. good evening, i'm lester holt and welcome to night two of r e first democratic debate in the 2020 race foesidency. >> good evening, i'm savannah guthrie. last night we heard from ten candidates. now ten more take the stage. >> they will be joined in the questioning by our colleagues. >>he candidates are in position, so let's get started. tonight, round 2. colorado senator michael bennet, former vice president joe biden. south bend, indiana mayor pete buttigieg. new york senator, kiersten jill brand.rn

califo senator calculators calculators. john hickenlooper. bernie sanders, california congressman eric swalwell. author, marianne women some pso and former tececutive. andrew chang. the 2020emocratic debate. live from the perform, arts center in miami, florida. >> and good evening. welcome to theandidates and our very own audience here tonight. we are centered across america tonight. we continue the spirited debate about the future of the countryn and attackthe biggest problems and getting to heart of the biggest issues. >> tonight we will talk about healthcareimmigration, we will dive into the economy and

climate change as well. >> as a quick rules of the road before we begin. they may sound familiar. 20 candidates qualify for this first debate. as e said we heard from ten last night. we will hear from ten more tonight. the breakdown for each night was selected at random. the candidates will have 60 seconds to answer. 30 second for any follow-ups.f >> because oe large field of candidates, not every person is going to be able to weigh in on every topic. over the course of the next twol hours, we wiear from everyone. >> we love our audience. but we'd like to ask them to keep their reactions to a minimum. we're not going to hold back on making sure thcandidates stick to time. so, for that business taken care , let's get to it. we will start today with senator sanders. good evening to you. you called for big, new government benefits like universal healthcare and free college. in a recent interview you said you suspected americans would be quote delighted to pay more taxes for things like that my questiono you is, will taxes

go up for the middle class in a l nders' administration and, if so, how do you selthat to voters? ig>> well, are you quite r. we have a new vision for america and at a time when we have three people in this country owning more wealth than the bottom half of america, while 500,000 people are sleeping out on the streets e.day, we think it is time for change, real chang and by that, i mean, that health care in my view is a human right. and we have got to pass a medicare for all single payer syst. under that system, by the way, that's majority of the people in this country will be paying significantly less for igalthcare than they are r now. i believe that education is the future for this country. and th is why i believe that we must make public colleges and universities tuition free and

eliminate student debt and we do that by placing a tax on wall street. every proposal that i have brought forth is fully paid for. ?se tor sanders, i'm give you ten seconds to answer the very direct question, will you raisem toxs for thedle class in a nders' administration? >> people who have healthcare under medicare for all will have no premiums, no deductibles, no co-payments,o out of pocket expenses, yes, they will pay more in taxes but less in healthcare for what they get. >> thank you, senator. >> senator bennett, we're going to get to everybody, senator biden, promise, everybody will get in here, promise. vice president biden, senator benders, as you know, has calling for a revolution. recently in remarks to a group of wealt donors as you were speaking about the problem of nikkei a

income and equalit you said we shouldn't demonize the rich, no one has to be punished. no one's standard of living would chge. nothing would fundamentally change. at did you mean by that? >> what i meanby that is, look, donald trump thinks mile class built america. ordinary citens built america. my dad had a, wa it's about looking your kid in the eye and saying everything will be okay.a too ny people middle class and poor had the bottom fall out under this proposal. what i'm saying is we igve to be straht forward. rwe have to understand tourn cegnity to the middle class they have to be insuran that is covered and they can afford it. they have tobacco maur when you're in is situaon where there is continuing education, itthey're able to pay for . they have to make surehey are able to breathe air that is th clean and ey have water that they can drink. look, donald trump has put us in a horrible situation.

with dough enormous income and equality. the one thing i agree on is we can make massive cuts in the .6 trillion if tax loopholes out there, i would be going about eliminating donald trump's tax cuts for the wlthy. >> vice president biden, thank you. >> senator harris, their a lot of talk in this primary about if you government benefits, such as student loan cancellation, free t llege, healthcare and more. do you think thamocrats have a responsibility to explain how they will pay for every proposal they make alg those lines? >> well, let me tell you something, i hear that question, but where was that question when the republicans and donald trump passed a tax bill that benefits the top 1% and the bgest corporations in this country contributing at least $1 trillion to the debt of america, aich middle class families will pay for one way ornother. working falies need support and need to be lifted up, and, frankly, there economy inot

working for working people. for too long, the rules have been written in the favor of the people whoave the most and not in favor of the people who workh most. which is why i am propose tag we change tax code, so for every family that is making less than, $100,000 a yea they will receive a x credit that they can collect up to $3500 a month, ich will make all the difference between those families get throughnd of the month with dignity and t suppord day one i will repeal that tax bill that benefits the 1% in the biggest corporations of america. ed senator harris, thank you. governor, you warnhat democrats will lose in 2020 if they embrace socialism as you t t it. you were booed ae california democratic convention when you said that. only one candidate on this stage, senator sanders, democratic socialist. what are the policies or positions of your opponent tha you think are veering toward seeshlism?

