have a national emergency; there's a raging forest fire in the White House.
D to go forward; R for letting the White House and Washington DC burn down.
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@Socrates I agree that an approach using spite, resentment, revenge can appear petty, and autocratic. Strong and charismatic leaders have no need to resort to such techniques. HOWEVER, in business situations ... Trump may be latching on to shortcuts to enable resources to march cohesively in the same direction to "get work done' rather than diffuse energy in all directions. Also, removing talent at will is an executive's perrogative as they build their team comprised of like mission-focused people. Trump may be firing non-followers and staffing up with followers as a way to accomplish tasks with limited resources. Some of his results are impressive.
1
Yes, C Fletcher, the annual trillion dollar debts are impressive (and unprecedented during an economic expansion)....as is the unraveling of all environmental regulation.....and the steamrolling over the Constitution and separation of powers principle...just delightful ! Oh joy !
25
@Socrates True...we all agree with you...but not a very helpful comment. Do you have any more specific thoughts about which democratic candidate would be best able to confront the 'current basket case of spite, resentment and revenge' displayed in the administration?
1
They need to put a chess clock on the candidates. For those not familiar, tournament chess is a time-limited game, for example 20 moves per hour. A clock is kept be each player, and if one exceeds their limit, they forfeit the game.
For the debate, divide the time equally between the debaters, and if one exceeds the total time allotted, their mike is cut off. The absurdity of yelling over each other may be popular on cable news octoboxes, but it is no way to discuss America's future. Also, debaters should be confined to their set floor space, with no Trumpian stalking allowed.
Equal time. Fair debates. Or else. break out the white wine and just go Real Housewives on the election cycle.
9
Amy Klobuchar won the debate tonight. She has figured out the road to defeating Trump with an accurate critique of his administration with realistic policy ideas for allowing more Americans to realize their full potential.
There was no doubt left on that stage tonight that she can engage the American people while being tough enough to defeat Trump in November.
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@JT FLORIDA she can't engage with many of us who are unequivocally for M4A. not being for M4A holds the working class in contempt. Not being for M4A is supporting a barbaric system that says CEOs should be paid millions and get profits on top of that--out of our health care budget. Not being for M4A is saying that it is ok for human beings to suffer, die and leave grieving loved ones simply because they can't afford health care. we are legion and we won't change our minds
8
@JT FLORIDA I think there's a bit doubt. I like Klobuchar. She's smart, plays the empathy card well. But there's no way she's a viable candidate. She can't beat Trump.
8
Best line from Biden
Trump should've given the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Lt. Col. Vindman and not to Rush Limbaugh.
Amen
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Buttigieg — informed, measured, consistent in every response. Never swiping at his competitors.
Impressed.
73
@TheOtherSide Buttigieg--takes corporate, PAC and billionaire's money, no problem. I don't care if he swipes at his competitors or not. The guy worked for pharmaceutical companies in the past as well. He doesn't impress me one iota.
82
@TheOtherSide
And, inexperienced as all get-out.
20
Pete worked for pharmaceutical companies? Gonna back that up?
9
Buttigieg answer to the marijuana arrests was very bad, and def shows how he will never get the African American vote or the progressive vote.
73
do you realize that the only qualification that matters is the ability to convincingly best dt, right? He won’t leave If it’s close.
Our democracy hangs in the balance.
Democracy is not perpetual.
It’s certainly not guaranteed.
Do any of you understand this??
7
Hey, Nacho My mixed (white & all sorts of POC) family disagrees with you. And so do other POC we know.
9
@Nacho This progressive begs to differ.
2
Klobuchar rocked it!
She's the only person on the stage who has won a general election in a competitive state - three times! She can win the electoral college, and can govern.
And she's progressive enough: read her website before dragging out the tired blather about her being "too centrist". https://amyklobuchar.com
84
@Baxter Jones She is not progressive enough. She has consistently refused to protect our pristine Boundary Waters from proposed copper mining. If she can't stand up for this, she has no vision or will to take on climate change, and moving to a green economy.
36
Hey hey Donna!
The only issue that matters is to beat trump.
That’s it. The only issue that matters.
Anything else doesn’t matter.
11
@SN That's absurd. One should not put aside one's own well-being and the desire for policies that would improve it. To do so is to become a simple statistic for the benefit of billionaires and party establishment.
1
I don't know what to call these sessions with the candidates but they ARE NOT DEBATES. I'm a Democrat desperate to have someone crush Donald Trump and deny him the opportunity to finish off our country.
Can we not find a better way to select a candidate to run against Trump?
These events seem more like gladiators fighting in an arena than question/answer sessions.
25
@Peyton Collier-Kerr
"These events seem more like gladiators fighting in an arena than question/answer sessions."
And a gladiator is exactly what we need to take on Trump, which is why those debates are useful. We need to know the person who's going up against Trump is cool and adaptable under fire. Tonight for example we learned that Pete Buttigieg shuts down when people press him too hard on certain issues. Therefore, he should be out of the running in my opinion.
That being said Q&A is indeed useful, which is why we have town halls.
