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US-POLITICS-DEMOCRATS-DEBATE
Biden comes out fighting in Democratic White House debate
HOUSTON, Sept 13, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Frontrunner Joe Biden came out swinging
in the third Democratic debate for the White House nomination, clashing with
his top two rivals over the future of health care in America and dismissing
their plans as unrealistic pipe dreams.
Biden, under pressure to appear in command as the candidate to beat in
2020, pushed back hard against senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren
during the debate in Houston, Texas a showdown seen as a tough test of the
76-year-old’s stamina.
In a high-octane clash with his fellow septuagenarians, the former vice
president warned Sanders’s plan to finance universal healthcare “gets him
halfway there,” while Warren has yet to indicate how hers will be paid for.
“I lay out how I can pay for it, how I can get it done, and why it’s
better,” Biden said of his plan, which maintains and builds on the Affordable
Care Act known as Obamacare.
Warren, a rising star in the race, and Sanders each put up a spirited
defense of their proposals.
“Those at the very top, the richest individuals and the biggest
corporations, are going to pay more. And middle-class families are going to
pay less,” Warren said.
Sanders, whose plans advocates for a shift away from private health
insurance, assured voters “we will finally make sure that every American has
health care as a human right, not a privilege.”
The three-way battle over healthcare kicked off a marathon debate, as 10
hopefuls scrambled for breakout moments as they vye for the right to
challenge President Donald Trump.
But the candidates stood united on one key factor: ousting Trump from the
White House.
“We must and will defeat Trump, the most dangerous president in the history
of this country,” Sanders said. “But we must do more. We must do more.”
At a dinner with Republican legislators on Thursday evening, Trump quickly
dropped his message of “respect” toward his opponents, which he’d expressed
just three hours earlier.
He called Sanders “Crazy Bernie, he’s a crazy guy.” He lamented that he’d
“hit Pocantonas” Warren “way too early,” in reference to his mockery of the
senator’s controversial claim to have had Native American blood.
And he reserved his longest joke for Biden, or “Sleepy Joe.”
“He’s fallen asleep, he’s no idea what he’s doing or saying,” Trump said to
laughter from his party, before acting out a scene in which he imitated
Chinese President Xi Jinping negotiating with Biden, with the Democrat
mumbling “where am I?” and Xi telling him “sign here.”
– Dominant top three –
All eyes were on Biden who is battling accusations that he is a gaffe-prone
candidate past his prime who could struggle during a gruelling campaign.
Biden maintains a grip on pole position with 26.8 percent support, despite
a noticeable dip in recent weeks, according to a poll average compiled by
RealClearPolitics.
Sanders, at 78 the oldest candidate in the field, is narrowly ahead of
Warren at 17.3 percent support, and has largely avoided clashing with his
friend and fellow progressive.
A summer of verbal miscues — and an apparent lack of preparedness for
spirited attacks by rivals in the first debate — raised doubts about Biden’s
age and mental clarity, concerns he and his team have roundly dismissed.
He enjoys strong support in particular from African-American communities
and from working-class whites who appreciate his blue-collar appeal and
believe he is best able to beat Trump, a top priority for Democratic voters.
Warren, 70, has electrified town halls and impressed voters with her
extensive collection of policy platforms.
Early Thursday she released her latest plan, one that would increase Social
Security benefits for all Americans by $200 per month.
While Warren’s stock has risen, the campaigns of others such as Senator
Kamala Harris and 37-year-old South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg have stalled.
For the second tier, including ex-congressman Beto O’Rourke, senators Cory
Booker and Amy Klobuchar, and Obama-era housing secretary Julian Castro —
all polling under three percent — a breakout moment is critical to stay
relevant.
Navigating between the leaders and the strugglers is tech entrepreneur
Andrew Yang, who has made establishing a universal basic income to offset job
losses a key part of his campaign, and who grabbed the spotlight Thursday by
promising to give a “freedom dividend” of $1,000 per month to 10 American
families for a year.
BSS/AFP/GMR/0858 hrs