>> wel -- socialism >> well, i think bhot to him line is we do not declare we are not socialis, the republicans will come to us every way we can and call us socialists. if you look at the green if you deal. i admire the sense of doing climate chge, i'm a scientist. we can't promise every american a job, if you want universal healthcare coverage, i believe aalthcare is a right, not privilege. you can't eliminate private insurance for 180 million people many who don't want to give it up. in colorado, we got business and healthcare together. we had universal healthcare coverage. we were the first stage to bring you the environmental community to address aggressively address methane emissions. we were also the first place to expand reproductive ghts on a s scale basiand we reduced teen pregnancy by 54%. we've done the big, progressives thinhat people said couldn't be done. i've done what pretty much

everyone else up heris still talking about doing. >> governor, thank you. vesenator sanders, i'll gi you a chance to weigh in here. what is your response to those who say nominating a socialist would reelect donald trump? >> well, i think the responses at the poll, the last poll i saw had us ten points ahead of donald trump. because the american people understand that trump is a phony, that trump is a pathological liar, and racist, and that he lied to the american people during his campaign. he said he was going to stand up for working families. well, prident trump, you are not standing up for working families when you try toy thw million people off the healthcare that they have and 83% of your packs benefits go to the top 1%. that's how we beat trump. we expose him for the fraud that he is.

b senator gillibrand. >> i disagree wih the perspectives. the debate we are having in our party right now confusing. ba us the truth is there is a big difference between capitalism on the one hand and greeon the other. and so all the things that we're tryi to change is when companies care more about profits when they do about ou people so ifre talking about ending gun violence, it's the greed of the nra and the gun manufacturers that make an progress impossible. ra's the greed of the insunce companies and the drug companies, when we want to try to get healthcare as a right and fought a privilege. >> thank you. >> there may not be disagreement in the party. we don't want corrupted capitalism. >> thank you.wa i nt to be fair to all the candidates. for bennett. you have said, quote, it's possible to write policy proposals that have no basis in reality. you might as well call them candy. were you referring to any candidate or proposal in pa icular when you said that? >> was that directed to me? >> yes.

>> that sound like me. thank you. >> it was you. >> i appreciate it. first of all, i a agree mp cotely with bernie the fundamental am challenge we face as a country is 40 years of no economic growth for 90% of the r aman people. 160,000 families int top .1% have the same wealth as the bottom 90%. we've got the worst income and equality we've had in years. write disagree on his solution med compare for all. you know, i have proposed getting to universal healthcare, which we need to do. it ia right. healthcare is a right. we need to get to universal healthcare. i believe the way to do that is by finishing the work we started with obamacare and creating a public option that every family and every person in america can make a choice for their family about whether they want a public option, which for them would be like having medicare for all or ether they want to keep their private insurance. i believe we will get there much

more quickly if we dthat. bernie, if i could just finish, bern fimentioned that the taxes we would have to pay, because of those tacks, vermont rejected medicare for all. >> senator, senator -- we are going to talk about healthcare n at lh, senator, but for the me mont, my colleague has questions. >> i wrote the part in senator sanders' bill that is the transition, which merges what the two senators said. the truth is if you have a buy-in, over a four or five-year period you move us to single payer more quickly. >> senator, we will get to this. we will get to this. before we do, i want to say hello and good evening but ueno suspicion nachos to senator buttigieg. s manyupport state college. do you not. why not? >> so college affordability is personal for us.

we have six figure student debt. i believe in reducing student debt, it's logical to me if you o n refinance your house you should be able tfinance your student debt. i believe in free college for nc low and middlee students for whom costs could be a barrier. i just don't believe it makes sense to ask working class families to subsidize even the children of billionaires. i thk the children of the wealthiest americans can pay at least a little of tuition. while i want tuition costs to go down, i don't think we can buy down every last penny for that there is something else that doesn'get talked about in the college of affordability debate. yes, ineeds tore more affordable to go to college. and it need to be more ab to not go to college. you should be able live well, r affordt, generous to your church and little leak. whether you went to college or not, that's one of the reasons you need to raise the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour. >> i have a $100,000 student