17
That’s the way the moderators wanted it. The best debate was the run moderated by PBS. The rest are a ridiculous game of gotcha. I heave watched every debate. I think only PBS should moderate. Bring the class and quality up many points.
14
@Stuart
Pete was much weaker tonight, and I noticed him shutting down too.
5
I get so sick of these questions about Mayor Pete and the black community here. Come to South Bend, and see first hand the crushing poverty that surrounds and afflicts so many African-Americans here. The poverty is endemic—and relates to every other aspect of social well-being: education, health, job opportunity, crime—the list goes on. Yeah, he could take more ownership, possibly, about certain police policies. Yeah, he could talk more specifics about what worked and what didn’t under his tenure. But until you see just what he means about how the systemic/institutional racism plays out here, don’t act like it’s just a throw away line or he doesn’t get it. Some of Pete’s policies were effective and some were not, but he was willing to try and think outside the box. I actually am planning to vote for Warren, but as a resident of this town, I’m so sick of this line of attack. Pete wasn’t perfect but he did try. And sometimes actually succeed. That’s more than could be said for most, and certainly for the current POTUS.
318
@Steph “ But until you see just what he means about how the systemic/institutional racism plays out here, don’t act like it’s just a throw away line or he doesn’t get it.”
Ok, but that still doesn’t explain why the disproportionate rate of black arrests actually INCREASED under his watch.
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@Steph
As an overdue counterpoint here - and a basic point missing in the liberal-bent logic of many Democrats - if you would like to see a nominally very progressive run locale - well-funded, African American Democratic rule for a long time - then look at a place like Baltimore, Maryland. Check out their statics including expenditures on schools and outcomes. If a white person were running the place (like Major Pete) then charges of "Racism!" would surely be heard.
17
@Steph Pete DID try. He mad one mistake in a very small arena. He's young. He's incredibly smart. He may not be presidential material now (I think he is)..but he DOES get it.
18
It's Amy Klobuchar. The only one with the guts to say that Socialism isn't what the country needs. A Truman in a dress.
Good on her! You're getting my money, and I want you as POTUS.
And I'm a Republican.
133
@Thomas Penn in Seattle
Truman in a dress! That's perfect!!
8
@Thomas Penn in Seattle I can't imagine anyone who doesn't rely on either family wealth or a job in a non-productive sector of the economy (i.e. management) thinking socialism isn't exactly what the United States needs.
22
@Thomas Penn in Seattle,
Luckily, we have checks and balances, and no candidate has a chance of turning the USA into a Socialist state. As the NYT has pointed out, once their proposals get through the legislative meat grinder, all of the candidates' policy proposals will likely end up being fairly equal. I'll vote for whichever candidate gets the nomination. The goal is to end the current nightmare.
28
What a vigorous debate! The best one yet if you ask me.
As a black women, many issues were discussed which made me winnow the field for myself even if Iowa did not.
To start, I absolutely agree with Elizabeth, Bernie, and Tom Steyer (most especially on reparations) when it comes to helping close the gap on economic inequality.
I found Mayor Peter’s responses on crime reform and the inadequacies found in South Bend under his leadership concerning not to mention Wall Street funding his campaign. His answers seemed scripted and quite disingenuous.
As for Biden, I literally fell off my chair and picked up my jaw from the ground when he said the Democratic Party needs to stop taking black people for advantage, yet he stands waiting for South Carolina to rescue him in the primary.
My respect for Senator Amy has grown immensely, she is my on my radar. I am well aware that her chances are slim. However she would be excellent in other capacities as a cabinet member if she does not win the nomination.
With that said, I am with Bernie. Elizabeth is my second choice and Amy now my third. But Bernie is indeed the father of modern day liberalism which mirrors the democratic socialism in Western Europe. He is the reason we are able to speak of these issues from Medicare for All (M4A) to cancelling student loans debt. He deserves the credit of pushing the party back to its original intent: to serve the people.
386
@Up Down All Around Very well thought-out comments. I'm with you about how I feel about Bernie, but you've expressed your analysis so well I have no reason to say any more, except to say thanks.
40
@Up Down All Around excellent, clear, unbiased analysis. You should have a column.
27
@allseriousnessaside
It was a great analysis, even though I'm still wavering.
6
So where is the standout moving leader in the bunch? I saw all candidates holding up their hands like school children to be called on by the all powerful Television people. I'm still not inspired.
2
In real life, she kicked Brett’s behind in this hearings. She is one tough woman!
29
Bernie is the only candidate who is not just a candidate — he is a movement. The Democratic Party finally mostly adopted his platform after ridiculing him and calling his policies crazy. He is not crazy, he is the unwavering man for the middle class.
336
@GO Can Bernie unite the Democratic party? His followers are hating on moderate Dems on twitter. A fractured Dem party gives us Trump reelected and the end of our country as we once knew it.
26
@GO I agree. He is fomenting a movement. This isn't the time for that, though. It may have been 4 years ago...and it may again catch fire 4 years from now. But not now.
9
@alabreabreal yes its never the right time is it. Pretty sure that is what everyojne said four years ago
18
Excellent performance by Amy Klobuchar. Love how she actually explains how she intends to pay for her ideas, and provides examples of how she actually gets things done. She is a woman who... actually gets it done.
