Somewhere I have cat/dog debates, but since I can’t find it, this image will do.
I will transcribe what I can, summarize when I can’t keep up, update during commercials, and let y’all run the commentary below! Enjoy!
Opening Statements:
Bullock: A lot in my state voted for *rump. Prochoice, pro-union, populist, won red state by getting stuff done. Show up, listen, focus on the challenges of everyday America. That farmer getting hit by trade wars, that teacher working second job can't wait for revolution. Problems here on now. Emphasis on progress.
Williamson: In 1776, our founders brought an extraordinary new possibility. All people would thrive. We have not ever totally actualized this ideal, but best when we try. When opposed, generations of Americans push back. Now it is time for a generation of Americans to rise up again. An amoral system has turned profits into a false God. Conventional politics is part of the problem. We must create a new possibility.
Delaney: Folks, we have a choice. We can go down the road that Senator Sanders and Senator Warren want to take us, which are bad policies and free everything, which will turn off voters. Or we can nominate new ideas with choice, unify country, grow economy, create jobs everywhere, then we will win the White House. I am the son of a construction worker. I was the youngest CEO in the history of the stock exchange. My platform is real solutions.
Ryan: America is great. But not everyone can access America's greatness. The systems that were built to lift us up are now suffocating the American people. The economic system now forces us to have 2-3 jobs just to get by. Most families when doing their bills get a pit in the middle of their stomach. This isn't about left or right. This is about new and better. It's not about reforming old systems. It's about building new systems. I will offer solutions that are bold, realistic, and a clean break.
Hickenlooper: Last year Democrats flipped 40 seats. Not one of those 40 Dems share the policies of our front runners. I was out of work. I learned small business lessons of how to provide service and teamwork and became top mayor. We expanded health care, reproductive rights, climate change. We got people together to get things done, provided solutions to problems, worked together, created jobs.
Klobuchar: Let's get real. Ultimately, we have to beat *rump. I am the daughter of a union teacher and a newspaper man. That's because we come from a country of shared dreams. I have had it with the racist attacks. I have had it with a President who promises he has your back, then your prices are up. I can win this, I'm from the Midwest, I have won every race, every place, every time. I will govern with integrity.
O'Rourke: I am running because I believe America discovers its greatness at its moment of greatest need. In this test, America will be redeemed. We will stand up for the human rights of everyone, for the rule of law for everyone. We are Americans first. We will ensure each one of us is well enough and educated enough and paid enough to realize our full potential. We will confront endless war and climate change. At this moment of truth, let us make a more perfect union.
Buttigieg: I am running because our country is running out of time. It is even bigger than the emergency of this presidency. America was already in a crisis, an economy that was not working, endless war, climate change. It is only accelerating. We have 12 years before we reach catastrophe. A woman's right to choose may not even exist. We are not going to be able to meet this moment by recycling the same politicians as have dominated Washington since I've been alive.
Warren: *Rump disgraces the office of president every single day. Anyone on this stage will be a far better president. I promise no matter who president nominee is, I will work my heart out for a Democratic president and Congress. *rump has kicked dirt in our faces. We are not going to solve the urgent problems we face with small ideas and spinelessness. We will be the party of big structural change, our economy working for everyone. I know what's broken, I know how to fix it, and I will fight to make it happen.
Sanders: Tonight, 87 million Americans are unninsured or underinsured, but the health care industry made billions in profits last year. Americans are sleeping on the streets, but companies like Amazon did not pay income tax. Tonight, half of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, yet 49% of all new income goes to the top 1%. Tonight the fossil fuel industry receives tax breaks while they destroy the planet. We have to take on racism and xenophobia, and transform our economy and our government.
Healthcare:
Sanders: We have a dysfunctional health care system. 500,000 Americans every year go bankrupt because of medical bills. Five minutes away from here is Canada. They guarantee health care every man, woman and child as a human right, they spend half what we spend, when they leave they hospital they have no bill at all.
Delaney: We can create a universal health care system for free. But we don't have to subtract private health insurance.
Sanders: Tens of millions lose their insurance every year when change jobs or employer changes insurance. If you want stability and freedom of choice of doctor or hospital without bankruptcy, the answer is to get rid of profiteering.
Delaney: We should deal with health care as a right, but why take something away? We can give everyone health care and a choice.