loan debt for myself. if i can't count on the people around when this problem was to be the ones to solve it. it will be if nethe next genera the 40 million of us who c't start a business and can't buy our first home. this is the generation that will be able to solve student loan debt. this generation is reao lead. >> reporter: mr. yang, your signature policy is to give every adt in the united states $1,000 a month, no questions asked. >> that's right. >> i think it's like 3.2 trillion aear. how would do you that? >> sorry? >> how would do you that?t' >> oh, so, idifficult to do if you have compans like amazon, trillion dollar tech companies paying literally zero in taxes while they're closing 30 pfrs of our stores. now we need to put the american people to benefit from these pa s of the economy and if we had a value-added tax even half the european level it would r generate ove00 million in e,

new revenu which combined in our hand, itould be the trickle up economy. we would spend the money and it would circulrough our neighborhoods creating millions of jobs, making our families stronger and healthier. we'd safe money on incarcation, homelessness services, emergency room, hensthcare and the value gai g from havina stronger, healthier mentally population would increase gdp by several hundred billion dollars. this is a move we have to make as technology is automating millions of jobs.pr ident trump is president because we automated jobs in michigan, wisconsin, pennsylvania and wisconsin. we're about to do the same thing to many retail js, fast food drobs, truck driving jobs throughout the economy. >> if i get to understand a little better, you are saying $1,000 a month for everyone over 18 but a value-added tax so you can spend that there are 1,000 on value-added tax?he >> well, talue-added tax would end up, u'd still be

increasing the buying power of the bottom 94% of ericans. you have to spend a lot of mo infor a value added tax per individual. r the average family with two or three adults, it would be $24 to $36,000 a year. >> congressman slwell, talk aand what mr. yang talkedut. many american versus self driving cars, robots, drones, artificial intelligence, lit cost them their bs. what would you do to help people get the skills they need to adapt to this new world? >> we must always be a country where technology creates more jobs than it displaces. and i've seen the anxiety across america, where the manufacturing floors go from $1,000 to 200 to 1. so we have to modernize our schools, value the teachers who prepare our kid. wipe the student debt from any teacher that goes into a community that need it. invest in america's communitiesy especialhere places where the best exports are people that move away to get skills.

but, jose, i was six-years-old a whenresidential candidate came to the california democratic convention and said, it's time to pass the torch to a new generation of americans. >> thacandidate was then senator joe biden. joe biden was right when he saiw itas time to pass the torch to a s w generation of american that years ago. he's still right today. if we're going to solve the issues of the nation, pas the torch. if we're going to solve the issue of climate chaos, pass the torch. if we are going to solve school violence, pas the torch. >> vice present, would you like to sing a torch song? >> i would. i'm still holding ono that torc i want to ke it clear to you. look, the fact of the matter is what we have to do is make sure everybody is prepared better to go on educate for an education. the fact is that's why i props ed us focusing on school that are in distress. that's why i think we should triple the aunt of money we spend for title 1 schools.

that's why i think we should have universal pre-k. that's why i tnk every single person who graduates from high school, 65 out o100 now need something beyond high school and we should ovide for them to be able to get thatducation. uld be free here s community college, cutting in ha the cost of college. that's why we shld be in a position where we do not he anyone pay back student debt when they get out, there making less than $25,000 a year. their bt is frozen. nopayment until they get beyond that. we can't put people in a si poon where they aren't able to go on and move on. so, anlks, there is a lot we c do.to but we have ake continuing education available for everyone so that everyone can compete in the 21st century. we're not doing that now. >> senator sanders. >> the youngest guy on the stage, i feel i probably need to speak for my generation. >> a part ofoe's generation. a port of joe's generation, let me respond. >> before we move on -- before v we mon from education. >> please, please.

for sanders. i >> the issue-- who has the guts to take owall street? to take on the fossil ?el industry to take on the big money inthos have unbelievable influence over the economic and political life of this country. >> these issues -- >> for harris, for harris. >> we will let all of you eak. senior harris. >> we will let you allak. senator harris. >> hey, guys, you know what, america does not want to witness a food fight. they want to know how we will put food on their table! [ applause . oiapplause ] >> so, on that pnt, part of the issue that is at play in america today and we've all been traveling around thentry. i certainly have. i'm meeting people who are an working two three jobs. you know this president walks

around talking about and throughouting his great economy. right. my great economy. my great economy.ye , how are you measuring this greatness of this economof yours? and he talks about the stockmarket. f well, that'se if you own stocks. so many families in america do not. eau ask him how are you measuring the grtness of this economy of yours? they point to the jobless numbers the and unemployment 234bs. yeah, people are working, they're working two and three jobs. when we talk jobs, let's be really clear, in our america, no one should have to work more than one job to have aoof over their head and food on the table. >> thank you ver>>much. ou have all expressed an interest in talking about healthcaal. so let's tabout healthcare. and this is going to be a show of hands question. we asked a question about healthcare last night that spurred a lot of discussion as you know. we will do it again now.in many watchat home have health insurance at their employer. who hereould abolish their private health insurance in

