MIAMI — Ten Democrats railed against a national economy and Republican administration they argued exist only for the rich as presidential candidates debated onstage for the first time in the young 2020 season, embracing inequality as a defining theme in their fight to deny President Donald Trump a second term in office.
Health care and immigration, more than any other issues, led the debate. And Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, more than anyone else, stood out — on her own at times — in calling for “fundamental change” across the nation’s economy and government to address persistent issues of inequality.
“I think of it this way. Who is this economy really working for? It’s doing great for a thinner and thinner slice at the top,” Warren declared shortly before raising her hand as one of the only Democrats on stage willing to abolish her own private health insurance in favor of a government-run plan. “Health care is a basic human right, and I will fight for basic human rights.”
The debate marked a major step forward in the 2020 presidential campaign as Democrats fight to break out from a crowded field that has been consumed by one question above all: Who’s best positioned to defeat Trump? The candidates will spend the next eight months before primary voting begins scrapping over that question and the broader fight for the direction of their political party.
Another 10 candidates, including early front-runner Joe Biden, take their turn tonight.
And while Trump is the ultimate target of many Democratic voters, the president was hardly a major feature for most of Wednesday night. He was barely mentioned in a largely civil debate with moments of modest policy clashes and few instances of Democrat-on-Democrat confrontation. In one of the night’s final moments, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee did declare, “The biggest threat to the security of the United States is Donald Trump.”
For one night, at least, Democrats were content to focus on their views of what America is and should be. No one openly stumbled.
Absent the ugly attacks or missteps of some past debates, the two-hour discussion allowed the party to show off its extraordinary diversity. Wednesday’s lineup featured three women, one black man and another man of Mexican heritage. Three candidates spoke Spanish at times, while Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, an African American, talked about the violence that left seven people in his own urban neighborhood shot last week.
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar spoke up for the women on stage: “I just want to say there’s three women up here who have fought pretty hard for a woman’s right to choose.”
Immigration was on the candidates’ minds as they pointed to the searing photos of a drowned Salvadoran father and his toddler daughter at the Rio Grande and blamed Trump and his policies concerning migrants crossing into America illegally.
Former Obama administration housing chief Julian Castro said, “Watching that image of Oscar and his daughter Valeria was heartbreaking. It should also piss us all off.”
Warren spent the evening at center stage, a top-tier candidate whose campaign has gained ground in recent weeks as she has released a near-constant stream of policy proposals. She was flanked by lower-tier candidates including Booker of New Jersey, former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke and others who needed big moments to help spark momentum in the crowded field.
Several candidates, including Castro, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio and former Rep. John Delaney of Maryland, were eager to jab their rivals on issues including health care and immigration.