Warren: We are the Democrats. We are not about taking away health care from anyone. That is what Republicans do. Stop using Republican talking points to talk about best plan. My friend is 35 years old, with ALS. Addy has good health insurance and it's not nearly enough.
Giant corporations and billionaires will pay more. Middle class will pay less out of pocket. Addy is dying. Every month he has $9000 in medical bills that the insurance company won't cover. They are begging for money from insurance and online funding. The profit model is to take in as much money as you can and pay out as little as possible. That is not working. M4A will fix that.
Total costs will go down for middle class families.
Bullock: I am not going to support any plan that rips away quality health care from individuals. We can get there with a public option, negotiating drug prices.
Buttigieg: We don't have to stand here speculating whether M4A or corporate options are better. My M4A or options are testable. If everyone wants M4A, we will get there. Buy into it. Pay same money in taxes or premiums. With or without coverage in present system, you pay too much for care.
O'Rourke: No, the middle class will not pay more in taxes. False choice - improvements at the margins vs. M4A. Better path: Medicare for America - those with employer-sponsored plans can keep them.
Bullock: Build on ACA, a public option and negotiate Rx drug prices and surprise medical billing. Get there without disrupting lives of Americans.
O'Rourke: Every expansion option I've seen still leaves people uninsured. Our plan ensures that everyone is enrolled in Medicare or can keep insurer.
Klobuchar: I have a better way to do this. I was called a "street figher," thank you. We need the public option, it will bring health care costs down for everyone. Not moral to not have that public option? Sen. Sanders was on the public option bill last year. This is the way to quickly get things done.
Sanders: People talk about having insurance. Millions have insurance, can't go to the doctor, out of the hospital go bankrupt. We are talking about no deductibles, no co-insurance. The health care industry will be advertising tonight on this program.
Warren: We have to think the Big Frame. It works great for the wealthy, the insurance companies. It's going to take real courage to fight back against them. These insurance companies do not have a God-given right to suck profits out of our health care system.
Delaney: The public option is great, but doesn't go far enough. I propose universal health care as a basic right for free, my plan Better Care is fully paid for without middle class taxes and with options.
Hickenlooper: Americans are used to making choices. Proposing a public option with some form of Medicare, but people choose it, eventually you can get there, with evolution, not revolution.
Warren: We have tried this, and the insurance companies have sucked money out of the system and force people to fight for health care their doctors say they need. Doctors fill out complicated forms to give insurance chance to say NO and push costs onto patients.
Williamson: I am very much in agreement with Sen. Sanders and Sen. Warren. I hear the others and I have concerns. It might make it harder to win and to govern. If that's our big fights, Republicans will shut down everything else.
Buttigieg: It's time to stop worrying about what Republicans will say. Regardless of far left or conservative agenda, Republicans will still say we are crazy leftist socialists. Do what's right.
Sanders: Nobody can defend the dysfunctionality of the current system. Taking on the last 20 years of drug companies and insurance companies lobbying and campaign contributions. Why Canada insulin is 1/10th the price.
Ryan: Here in Detroit, plan of Sanders and Warren tells union members that benefits they gave up wages for will be lost. Allow people to buy in, let businesses buy in.
Sanders: M4A is better, comprehensive, dental, hearing, eyeglasses. Many of our union brothers and sisters now pay high deductibles and co-payments. They can get good wages instead of fighting for health care.
Ryan: These union members are losing jobs, wages are stagnant, they have possibly really good health care. The Democrats will take away that and "do better"?
Delaney: Sanders bill will lower quality. Says specifically rates will be current Medicare rates. Only covers 80% of costs. Underpay health care providers, create 2-tier market, wealthy will buy health care with cash.
Sanders: Under M4A, hospitals will save money because not spending a fortune on billing and bureaucracy. We will run a nonprofit health care system. When we save $500 billion per year by ending complexities, hospitals will be better off.
Delaney: His math is wrong. If all the bills were paid at Medicare rate, many hospitals will close. If all bills for rural hospitals were paid by Medicare, they all say they would close. Why so extreme? Why not right but choice?
Immigration:
Buttigieg: When I'm president, illegally crossing the border will still be illegal, but we have a crisis, cruelty and incompetence has created a humanitarian disaster, a stain on the USA. Americans want comprehensive immigration reform, protection for Dreamers, pathway to citizenship. We know what to do. Border security and laws. But haven't had the will. We have a president who could fix it in a month, but he needs that crisis. That will end on my watch. If fraud, criminal. If not, civil law.