favor of a government-run plan? all right. chris turn gillibrand. senator gillibrand. >> now it's my turn. >> good. >> this is a very important issue. so trs plan that senator sande and i and others support medicare for all is how you get to single pay taken. but it has a buy-in transition period. r which islly important. in 2520 -- in 2005 i ran fo medicare for all i won that district twice. the way i formulated, it was simple. thyone that doesn't having a says to insurance like. they can buy into a percentage of income they can affd. we put in a transition period for our medicare for all plan. i believe we need to get to unr ersal held healthcare foa right. the quickest way you get there is create competition with the insurers. god bless the insurers if they want tcompete. >> that i can certainly try.

they've never put r ople over he prof tre their profits. i doubt they ever will. t ur step to single payer so short i would make earned benefit, just like social security. so that you buy in your whole life. it is always there is for you and it's permanent and universal. >> senator, your time is up. >> i want to put that same question to mayor buttigieg. >> yeah. we've talked, look, everybody who says medicare for all, every person in politics who allows hr thate to escape their lips, has a responsibility to explain how you're aually supposed to get from here to there. now, here's how i would do it. it's very similarly i. i would call it medicare for all who want it. you take something le medicare, a flavor of that, make it available on the exchanges. people can buy in.eo if pple like us are right that m will be not e inclusive plan a more efficient plan then it will be a nural glide path to the single payer environment. let's remember, evenn countries that have outright

socialized medicine, like england, even there, they're a private sector. that's fine. it's just for our primary care we can't be relying onhe tender mercys for the corporate system. this is personal for me. i started out dealing with a ll terminal iness for my father. i make decisions for a living. nothing could prepare me for decisions our family face. the thing we had going for us we never had to base the decision based on it was going to bankrupt our family because of medicare. i want everyone to have that freedom to do what is medically coght. >> your time is lete. vice president biden, i want to put the question to you, you we re one of the architects of obamomare so where do we go fr here? >> look, this is very personal to me. when my wife and daughter re killed in an automobile accident, my two boys were very badly injured, i couldn't e imagine what it would be have fought had equate healthcare immediately. when my son came from home from

traumatic u iraq after aear, he was diagnosed with terminal cancer a given months to live. i can't fathom if they said the last six ways you are on your own, we're cutting you off. the fact of the smatter to build on obamacare. to build on what we did. secondly, to make sure that everyone does have an option, everyone whether they private insurance, employer in surance or no insurance, they, in fact, can buy in thchange at a medicare-like plan. the way to do thwe can do it quickly. htgency matters. tears people rig now facing ofat i faced and what we've faced without any he help i had. we musmove now.i' against any democrat who s, opposeakes down obamacare and then a republican who wants to get rid of it. >> senator sanders, you ha basically want to strap the private health insurance system as we know it and replace it with a government-run plan. none of the states that have

tried something like that, orlifornia, vermont, new y struggled with it, have been succsful.ia if politic can't make it work in those states, how would it make it work ve a national how would it work? ve i find it hard to belie that every other major country on earth, including my neighr fist miles north of me, cana, somehow has figured out a way to provide healthcare to every man, woman and child and in most cases they're spending 50% per capita what we are spending. c let's belear. let us be very clear. the function of healthcare today from the insurance and drug company perspective is not to pr aide quality care to all cost effective way. the function of the healthcare system today is to make billions in profits for the insurance companies and last year if you could believe it, while we paidi est price in the world for prescription drugs, and i

will low the prescription drug prices in half in this country top ten companies make $69 bi llion in profit. they will spend hundreds of millions of dollars lying to the american people, telling us why we cannot have a medicare for all single payer program. >> i have to knoll low up there. i how do youmplement it on a national level? >> i'm sorry. >> how do you implement it on a national level despite it'not succeede >> i will tell you how we will do it. hange has always taken place. whether it was the labor mo movement,cism rights movement, e we wilt for all when tens of millions are prepared to stand up to date and tell the insurance companies and the drug companies that their day is gone, that health care is a human right not something to make huge profits on. >> mr. williamson, this is a reestion for you. excuse me, i'm addssing the

question, miss williamson, we have been talking about access to health insurance. for many americans the most pressing concern is the high cost of healthcare. how would you lower the cost of prescription drugs? >> first of all, the government dshould have never made al with big pharma, thawas a part of the corruption multi-national corporations had their way with us. i agree with senator bennett and others, i agree with almost everything here. i tell you one thing, it's really nice we have all these plans, if you think 're going to beat donald trump having alll thans, you got another thing coming. because he didn't win by sayinga he had a pn.on he wy simply saying make america great again. we got to get deeper than these superficial physicals as im rtant as they are. even if we just talk about the superficial system, ladies and gentlemen, we don't have a healthcare in the united states. we have a sickness care system in thenited states. we wait until somebody gets sick and talk about who will pay forn the treatmd how they're going to be treated.

