As someone who has watched all but one round of Democratic debates, I argue that last week’s debate was, by far, the worst. It has been a long journey with many candidates, and of the twelve remaining, only six were featured at the seventh debate: former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), former South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and NYC businessman/climate activist Tom Steyer. Tuesday’s debate seemed to stretch on hours longer than the two hours slotted. Debate was mostly stagnant, and the candidates agreed on many points.
This debate was the last scheduled before the Iowa caucuses in February and a chance for Democratic frontrunners to break ties in the polls. So, why did this debate, hosted by CNN and The Des Moines Register, earn only a weak 7.3 million viewers? One factor may be, as Democratic presidential candidate Deval Patrick stated Tuesday, a lack of “diverse talent”. He commented that “America [would] not see herself in full” that evening, as Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) had ceased her campaign in December 2019, Julian Castro, former HUD Secretary, pulled out of the race early this year, and the day before the Iowa debate, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) dropped out as well. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) and entrepreneur Andrew Yang failed to meet qualifying standards to get a spot onstage.
Overall, the event lacked intrigue. Sen. Harris and Rep. Gabbard, who usually expose a top candidate or start a nastier, more personal debate, were missing from the stage. Pete Buttigieg was obviously the youngest candidate onstage and at times seemed classier and more rational than the older candidates, who went on long tirades and debatably lost the audience. He argued that President Trump would have a hard time debating a war veteran like himself and attempted to get religion involved before being removed from the spotlight. Sen. Klobuchar seemed to forget her previous experiences going after Buttigieg and left him alone, possibly contributing to his passable performance Tuesday night. As usual, she utilized historical anecdotes and quotes to boost her claims. She was given more time to interact with other candidates during the seventh debate. Speaking slowly yet concisely, she had to talk over the moderators to conclude her arguments. Tom Steyer made sure to center his debate around climate change and showed a unique ability to stay committed to his campaign goals. Only allotted twelve and 26 seconds of speaking time, he struggled to gain prominence.
Sen. Bernie Sanders’ performance was the same as usual, and he likely did not gain nor lose any voters. His annoyance with Sen. Warren’s arguments against him was evident. He refrained from continuing to pursue her claims after stating the truth. Sen. Elizabeth Warren stayed solid on her case for a female President and did not hesitate to accuse Sen. Sanders of sexism. This was likely an attempt to sway his supporters to her side, but his stubborn denial didn’t get her anywhere. Joe Biden seemed to be lacking in energy and relied on jokes and personality to make points. He made sure to keep to his goals of unity and healing after impeachment, and confidently claimed he was prepared to beat Donald Trump.
There were several arguments surrounding sexism. Some argue that Senators Warren and Klobuchar built on one another’s claims that women are fit to be President, while others perceived Sen. Klobuchar’s response as a passive-aggressive threat daring Sen. Warren to call herself superior to Sen. Klobuchar and other women in government. This followed Elizabeth Warren’s and Bernie Sanders’ disagreement over the subject of a female President. Sen. Sanders endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, so why would Sen. Warren claim that in 2018, he told her that a woman was unqualified? They each stuck to their story – that the other was lying – as the debate went on. This likely led to their tense interaction afterwards, arguably the most interesting moment of the entire event. Sen. Sanders extended his hand to Sen. Warren, who pulled her hand away and began a bitter conversation as CNN focused the camera on them. Tom Steyer seemed to step in as if to mediate and the discussion broke apart with Sen. Sanders throwing his hands up and turning away.
Foreign policy finally became a subject of interest as discussion took place regarding Iran, Iraq in 2002, and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). This subject caused somewhat surprising disagreement among the candidates, who agreed on many other points such as universal childcare and of course, impeachment. Though the AFL-CIO has endorsed the USMCA, Sen. Sanders and Mr. Steyer indicated it does not focus on lowering fossil fuel emissions. The other four candidates stated their support for the agreement. Mr. Biden and Sen. Sanders’ debate regarding the Iraq war in 2002 sparked laughter among audience members. Mr. Biden stuttered through his arguments and Sen. Sanders sometimes appeared to forget what he was going to say. Mr. Biden made sure to acknowledge his “mistake” voting for the Iraq war, similar to his expressed regrets at other debates for other past decisions, a classic flip flop we have seen before.
These candidates certainly do have high hopes, and it will definitely be entertaining to watch one of them debate Donald Trump in the upcoming year.
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