O'Rourke: In my administration, after waive citizenship fees, free Dreamers from fear, stop criminally prosecuting families and children for seeking refuge, assist countries in Central America so families don't have to make 2000 mile journey. Then expect immigrants to follow laws.
Warren: Right now, the criminalization statute is what gives *rump ability to take children away from parents, lock up people at our borders. We can have border security. We can't not live our values. I have seen the mothers, the cages of babies. We must every day live our values. We cannot make it a crime. The point is not criminalization. That has given *rump the tool to break families apart.
Hickenlooper: We need secure borders. But they're kicking them all back and forth. Make sure whatever law we have doesn't allow children to be snatched from their parents. That should be fairly fixable.
Warren: One way to fix it is to decriminalize it. Take away *rump's tools.
Klobuchar: There is the will to change this in Congress. What's missing is the right person in the White House. Immigrants are America. Let people seek asylum. Pass the bill. Greatly reduce the deficit. Give us the money for border security and processing. Allow for path to citizenship. *rump wants to use these people as political pawns.
Sanders: Strong border protections. What *rump is doing through his racism and xenophobia is demonizing a group of people. I will end demonization. If a mother and child walk thousands of miles on a dangerous path, they are not criminals, they are people fleeing violence. Why are people walking 2000 miles to a strange country where they don't know the language? Bring the entire hemisphere together to talk about how we rebuild Honduras etc., so people don't have to flee their country.
Bullock: I think this is part of the discussion that shows how detached we are from people's lives. If we decriminalize, give health care, we'll get multiple millions. Biggest immigration problem now is *rump. He's using this to rip apart families and this country. We can have safe borders and path to citizenship and opportunities. Don't decriminalize everything, but have president with judgment and decency.
Warren: We have to be an America who is clear about what we want to do as a country. We need path to citizenship, fix the crisis at the border. We do not play into *rump's hands. He wants to stir up the crisis, that's his overall message. If anything is wrong, blame immigrants.
Bullock: You are playing into his hands. A sane immigration system needs a sane leader. We can do that without decriminalizing everyone. Obama's secretary says we'd have a bigger problem.
Warren: If we lock up people seeking refuge, seeking asylum, we are ignoring the law. That is not a crime. Keep us safe at the border, but not criminalization.
Ryan: Right now, if you want to come into the country, you should at least ring the doorbell. It is shameful what is happening. Even if you decriminalize, the president still has statutory authority to tear apart families. Have to get rid of *rump. Ask immigrants to also pay for health care.
Sanders: Sane policy moves to a humane border policy. And enough administrative judges so we don't have the backlog. Health care is a human right, that applies to all people in this country. Under M4A, we can afford to do that.
Williamson: This is what's wrong with American politics. Not just symptoms, causes. We need to realize we have sickness care, not health care. We need to talk chemical policies, food policies, lead to people getting sick.
Gun Violence:
Buttigieg: This epidemic has hit my community far too many times. Worst part of mayor, consoling grieving parents. What we're doing hasn't worked because we haven't had a system in Washington giving Americans what they want. 80% of Republicans want universal background checks. Also end to assault weapons. A 13-year-old asked me what we're going to do about school safety, then began shaking and crying. We're supposed to be dealing with this so children don't have to. School is hard enough without worrying about getting shot.
Hickenlooper: This is fundamental nonsense of government - despite our best efforts, we can't seemt to make progress. I'll never forget Aurora, CO. We decided we were going to take on the NRA. We passed universal background checks, limiting magazine capacity.
Klobuchar: This is about the NRA. After Parkland, 9 times the president says he wants universal background checks. The next day meeting with NRA, he folded. I will not fold. Universal checks, assault weapons, magazines. Remember the 6-year-old.
Buttigieg: This is the same conversation for 2 generations. We know these solutions are right. It has not happened.
Klobuchar: What is broken is a political system that allows big money to make things not happen despite the people. There must be a better way. We elected people in the House and it changed. That bill is sitting on Mitch McConnell's desk.
Bullock: Like 40% of Americans, I'm a gun owner, I hunt. I have been personally affected by gun violence. My nephew shot and killed on a playground. Also climate, Rx drug costs. DC is captured by the Koch Brothers and others. Elections have to be about people. Change the system. We are not going to address these things until we kick dark money and the Koch brothers out of the elections.