what we need to talk about is why so many americans have y unnecessarronic illnesses, so many more compared to other countries and that gets back rato not just the big pharma, not just health nce companies, it hato do with chemical policies, it has to do with environmental policies. it has to do with food policy. it has to do with drug policy. it even has to do with environmental policy. >> senator bennett. you want to keep the system we have in place withbubamacare and d on it. yomentiod at a menago. is that engh to get us to universal health coverage? tnkhit thalf titse hequickest way to get there.ou t vice president was moving and mayor pete. i had prostate cancer as you the same week my kid had rapidectomy. i think that's what the american people want. americans want this choice. i believe it will get us there quickly. there are millions of people in america that do not have health insurance today becausthey're

too wealthy, wealthy, they make too much money to be on medicaid. they can't afford heal insurance. when senator sanders says that canada is single payer, there are 35 millioneople in canada. there are 330 million people in the united states, easily the numberf people on public option, they could easily be 35i llion and for them it would be medicare for all as mayor buttigieg says, but for others that want to keep it, they should if able to keep it. and think that will be the fastest way to get where we need to go. also, bernie is a very honest person. he has said over and over again, unlike others that have supported this legislation, over and over again that this will ban, making itegal, all insurance, except cosmetic. except insurance for i guess that's for plastic surgery. everything else is banned der the medicare for all proposal. s i'd like you to go longer. obviously, senatorders you get a response here.

>> you know, mike, medicare is the most popular health insura e program. >> i agree. >> in the country. people don't like their private insurance companies, they like eir doctors and hospitals. under our plan, people go to any doctor they want, any hospital they want. we will substantially lower the costs of healthcare in that country because we'll stop the greed of the insurance companies. >> on this issue, we have to think. t >> onetime, senator horizon. >> of the people. and the reality of how this affects real people is captured a story that many of us heard and i will paraphrase.e th any night in america a pad nt who's seen their chil has a tempercoure out of rol. calls 911, what should i do? they say, take the child ty the emergencom.in so they heir car and they drive and they're sitting in the parking lot outside of nc the emergey room looking at ilthose sliding glass door

they havthe hand on the forehead of their chil knowing that if they walk rough those slidghg glass doors, even thouin they have surance, they will be out of 5,000 deductible, a $500 deductible when they walk through those doors. that's what insurance companies are doing in america today. e >> wwill continues this discussion. i want to put it. candidates, please. candidates, please. >> i'm one of those parents, i was just in the emergency room. >> congressman, thank you. w >>fight health insurance companies every single week. we stand in line and pay expensive prescription drugs. we have to have a healthcare guarantee. if you are sick you are seen and in america you never go broke because of it. >>kay. a lot of you have been talking tonight about these government healthcare plans that you have d proposn one form or another. this is a show of hands question. hold them up for a moment so people can see. raise your hand if your government plan would provide

coverage for undocumented immigrants? okay. let me start with you, mayor bute gig. why?gi >> mayor bg, why?ur >> because oountry is healthier wh everybody is healthier. and remember, we're talking about something, people are given a chance to buy into. in the same way therare cu undomented immigrants in my w community, pay. theyay sales taxes. they pay property taxes directly or indirectly. this is not about a out.an this insurance program. and we do ourselves no favor by having 11 million undocumented people in our country be unable re access cahe.th pl shouldn't have 11 million undocumented peowith no pathway to citizenship.ns it makes no see. and e american people -- the american people agree on what to do. this is a crazy thing. if leadership consists of forming a consensus around a divisive issue, this white house

has divide us around ae.onsensus issu the american people want a pathway to citizenship, we need to clean up the lawlesess system. as a part of a compromise, walk can't deliver on something the american peoe want. what does that tell you about the system we are living in? it tells you we use profound structural reform. ou >> thank y. vice president biden, i beeve i'd said your healthca plan ntwould not cover undocumeed immigrants. >> i beck your pard zbln i believe you did not raise your hand? n >>o, i did. >> sorry. so you said they would be co red under your plan? >> yes.>> which is different than obamacare. you can explain that change in. >> yes, you cannot let as the mayor says people who are sick no matter where they come from, no matter what their status go uncovered. you can't do that it's got to be takeodcare of. peri have ou to it's a human thing to do. here's the deem, he'right about three things.

