This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/nov/20/democratic-debate-buttigieg-biden-sanders-warren-atlanta
The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Democratic 2020 hopefuls tear into 'criminal' Trump at debate | Democratic 2020 hopefuls tear into 'criminal' Trump at debate |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Debate comes hours after a US ambassador gave testimony directly implicating Trump in a quid pro quo deal with Ukraine | Debate comes hours after a US ambassador gave testimony directly implicating Trump in a quid pro quo deal with Ukraine |
| Democratic presidential candidates tore into Donald Trump at the fifth debate in Atlanta on Wednesday night, hours after a senior US diplomat gave explosive testimony during impeachment hearings that directly implicated the president in a quid pro quo deal with Ukraine. | Democratic presidential candidates tore into Donald Trump at the fifth debate in Atlanta on Wednesday night, hours after a senior US diplomat gave explosive testimony during impeachment hearings that directly implicated the president in a quid pro quo deal with Ukraine. |
| Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, stunned Washington with bombshell evidence that blew a hole in the White House’s defences, implicated numerous senior officials and left the US president facing probable impeachment. | Gordon Sondland, the US ambassador to the European Union, stunned Washington with bombshell evidence that blew a hole in the White House’s defences, implicated numerous senior officials and left the US president facing probable impeachment. |
| On the debate stage in Georgia, the Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren argued it was both Democrats and Republican senators’ “constitutional responsibility” to remove Trump from office. | On the debate stage in Georgia, the Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren argued it was both Democrats and Republican senators’ “constitutional responsibility” to remove Trump from office. |
| She added, with reference to the fact that Sondland was appointed to his position after making a $1m donation to Donald Trump’s inaugural fund: “We are not going to give away these ambassador posts to the highest bidder.” | She added, with reference to the fact that Sondland was appointed to his position after making a $1m donation to Donald Trump’s inaugural fund: “We are not going to give away these ambassador posts to the highest bidder.” |
| “We have a criminal living in the White House,” said the California senator Kamala Harris. “Ambassador Sondland by his own words told us that everyone was in the loop. That makes it a criminal enterprise.” | “We have a criminal living in the White House,” said the California senator Kamala Harris. “Ambassador Sondland by his own words told us that everyone was in the loop. That makes it a criminal enterprise.” |
| Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, by contrast, warned that the party must not become “consumed” by Trump and the impeachment inquiry or risk losing the election to him again in 2020. | Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, by contrast, warned that the party must not become “consumed” by Trump and the impeachment inquiry or risk losing the election to him again in 2020. |
| Biden, in a reply riddled with verbal stumbles, argued that the impeachment inquiry is evidence that Trump fears Biden more than any other candidate. At the heart of the House’s investigation is whether Trump abused the power of his office by attempting to enlist Ukraine to open an investigation into Biden and his son, Hunter. | |
| Biden has continued to maintain his status as frontrunner, based in large part on his enduring support from African American voters. But in the month since the last debate, rising star Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend mayor, has emerged as a threat in the key early voting state of Iowa, while fellow frontrunner Warren has seen her lead slip as she faces sustained attacks over how she would pay for her sweeping policy proposals. | Biden has continued to maintain his status as frontrunner, based in large part on his enduring support from African American voters. But in the month since the last debate, rising star Pete Buttigieg, the South Bend mayor, has emerged as a threat in the key early voting state of Iowa, while fellow frontrunner Warren has seen her lead slip as she faces sustained attacks over how she would pay for her sweeping policy proposals. |
| In a two-hour debate that raced through a wide range of issues from paid family leave to white nationalism, climate change received a rare substantive seven-minute exchange. | |
| “It is the number one threat to humanity, it is an existential issue,” Biden said, after Steyer accused him of not addressing the crisis with an appropriate level of urgency. | |
| Steyer said the environment would be the single most important priority of his administration and that he would use the power of the presidency to “declare a climate emergency on day one.” | |
| Sanders added that he would hold the fossil fuel industry accountable. “Maybe we should think about prosecuting them as well,” he said. | |
| At the same time, the already–crowded field of Democratic candidates vying for the party’s nomination has expanded, with at least one more contemplating a late-entry White House run. | At the same time, the already–crowded field of Democratic candidates vying for the party’s nomination has expanded, with at least one more contemplating a late-entry White House run. |
| The turn of events is evidence of widespread anxiety less than three months before the Iowa caucuses in February, which kick off primary voting for the nomination. | The turn of events is evidence of widespread anxiety less than three months before the Iowa caucuses in February, which kick off primary voting for the nomination. |
| Of the candidates who qualified for the October debate in Ohio, only Julián Castro, the former Housing secretary, failed to meet the polling threshold for this one. Beto O’Rourke, the former Texas congressman, dropped out of the race earlier this month. | Of the candidates who qualified for the October debate in Ohio, only Julián Castro, the former Housing secretary, failed to meet the polling threshold for this one. Beto O’Rourke, the former Texas congressman, dropped out of the race earlier this month. |
| To qualify for this debate, the candidates had to earn at least 3% in four national or early-state polls approved by the party or at least 5% in two early-state polls and received donations from at least 165,000 individual donors. | To qualify for this debate, the candidates had to earn at least 3% in four national or early-state polls approved by the party or at least 5% in two early-state polls and received donations from at least 165,000 individual donors. |
| The former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick entered the race last week and the former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has filed to appear on the ballot in a handful of Super Tuesday states, in a sign that he intends to run. | The former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick entered the race last week and the former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg has filed to appear on the ballot in a handful of Super Tuesday states, in a sign that he intends to run. |
| Neither will be on stage on Wednesday, but their interest in joining the race at this relatively late stage is indicative of a growing concern among Democrats that the party’s frontrunners lack the strength to beat Donald Trump in the November 2020 election. Some believe Biden, 77, is too old, and Buttigieg, 37, is too young, while Warren and Sanders are too liberal. Harris and Booker, once viewed as strong contenders for the nomination, have failed to gain traction. | Neither will be on stage on Wednesday, but their interest in joining the race at this relatively late stage is indicative of a growing concern among Democrats that the party’s frontrunners lack the strength to beat Donald Trump in the November 2020 election. Some believe Biden, 77, is too old, and Buttigieg, 37, is too young, while Warren and Sanders are too liberal. Harris and Booker, once viewed as strong contenders for the nomination, have failed to gain traction. |
| Wednesday’s debate, hosted by the Washington Post and MSNBC, was trimmed from a marathon three-hours down to just two to cover all of the major issues important to Democratic voters: healthcare, immigration, foreign policy and the climate crisis. | Wednesday’s debate, hosted by the Washington Post and MSNBC, was trimmed from a marathon three-hours down to just two to cover all of the major issues important to Democratic voters: healthcare, immigration, foreign policy and the climate crisis. |
| Six candidates – Biden, Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg, Harris and Klobuchar – have so far qualified for the sixth Democratic debate due to be held on 19 December in Los Angeles. | Six candidates – Biden, Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg, Harris and Klobuchar – have so far qualified for the sixth Democratic debate due to be held on 19 December in Los Angeles. |