O'Rourke: We know the solutions but nothing has changed, because money buys influence, access, even outcomes. CDC prevented from studying issue. We will ban PACs. We will listen to people, not PACs, corporations, special interests.
Sanders: I have a D- voting record from the NRa, as president probably an F. We have to have the guts to finally take on the NRA. In 1988, I called for the ban of the sale and distribution of assault weapons. I lost that election. I will expand universal background checks, do away with strawman and gun show loopholes.
Buttigieg: Of course we need to get money out of politics. When I propose the structural differences, end the Electoral College, make DC a state, people look at me funny. This is a country that once changed its Constitution so we couldn't drink. We have to change.
Bullock: You have to disclose every dollar spent on election. We stopped the Koch brothers from spending in Montana. We are also taking additional steps.
Williamson: The NRA has us in the chokehold, so do the drug companies, defense contractors. We need either Constitutional amendments or public funding of elections. To think these candidates who take money will take them on, I don't think Americans believe. We need legislation to stand up to money.
Update: Segment 2:
Too Far to the Left?
O'Rourke: The way we put Texas in play was going to every county, no matter how red, we did not write you off. We had the courage of our convictions, universal health care,the challenge of climate. Now we have the chance to beat *rump.
Bullock: This isn't a choice between left and center, wish-list economics or sacrifice values. Folks want a fair shot.
Warren: Capitalism is my way of talking about fighting and winning. Took on banks and beat them. Wall Street and lobbyists. I took on a popular incumbent Senator and I beat them.I remember when people said Obama, *rump couldn't get elected. There is a lot at stake and people are scared. But we can't choose a candidate we don't believe in. We can't ask others to vote for what we don't believe in. We win when we fight for what is right.
Delaney: I think Democrats win when we run on real solutions, not impossible promises. Workable solutions,not fairy-tale economics. Detroit is turning around with government and private sector working together. Focus on pocketbook issues that matter to Americans.
Warren: I don't understand why we talk about what we can't do and shouldn't fight for. Our biggest problem in DC is corruption. We need to have the courage to fight back against that. I'm ready to get in this fight.
Delaney: When we created Social Security, we didn't say pensions were illegal. We can have big ideas but also workable solutions. That's the equivalent of Sanders and Warren health care. That's an idea that's dead on arrival, will never happen. Talk about big ideas that will get done.
Warren: He talks about solutions that are workable. We have tried Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance. And private insurance have sucked billions out of the health care system, excuses to say no. Insurance companies do not have the right.
Sanders: Detroit is rebounding, but Detroit is destroyed because of awful trade policy throwing workers out on the street. We need a campaign of energy, excitement, vision,young people. We need to make public colleges tuition free and cancel student debt.
Klobuchar: Everyone wants to get elected, but I think when we have a guy in the White House who has told over 10,000 lies, we need to be very straightforward. No, I don't think we're going to kick voters off their health insurance.No, I don't think we're going to give free college to the wealthiest kids. I don't like us more worried about winning an argument than winning the election. I have won those districts that *rump won. I have done it by talking to people, knowing rural issues, and bringing people in a state with the highest voter turnout in the country.
O'Rourke: We have to deliver on our commitments. When the El Paso VA had the worst wait times, we made it our priority, we turned them around and took it nationally. We expanded mental health care to veterans, got *rump to sign it.
Climate Crisis:
Delaney: Tying GND to jobs, healthcare, etc., only makes it that much harder to pass. I take money andgive it back to people as a dividend. Increase DOE research budget.We have to innovate our way out of this problem. Carbon capture machines. Increase investment in renewables. Climate core – private innovation economy incentives.
Warren: Climate crisis is the existential crisis for our world. Puts every living thing on this planet at risk. I have a plan for a green industrial policy –innovate and create. Put in $2 trillion for research. Build it herein America. Produce millions of manufacturing jobs right in industrial Midwest. Sell these products all around the world.
Hickenlooper: I think the guarantee of a public job for everyone who wants one is a distraction. Everyone has good ideas. What we do in this country is a best practice, but has to be done all around the world. We have to have a good relationship such as with China to deal with climate change realistically.
Warren: I put a real policy on the table to create 1.2 million new jobs in green manufacturing,worldwide market, and no one wants to talk about it. Looking for Republican talking point of made-up part, say we don't have to do anything. DC continues to work great for oil companies.