number one, they, in fact, te contribuo the well-being of the country. they also, for example, they've increased the life span social security because they have a job, they're paying social security tax. ifat's what they're dock. it's increased te span. they would dthe same thing in terms of reducing e overall hecosts of healthcare by tn d being able be treated annot g wa be an extremist. the other thing can deal with the insurance companies by number one putting insurance executives if jail for the misleading advertising, what they're doing on opioids what they're doing paying doctoe. to prescrib we could be doing this by king sure everyone who is on th medicare, the government should be able to negotiate the whatever the drug costs are. we c do this by making sure that we're in a position that we, in fact, allow people -- time's up? >> hold ofa minute. we need to take a short break here. we have a lot more to talk to

all of you ability. stay with us. we're just getting started. we'll be right back from miami right after this.

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welcome back from miami. jose is going to lead off the question in this round. >> thank you very much. senator harris. last month morthan 130,000 migrants were apprehended at the southern border. many of them are being detainedn uding small children and private detention centers, in florida and throughout our country. most of the candidates on this stage say the conditions o these facilities are abhorrent.i on january 2ng, 2021, if you are president,hat specifically ndwould you do with the th of people who try to reach the united stas every day and want a better life through asylum? >> immediately on january 20th of 2021, i will, first of all, we cannot forgetpiur daca recients. i will start there. i will immediately by executive action reinstate daca status and daca protection to those young

people. i will further extend protection for definitely of deportation for their parents and for ns vetera who we have so many who a are undocume have served our country and fodeht for our mocracy?ll lso immediately put in place a meaningful process for reviewing the cases for asylum. i will release children from cages. i will get rid of the private detention centers and i will ensure that this microphone that the president of the united states holds in her hand is used in a way that is about reflecting the values of our country and not about locking chfrdren up, spralting them om eir karntparents and i have to we have to think of this issue in terms of real people. a mother who pays a kyoato transport her child to through their country of origin, throu

the entire count of mexico, facing unknown peril to come here, why would that mother do that? i will tell you. because she has decided for that child to remain where they are is worse. he says, go back to where you came from. >> that is not reflective of our america and our values and it got to end. >> governor hickenlooper, day one, if you are -- day o at the white house. w do you respond? let me get to you in just a second. >> i'm sorry. governor. day one.ou thnds of men, women and children cross the border asking for asylum for a better life. what do you do? one, day one, hour one? >> well, certainly the images we've seen this week jus

compound the emotional impact that the world is judging by. if you'd ever told me any time i in my that this country would sanction federal ants to take children from the arms of their parents, put them in cages, actually put them up for adoption. in colorado we call that kidnappin kidnapping. i kwof would have told you it le was unbelievabnd the first thing we have to do is recognize the humanitarian crisis on the border for what it is and make sure that there are the sufficient facilities in place, so that women and children not thparated from their families, children are with r families. we have to make sure i.c.e. is completely reformed and they ibegin looking at their ja humanitarian way in which they are addressing the whole needs people they are engaged with alg the border. we have to make sure ultimately we pvide not just shelter,

food, clothing, and access to medical care. >> iss williams. >> what donald trump has done to these children. it's not just in colorado, governor, you are right, it's kidnapping, it is extremely you forcibly take a child from their parents' arms, you are kidnapping them. if you take a lot of children and put them in a containment center, thus inflicting chronic trauma upon them, th's called child abuse.is th is collective child ipousse. when this is crime, both of those things are a crime. if your government does itthat doesn't make it less of a crime. these are state sponsored crimes. >> congressman. >> what president trump has done is not oy attack these children, not onlyemonize these immigrants. he is attacking a basic principle of america's moral core. we open our hearts to the stranger. this is extremely important. and it's also important for all of us, remember, i have great ev respect for yone on this stage. but we are going to talk about what to do about healthcare.wh

ere have you been, guys? it's not just a matter of a friend. i haven't ard anybody on this stage who has talked about foreign policy in latin america and how we might have in the last few decades contributed tol brand, what would you do? >> one of ththings with president trump he's done to the country, he's torn apart the moral fabric of who we, are whes hetarted separating children r at the bom their parents. the facts that seven children have died in his custody. the fact that dozens of children have been separated from their parents and they have no plan to reunite them so i would do a few things. first i uld fight for comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship.nd sei would reform how we yl treat asum seekers at the border.i uld have a communities-based treatment center where you are doing within the communities where asylum seekers are given lawyers, where there is real immigration judges, not

