Biden and Sanders take part in first Democratic debate amid coronavirus crisis – live – the guardian, theguardian.com
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Joe Biden s announcement tonight that he was pledging to select a woman as his running mate made a big splash, and that appears to be by design.
After the debate, Biden’s campaign said on a call with reporters that the former vice president decided he wanted to make the announcement on a “big stage.”
“It’s something he thought about a lot recently and he decided he wanted to make a big commitment on a big stage,” , one of Biden’s senior advisers, told reporters .
Trump has weighed in on tonight’s debate, criticizing the event as “VERY boring” and accusing Joe Biden
of lying about the president’s record on entitlement programs.
Bernie Sanders noted in a post-debate interview that Joe Biden has started adopting some of his positions since becoming the frontrunner in the presidential primary .
For example, hours before tonight’s debate, Biden’s team announced he would propose making public universities tuition-free for families making less than $ ,
Bernie Sanders reiterated his thinking on the coronavirus crisis in a post-debate interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Sanders said the country needs to help those who are suffering financially because of the crisis, but he added this can be “a time for reflection.”
“What happens after this crisis is over? And it will be over, ”Sanders said. “What kind of nation do we want to be?”
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In addition to the debate, there are more updates on how the US is reacting to the coronavirus crisis.
New York mayor Bill de Blasio has announced he will sign an executive order “limiting restaurants, bars and cafes to food take-out and delivery. Nightclubs, movie theaters, small theaters houses, and concert venues must all close. ” The order will go into effect on Tuesday.
For all of the latest updates on coronavirus, follow the Guardian’s live blog:
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: Trump’s campaign criticizes debate and praises his coronavirus response
The president’s reelection campaign has released a statement criticizing Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders while praising Trump ‘s response to the coronavirus crisis.
“Unable to articulate a coronavirus plan, both Bernie and Biden offered little more than plagiarizing President Trump’s response, which will now be the model for all future pandemics,” said Kayleigh McEnany,
the press secretary of Trump’s campaign.
Both Biden and Sanders criticized Trump’s response to the crisis, accusing the president of dangerously downplaying the health threat and undermining health experts.
Earlier this evening, Trump spoke at a White House press conference and claimed the government has “tremendous control” on the situation, a statement that was contradicted moments later by Dr Anthony Fauci,
Some of Joe Biden s critics accused him of misrepresenting his record after distancing himself from his past stances and claiming he opposes fracking, which is not reflected in his campaign platform.
Don’t say you support a fracking ban when you don’t. Don’t say you didn’t write the bankruptcy bill when you were one of it’s biggest champions. Don’t say you supported ending Hyde a long time ago when you were just pressured into it last year.
This is basic. The truth matters.
(March) ,
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Debate closes on a final coronavirus question
The final question of the debate returned to coronavirus, with both candidates being asked for their closing message on the crisis. The two candidates ’answers served as a decent synopsis of tonight’s debate.
Bernie Sanders said the crisis required the country to consider how we reached this point and “where the power is in America.” He called on leaders to “rethink America and create a country where we care for each other.”
Joe Biden, on the other hand, described the Crisis as an “all hands on deck” situation that required the country to take extraordinary measures. However, he did not call for a broad reevaluation of the systems making up American society, as Sanders did.
With that, the 21 The Democratic debate came to a close.
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Just before the debate went to a commercial break, Bernie Sanders said he had concerns that Joe Biden could inspire the excitement needed to win a general election.
Biden responded by pointing out he has won some of the states that have seen the highest spike in voter turnout.
For example, in Virginia, where the number of Democratic primary voters nearly doubled from , Biden won by (points.)
CNN’s Dana Bash asked (Joe Biden) and Bernie Sanders about vulnerabilities in their bases of support.
Biden was asked about him losing Latinx voters to Sanders in a number of states, while Sanders was asked about his struggles to appeal to African-American voters.
Both Biden and Sanders dodged the question, pointing to other voting groups they are popular with to justify their weaknesses elsewhere.
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Bernie Sanders was asked about his past flattering comments about the late Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
The comments are newly relevant considering Florida, which has a large Cuban-American community, will hold its primary on Tuesday.
“I have opposed authoritarianism – whether it’s in it’s in Cuba, whether it’s in Saudi Arabia, whether it’s in China or whether it is in Russia,” Sanders said. “That is my life record.”
However, Sanders said the achievements of countries like China, such as decreasing poverty, should be recognized alongside their autocratic ways.
While the debate takes another commercial break, it’s worth noting Republican senator Lindsey Graham has said he tested negative for coronavirus.
Lindsey Graham (@ LindseyGrahamSC)
I look forward to getting back to work with my Senate colleagues and President Trump to contain this virus and Stabilize our economy.
Thank you very much for all the prayers and well wishes! (March) ,
Graham announced he would quarantine himself after having a meeting last week with Australia’s minister of home affairs, Peter Dutton, who subsequently tested positive for coronavirus.
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The conversation has turned to climate change, and Bernie Sanders argued the “existential crisis” requires the same level of response as the coronavirus pandemic.
Sanders argued Joe Biden s proposals do not go far enough to combat climate change. “I know your heart is in the right place, but this requires dramatic, bold action” Sanders told Biden.
Pushing back against Sanders, Biden interestingly agreed to “no new fracking,” which goes much farther than his previous statements and could come back to haunt him during the general election.
would be nice if Elizabeth Warren were on this stage
(March) ,
Some have also wished Warren was on stage so she could repeat her blistering performance in Las Vegas last month, where she very quickly dismantled Michael Bloomberg’s campaign
.
an abundance of caution (@ maxberger)
I wish that Elizabeth Warren was on stage so she could do to (Joe Biden
what she did to Michael Bloomberg. (March) ,
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Bernie Sanders declined to explicitly commit to choosing a woman as his running mate after Joe Biden said he would.
“In all likelihood, I will,” Sanders said when asked about whether he would choose a woman as his running mater. “My very strong tendency is to move in that direction.”
Sanders said it was important to him to choose a progressive running mate, but he acknowledged there are progressive women to choose from.
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