Ryan: If we get our act together, we won't have to worry about jobs. My plan would create chief manufacturing officer to build jobs again. Dominate electric vehicle market, batteries, solar panels. Also need to convert industrial agriculture system to sustainable agriculture system that sequesters carbon in the soil. Move away from subsidies and get good food into our schools and communities, will also drive health care down. Talk health, not just disease care.
Sanders: I get tired of Democrats afraid of big ideas. Republicans give a billion to profitable corporations. Don't tell me we cannot take on the fossil fuel industry. What do you do with an industry that knowingly for short-term profits is destroying this planet?
Ryan: We have to invent our way out of this thing. We better get busy now. Align financial incentives with green. Cut worker in on deal, make sure these new jobs are union jobs.
Sanders: Obvious issue, there is no choice. We have to be super-aggressive if we love our children and want to leave them a planet that is healthy and habitable. We have to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel. We have to transform transportation system and lead the world in ingenuity.
Bullock: Republicans won't even acknowledge climate change is real. As we transition to clean energy economy, we have to recognize that people who gave us energy are aided in the transition. Democrats sound like workers are part of the problem. Too many communities are being left behind as we consider transition.
Sanders: There is nobody in Congress more strongly pro-worker than me. I am talking fossil fuel industry,I am talking about just transition. We can rebuild communities in rural America that have been devastated. We are going to make sure that those workers make a transition to new jobs.
Bullock: I fought day after day and I know we set this up as a false choice too often. Are we going to address climate change or better shot at a better life? We can do both. Scientists should drive this.
O'Rourke: I listen to scientists on this and they are very clear. We don't have more than 10 years to get this right. We can't meet challenges with half steps. Wind and solar jobs are fastest growing. Farmers want to be paid for cover crops,conservation easements.
Buttigieg: We have all highly similar visions on climate. It is all theoretical. We will deal with climate if an only if we beat Donald *rump. You will see *rump stand next to an American war veteran and discuss why he never served. You will see him explain that he thinks you're a sucker.
Infrastructure:
Klobuchar: My plan is the first infrastructure plan. It is also an issue for union jobs. I would put a trillion dollars into this, pay for it by changing the capital gains rate, by changing the regressive tax bill, and increase rural broadband and green infrastructure, so you don't see African American neighborhoods most hit by storms.
Williamson: Flint water is just the tip of the iceberg. We have an administration that gutted the Clean Water Act. We have communities of color who suffer from environmental justice. This is part of the dark underbelly of America, the racism,the bigotry. This wonkiness will not deal with this dark psychicf orce. We need to say it's bigger than Flint, it's particularly people who do not have the money to fight back.
Race:
O'Rourke: We will call his racism out for what it is, and also talk about the consequences. It doesn't just offend our sensibilities. It is also changing this country. Hate crimes are on the rise the last 3 years. A mosque in Texas was burned on the day he signed his Muslim ban. We must also ensure that we embrace our differences. El Paso is one of the safest cities in America because it's a city of asylum seekers and refugees.
Hickenlooper: We work toward a more perfect union, all people are created equal. We can deliver an urban agenda, improve schools, major police reform, affordable housing,scholarships for every kid.
Warren: We need to call out white supremacy for what it is, domestic terrorism, that threatens America.We do better to fight back and show something better. I have a plan,for example, for a better education system for all kids with acknowledging race. Improve college, level playing field. Cancels student debt for 95%. Helps close black-white gap.
Buttigieg: As an urban mayor, the racial divide lives within me. I couldn't end racism or crime or poverty. But we repeatedly tackled challenges. Right now, our community is moving to healing by ensuring community participates in revising use of force policy, and community voices on boards. Mayors have hit limits without national action. If you walk into an ER and you are black, your reports of pain are taken less seriously. You are less likely to get jobs.
Klobuchar: There are people who voted for Donald *rump who aren't racists, they just wanted a better economy. Now people can't justify what *rump is doing. I would stop this. Economic opportunity means for everyone in this country. When we put out better childcare, better education, decent retirement, we help the African American community, but we also help everyone. So bring together rural and city, economic opportunity for everyone.
O'Rourke: Foundation of this country,the way we became great was literally on the backs of those kidnapped and brought here by force. Legacy of slavery alive today. Address health care disparities, also sign into law reparations.