employees of the attorney general but appointed for life a and haveommunity based system. i would fund borr security. but the worst thing president trump has done, he seems to have averted the funds awrom t cross bordererrorism, cross , border human traffickingug trafficking and gun traffickings and he given that money to the for prit presences, i would not be spending money in for p profitsons to lock up children and asylum seekers >> we had a very spirited nv cosation last night on the mi topic of decrinalization of the border. if you would be so kind, raise your hand if you thi it would be a civil offense rather than a crime to cross t border without documentation. could we keep the hands up so we can see them? >> let's rm, that's not a their red cal exercise, the criminalization is the basis oat family separion. you do away with that,s no longer possible. of course, it wouldn't be possible anyway in my presidency, it is dead wrong.

we have to talk about one other thing, the republican part likes to cloak itself in the language of religion. now, our party doesn't talk about that as much, largely for a very good reason, which was we are committed to the separation of church and state. we stand for people of any religion and no religion. but we should call out hypocrisy hypocrisy, for a party that ts associates if with christianity.to say it's okay god would smile on the division of families at the hands of federal agents, god won condone putting children in cages has lost all claim to evei use relious language again. >> mr. vice prident, i don't know if you raised your hand or were just asking to speak, would you decriminalize crossing the border without documents? >> the first thing i would do is unite families, i'd surge immediately billions of dollars

of elp to the region immediately. i talk about foreign policy. i'm the guy thatot a end of the campaign at the end y of our term to spend the e spend $740 million to deal with the problem. that was to go to the root cause of why people are leaving in the first place. it was working. we saw as you know a net decrease in the number of children that were coming. the crisis was abated. along came this prident. he said, he immediately discontinued that we all talk about these things. i did it. i did it. $740. now look, second thing we have to do, the law now requires the ntniting of foes families. we would reyou io it those families, period, if not we'd put them in a circumstancehere they were safe until we can find their parents. lastly, the idea that he's in t court with justice department saying, children in cages do not need a bed. do not need a blanket. do not need a toothbrueo that is outr.

>> the obama-biden administration was thebama biden administration deported nearly million americans. my question to you is if an individual is living in the united states of america withouu doments, that is his only offense, should that person be deported? >> no. >> depending if theynicatejo mar crime, they should be deported. the president was left, president obama i think did a heck of a job, to compare him what this guy the doing is absolutely i find immol. but the fact is, we should fought be cking people up.be we should aking sure we change the circumstance as we did why they would leave in the first place. and those who come seeking asylum, we should immediately have the capacity to absorb them, keep them safe until they can be heard. >> 15 seconds if you could, if you wish to answer. should someone who is here ithout documents and thats

his only offense, should that e person bdeported? ? th person should not be th focus of deportation. we should fundamentally clang the way we deal >>th them. senator. >> i suggest. i agree a lot of what kamela just said. >> that is on day one we take g t our executive order pen and rescind every dam on this issue that trumps that done. ol >> absely. >> number two, picking up on thc poinhildren, we got to look at the root cause you have a situation where hondurasmong other things is a failing state. massive corrupti. you got gangs who artelling families that if a 1year-old does not join that gang, the fa mily is going to be killed. whate have got to do on day one is invite thpresidents and the leadership of central america and mexico together, this is a hemispheric problem.gr >> consman swalwell. what do you do? >> day one, no, someone is

here without documents and that is their only offense is that person to be deported? >> no, that person can be a part of this great american experience. >> exactly.ha >> tperson can contribute. my congressional district is one of the most diverse in america. we see the benefits when people mecontribute and they beco part of the community and they're not shadow economy. day one for me, faunlies are reed. the president for immigrants, there is nothing he will not do to separate a family, cage a child, or erase their existence by weaponizing the census and there is nothing that we cannot do in the courts and that i will not dos president to reverse that and to makeure that families always long together. senator harris. >> well, thank you. i will say, no, absolutely not. they should not be deported. and i actually this was one of hie very few issues with w i

disagreed with the administration with whom i had a great relationship with and great deal of respect. on the secure issuestoi was the atey general in california, i led the second only to the united states department of justice in a state of 40 milliop pe and on this issue, i disagreed with my president. because the policy was to allow deportation of people who by ow isis' n definition were non-criminals. so as attorney generalnd the chief law officer of the state of california, i issued a directive to the sheriffs of my state that they did not have to comply with detainers and t stead should make decisions based on the besterest of public safety of their community. because what i saw and i was tracking every day, i was tracking it and saw that parents, people who had not committed a crime eveny isis' own definition were deport. but i have to add a point here, the problem with this kind of

policy and i know it as a prosecutor, i want a rape victim to be able to run in the middle of the street and wave down a police officernd report the crime against her. i want anybody who has been the victim of any real crime to be able to do that and not be afraid that if they do that they will be deported because the abuser will tell them they were credib criminal. it is wrong. it is wrong. >> we will turn to the issue of trade. last night we asked the candidates to face the gait gaest geopolitical threat. they say china steals intellectual property and both sides accuse china of manipulating their currency to keep the costs of goods artificiallyow. for bennett to start off with, how would you stand up to china?