Oh mayor Pete. Happy he's smart and well educated but seriously were he a female with identical credentials, experience, positions - oh goodness she would have never made it this far and would likely have been laughed off the stage early tn as lacking the substantive experience needed. Still, it's amazing to be a white man in this country!
139
@Mona Ko
And an 'identical' female married to another (29 year old) woman, and talking about starting a family ? Seriously a non-starter.
3
@Mona Ko What? Mayor Pete is not a female. His credentials, experience and positions are his own. Warren is female...and her credentials, and experience are her own. Not sure what your point is here.
3
If Amy K does better, so does Bernie because it further splits the center. I’m all for it! Moreover, as a fellow poor folks Midwesterner, I actually prefer her schtick to Biden or Pete.
46
Amy's best debate and a moving closer. She needs a good showing in NH.
54
59 is the new 38! We got hope, Amy, let’s get it!
46
Bloomberg is looking better all the time.
60
@Jan Warfield If you like billionaires buying elections - he sure does.
54
@Jan Warfield
If you are a Republican
8
@Jan Warfield if you like Republicans who give keynote speeches for war criminals and who continued to donate to Republican senators to defeat Dems as recently as 4 years ago. and if you like billionaires who buy their way into the campaign.
8
My one and only priority is eliminating trump and restoring a sense of decency to our county. I will vote for Bernie, I will vote for Pete, I will vote for Biden. Literally. Anyone.
478
@CP I will vote for any of them. But my preference is Buttigieg. Too young. Too well spoken. Too well dressed. But exceptionally mature and experienced in the ways that count.
26
@CP If one is going to vote simply out of desperation, one might as well vote based on a roll of the dice.
If one does not vote for a candidate based on the issues that bear on them personally, then the entire democratic experiment is lost. We have candidates in the democratic field who have explicit policies that would benefit the majority of Americans: Sanders foremost and secondarily Warren.
Expressing a desire to vote for anyone regardless of their policies is playing right into the billionaire's hands.
15
@alabreabreal I am also a supporter of Mayor Pete - he’s the kind of thoughtful and intelligent leader who I really admire and who we need back in the White House. At the same time, I am also seeing the urgency people feel for Bernie and systemic change. He has started a massive movement. I really hope, whatever the party chooses, we find unity at the end of the tunnel. trump’s unhinged actions have reminded me of the consequences of Democratic disunity.
12
Agree! Great debate. ABC did well. Amy was great.
78
I’m pretty tired of debate analyses that talk more about the candidates punching at each other than what they actually said. In the end, if the candidates punch too hard and their supporters don’t support the nominee, we’re sunk.
85
"I’m pretty tired of debate analyses that talk more about the candidates punching at each other than what they actually said"
Yes, this, a thousand times this!! Media, PLEASE stop trying to manufacture conflict. Analyze their thoughts, consider their positions, talk about their IDEAS. That's your job, not prodding them to insult one another.
53
@Bob Schaffel, actually WaPo did a better job of evaluating what the said in their ranking of who they thought were winners and losers. I didn't agree with the ranking per se though.
1
This was the best debate. The candidates were more united than previouly. The panel asked great questions.
84
@Phyllis Moroney For me I only like the debates when the main network news stations cover it. It's includes their evening or morning news counterparts over opinionated news hosts from cable like we see on CNN or MSNBC. I usually like the New Hampshire debate which is usually on ABC, and the South Carolina Debate which will be again on CBS.
2
Biden get points for the Vindman Ovation. Buttigieg loses points for saying Sanders is my way or the highway-that Sanders has to go all the way to the edge. Really? Kinda made that up-Pete. Klobuchar-earnest as ever--not necessarily effective gave everyone homework-to read editorials endorsing her, to go to her website, to donate to her campaign--just grating. Bernie and Warren stayed the course-perservered.
81
@That's What She Said No worries, Bernie got even when he called Pete out for sucking up the billionaire donors and Pete's only response was "we have to bring everyone with us".
"Everyone" includes the plutocrats who created the conditions that got Trump elected in the first place, apparently.
88
I saw the entire debate. Earlier I watched five minutes of supporters talking out of a Trump rally. Were it not for the American accent, they might as well have been from two different countries. This is not a Presidential election. This is a referendum for America's existence as one nation.
416
@SR America is not one nation, but a multitude held together by common beliefs. Fracture those beliefs and the center cannot hold.
10
@JDK sure it can. Why do you think we have a very large standing army in time of peace (not counting our fake wars against this or that )
2
@SR Given our vast geographic size and enormous economy, what is the current benefit have two ideologically different countries forced together as one? It is time to split into two America's, the Progressive Northern European version, and the historic classical liberal constitutional limited government republic version. They would each represent about half the population, and each give people the ability to live in an area that shared their beliefs. The original intent of federalism was to allow this under one roof, with individual states having substantial ability to shape their own governance culture. But the growth of one large central federal government imposing winner take all rules based upon the party in power on the all the residents of all the states has shattered that illusion. For example, see how the feds are currently trying to destroy Progressive California's policies on the environment, immigration, etc. Time to split !!
3