Williamson: I plan $200-500 billion payment of debt owed, that's what reparations are. We need truth-telling, not more studies. This country will not heal until there is deep truth telling. We need to recognize the economic gap comes from a great injustice that has never been dealt with. Slavery followed by domestic terrorism. If you do the math of 40 acres and a mule promised to 45 millions slaves, today it would be trillions of dollars. Anything less than $100 billion is an insult, more but not all of what is owed is doable.
Sanders: I am supportive of Clyburn's legislation, 10-20-30: As a result of slavery and segregation,institutional racism, we have to focus on rebuilding distressed communities including AA communities. I also have the Thurgood Marshall plan, end segregated schools, triple funding for Title 1 schools, teachers at least $60,000 per year.
Update: Segment 3:
Economy:
Ryan: China steals intellectual property. We basically transferred our wealth to the top 1% or China. We out-compete China. Put chief manufacturing officer in place. We have to rebuild these factories, make electric vehicles, charging stations, solar panels. We are going to make 10 million EVs somewhere in the world. I want them made in the United States. I would have to reevaluate *rump's steel tariffs. He has bungled the whole thing. He has a tactical move. What is the grand strategy for the United States?
Delaney: This is what I don't understand. President *rump wants to build physical walls and beats up on immigrants. Most of the folks running for president wants to build economic walls. President Obama was right about his trade plan. We can't isolate ourselves. We have to engage.
Warren: For decades, we have had a trade policy that has been written by giant multinational corporations that help multinational corporations. They have no loyalty, they'll move in a heartbeat. I have put out a new comprehensive that says we are going to negotiate our deals with unions, small businesses, small farmers, human rights activists. Then use the fact that the world wants America's markets.
Delaney: That was the TransPacific Partnership. We would be in an entirely different position with China if we had the TPP. We can't isolate ourselves.
Warren: What the congressman is describing as extreme is having deals negotiated by American workers for American workers. We can build the trade deals that create jobs. Make them raise standards, raise their environmental standards, pay their workers more, unionize before they sell to us. Right now things don't work for US people.
O'Rourke: Tariffs are a huge mistake, large tax increase, hit American working class and working poor especially hard, and farmers face the consequences. We will bring friends to bear, negotiate trade deals that favor farmers and labor here and elsewhere.
Sanders: I voted against these disastrous trade agreements, also led the effort against these agreements. Elizabeth is absolutely right. Corporations don't care about American workers. These guys want federal trough, military contracts. My administration, you won't get federal contracts if you throw American workers on the street.
Hickenlooper: Trade wars never have winners. China has 25% of our total debt. *rump gives giant tax cut. Pay tariffs then cut taxes to rich, tax obligation now on middle class.
Warren: These trade deals are not mostly about tariffs. NAFTA 2.0 central feature is to help drug companies get longer periods of exclusivity, charge Canadians, Americans and Mexicans more money. Giant multinationals make more profits, leave American people behind. Fight back.
Bullock: Farmer says every time *rump tweets, we lose money. I agree with Sen. Warren in part. Corporations move money easily. Workers can't move easily. Don't use blunt instrument of tariffs. Need fair deal.
Buttigieg: Job loss happened in my community. Empty factories, houses, poverty. Why we need to put interests of workers first. We need retraining, but this bigger than trade fight. Economy is changing before our eyes. People in the gig economy go through jobs fast. Allow gig workers to unionize. Respond to all these changes. Some of this is low tech. Minimum wage is just too low. Scripture says "whoever oppresses the poor taunts their maker".
Delaney: I think wealthy Americans have to pay more. I have done well financially. I think I should pay more in tax. But we have to have a real solution. Raise the capital gains rates. No reason why people who invest for a living should pay less than people who work for a living. That's ridiculous. We roll back the *rump tax cuts to wealthy individuals. I think the wealth tax will be fought in courts, will be abandoned.
Warren: I have proposed a wealth tax, it's now time to tax the top 1/10 of 1% of fortunes in this country. Your first $50 milion you can keep. After that, you have to pitch in 2 cents. We can provide childcare, pre-K, wages of workers, provide universal tuition-free college, expand Pell, put money in HBCUs, cancel student loan debt, start to close the wealth gap. Tells you how badly broken that 2 cents would let us invest in the rest of America.
Delaney: We all agree that the wealthy should pay more. I've called for the expansion of pre-K and do it through additional tax on high-net-worth individuals, but don't need new taxes.
Student Debt:
Buttigieg: We can have debt-free college for low- and middle-income students, and make debt more affordable. We can have an approach that is fair. To start wiping away student debt, I would start with the for-profit colleges. They should be held accountable for delivering results.
Sanders: The major issue is the massive level of income and wealth inequality in America. Three people owns more wealth than the bottom 50%. Companies like Amazon not paying a nickel in federal income tax. We need a political revolution. Tells billionaires and corporations that they are Americans, they need to participate in our society, pay fair share of taxes.
Williamson: I think all policies should be based on the idea that anything we do to help people thrive stimulates economy. So if a few people take advantage, everyone benefits. Get rid of college debt, young people start businesses, etc. Philosophy of governing. Nothing wrong with using instruments of government to help people.
O'Rourke: I support free 2-year college, realize potential. Debt-free college, full cost. For the schoolteacher, etc., working second and third jobs, full forgiveness. For those working at VA etc., full forgiveness.
Klobuchar: Make it easiest for kids to go to college, focus on kids who need it most. Pay for wealthy college, that doesn't make sense. Very concerned about debt passing to generations. Allow refinancing at better rates. Over 5-10 years pay off loans if go into jobs where workers are needed.
Police the World?
Sanders: *Rump is a pathological liar. I tell the truth. We have been in Afghanistan and Iraq decades, spent on war on terror, there are probably more terrorists now than when we began. Bigger military budget than next 10 countries combined. Need diplomacy, ending conflicts with sitting at table, not killing each other. Go to UN, don't attack and denigrate UN. Come to terms with differences, solve problems.
Hickenlooper: We share the recognition of incredible cost. Half of soldiers in Iraq and Iran were National Guard. We should have an international diplomatic approach talking with everybody - climate change, cybersecurity, nuclear proliferation.
Ryan: I don't think presidents of the US meet with dictators. Don't give them global credibility. Demilitarize our foreign policy. Make sure we are engaging these countries all the time. This is long tedious work mostly outside the eye of the TV camera. Need to be disciplined. Go fix the problems at their source with diplomacy.
Klobuchar: Agree, but leave open the possibility of meeting anybody at any place. I don't agree with *rump's methods. When he was with Putin, at the G20 he joked. You meet with people, but have an agenda, and put American interests first.
Buttigieg: We will withdraw from Afghanistan in first year. Around the world, we will do whatever it takes to keep America safe. I thought I was one of the last Afghanistan troops years ago. We're pretty close to the day when we will wake up to the news of a casualty in Afghanistan who was not born yet on 9/11. We need to end endless war. Congress has been asleep at the switch. I will propose that any AUMF will have a 3-year sunset.
O'Rourke: I would withdraw in my first term in office. There is nothing about perpetuating this war that will make it better. It is time to bring service members back home from Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Libya, Syria. We will not send more US service members overseas to sacrifice lives and take lives in our name.
Hickenlooper: It's a humanitarian issue. If we completely pull out troops out, humanitarian disaster. Troops in over 400 locations around the world, mostly peacekeepers not at risk. We can't turn our backs.
Warren: No preemptive nuclear strike makes the world safer. Reduces likelihood of misunderstandings. *Rump keeps expanding nuclear weapons, ways they can be used - puts us all at risk. I have 3 older brothers who served in the military. We should not be asking them to take on jobs that don't have a military solution. We need diplomatic and economic tools. If send into war, need plan for getting out.
Bullock: I wouldn't want to take nuclear weapons off the table. Never close to pulling the trigger, but don't tie hands. Our allies no longer trust us. We should negotiate down, but not draw line in sand.
Warren: We don't expand trust around the world by saying, "We might be the first to use nuclear weapons". That makes the whole world less safe. *Rump has pulled us out of deals. The world is closer and closer to warfare. We need an announced policy. We will respond, but not first strike.
Bullock: We need to reduce nuclear proliferation. But with crazy folks with nuclear weapons, I don't want them thinking they can strike without us doing a thing. We need ability to deter.
Candidate Age:
Buttigieg: I don't care how old you are. I care about your vision. I do think it matters that we have a new generation of leaders stepping up around the world. Trend only if backed by the right vision. We need a vision that will win. We can't just go back to normal. We got this president because normal didn't work. We need to take on this president AND his enablers in Congress. Republicans support racism in the WH or at least are silent about it. Consider whether in this moment, you have the courage to stand up to him, or put party over country.
Sanders: Pete is right. It's a question of vision, young or old or otherwise. My vision says if we fight for health care, we don't take money from drug companies or insurance companies. I have asked the candidates not to accept money from those entities. A new vision says that we must cancel completely student debt because the younger generation for the first time will have a lower standard of living than their parents.
Update: Segment 4:
Closing Statements:
Bullock: I was raised in a household at times paycheck to paycheck. Paid my way through law school. But I had a chance. We have to recognize for far too many in America, that no longer exists, never has. I want to beat *rump, win back places we lost, and make sure Americans know where DC left them behind. I'll be there. We don't have to choose between what we don't want and what we can't afford. The economy can work for us.
Williamson: We don't just need to defeat *rump. We need to defeat institutionalized hatred. Wonkiness won't defeat *rump. We need radical truthtelling. We need a serious conversation, cause not symptoms. We need to talk about countries seeing us with policies supporting corporate overlords. There is some corruption that is so deep. Until the Democratic party is ready to speak to deep corruption, knowing at some time we have participated, then voters may still vote for *rump. Have to override dog whistles. Live up to our own ideals, atone for our own mistakes, love each other. Something emotional and psychological emerging from what I am qualified to bring.
Delaney: JFK said we should seek the right answer. *Rump is the symptom of a disease, divisiveness. I am the only one talking about curing that disease. National service. Solving problems. Work together. Fight climate change. Reimagine education system. Real solutions, not impossible promises. President who is a leader in private sector and government. I will restore vision and decency.
Ryan: In a few minutes, all of the pundits will ask who captured which lane. I hope tonight at some level I captured your imagination. What this country could be like if we unite, put together real new better policies. That's how we win the future. There won't be a savior or a superstar that will fix all this. It will be you and me, us. That's how we fix this country. Coming together to do big things, imagine the new country we want. Not left or right. New and better.
Hickenlooper: I loved tonight. I'd like to ask every American to imagine you are facing life-threatening surgery. Would you choose a doctor with a track record or someone who just talked about it? CO got universal coverage, climate change, beat NRA. Progressive and pragmatic. Did these things, know I can get results. Lead people toward stronger, healthier, more secure future.
Klobuchar: To win we have to listen to people. Out there is Casey Joe's mom. Casey Joe got hooked on opioids and died. I will stand up against companies like the drug companies who got her hooked. I have won in red districts. I win in the Midwest. I will do my job without fear or favor, and get through the gridlock. Yes, I will govern with integrity. I will make you proud.
O'Rourke: We are as divided and polarized as a country as we have ever been. Right now we have a president using fear. To meet this challenge, we need hope and include everyone. I can win the 38 EC votes in Texas. That's how we beat *rump.
Buttigieg: There's good news and bad news. Our country's in trouble. GDP is going up and life expectancy is going down. The good news is it's not too late. Just before we run out of time, in 2020 we can do what it took to deliver a climate that we don't have to wonder if it will support us. We can deliver an economy that lifts all boats. We must do what works, with bold action, defeat this president and its allies. Unite Republican party with their conscience.
Warren: I had a dream, I wanted to be a public schoolteacher. By the time I graduated high school, my parents didn't have the money. My big chance was a community college that cost $50 per semester. This election is about opportunity - will it go to billionaires or our kids? Right now, the government has been on the side of the rich and the powerful, meaning it's not been on the side of native Americans or people in small farms or communities. Be the party of big structural change, give people a reason to show up and vote. Build grassroots, not showing up with millionaires behind closed doors, but small donations, volunteers, people with stake in this democracy. Not only beat *rump, make real change.
Sanders: As someone who grew up in a rent-controlled apartment in NY, I'm running not just against the most dangerous president, but to transform this country and stand with the working class who has been decimated. I took 15 peoples with diabetes from Detroit into Canada, and we bought insulin for 1/10th the price of insulin in America. It's not just price fixing and corruption and greed. It's the fossil fuel industry, Wall Street, prison-industrial complex. We need a mass political movement. Please become a volunteer, take on the greed and corruption of the ruling class. Let's create a government and economy that works for all of us, not just the 1%.