>> i think first of all the biggest spectre is russia not china. because of what they've done with the election. oina, the president has been right to push backchina, he's done nit completely the wrong way. we should mobilize the entire rest of the world. we'll all have a shared interest in pushing back on mercantile trade polies. i think we can do that. i'd like to answer the other question before this as well. >> do you have the time? >> when i see the kids at the border i see my mom because i know she sees herself. she was separated from her nt for years during the holocaust in poland. for donald trump to be doing that he's doing to children and their families at borders, i say this as somebody who wrote the immigration bill if 20s 13 that created a pathway to citizenship for 11 million people in this country that had the most progressive dream act that's ever been conceived much less passed. it got 68 votes in the senate. >> that had $46 become of border security in it that was sophisticated 21st century

border security, not a mid-evil wall and the president has turned the bder of the united states into a symbol of native hostility that the whole world te looking at when what we should be represby is the statue of liberty, which has brought my parents to this country to begin with. we need to make a change. >> mr. yg, let me bring you in on this on the issue of china. you have expressed concerns about technology and taking jobs. are you worried about china andh if so,ow would you had stand up against it? >> i want to agree i think ssia is our biggest geopolitical threat. they have been hacking our elections and have been laughins their blee off, we should think about that beforother threats. china, they do -- it's a massive problem. the tariffs and trade wars are punishing businesses pducers and workers on both side. i met with a farmer in iwhat who said he built up a relationship in china that's now disappeared and gone forever.

the beneficiaries have not beenm erican workers or people in china. it's been southeast ia and other producers that hav then stepped into the voifd so we need to crack down on chinese malfeasance in the trade relationship and the tariffs and the trade war are the wrong way to g >> mayor bute gig. how would you had stand up against china? >> yeah, i mean first of all we t to recognize the china challenge rely is a serious e. it's not one to dismiss or whatever away. if you look at what china is doing, they're using technology for the profession of dictatorship. their fundament am economic modem isn't going to change e because of sriffs. i live in the industrial mid-west. folks who aren't in the shadow of a factory are somewhere near a soy field whe i live and manufacturers and especially soy farmers are hurting. tariffs are taxes. d americans are going to pay ge on avera $le 00 more a year. because of these tarif. meanwhile, china is insting so that they could soon be able to run circles around uin

artificial intelligenc this president is fixated on thi coin relationsp as all that mattered was the export balance on dish washers. h weave a much bigger issue on our hands, at e time when their authoritarian modem is held up ours looks so chaotic because of our internal s divisionthe biggest thing t we've go do is invest in our own mestic competitiveness. if we disinvest in our own infrastructure, education, we are never going toe able to compete f. we really want to be a democratic alternative, with we have to demonstrate we ca about democratic values at home and around the world. >> so far, we're going to take a quick break, candidates. when we come back, questioning continues with our colleagues. chuck todd, rachel maddow will be here, much more with our candidates straight ahead. ♪ hoo

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(música). break down was selected that's random, candidates will have 60 seconds and 30 seconds for isllow-ups if necessary. >> because of tharge field of candidates, not every pern will be able to react. the less audience participation aley will get.

we will hear from of these candidates. we will begin this hour with mayor buttigieg. in the last five years civil rights activists in country have led a national debate over race and the criminal justice system. your communityf south bend, indiana has recently been in an uproar over an officer-involved shooting. the police force in south bend is now 6% black in a city that is 26% black. why has that nottive proved over your two terms as mayor? >> because i couldn't get it done. our communities is in anguish over an officer-involved shooting. a black man killed by a white officer. i'm not allowed to take sides until the investigation cos back. cahe didn't have his body mera on. he says he was attacked be aknife. it's a mess, we're hurting. i can walk you throu all the things we have done as a xhucht, all of the steps from bias training to deescalation, but didn't save the lifeeric logan.

d when i look into his mother's eyes, i had to ce the fact that nothing that i say will bring him back. this is an issuehat is facing our community and so many communities around the country. and until we move policing out from the shadow of systemic racism, whatever this particular incident teaches us, we will be left with the biggerroblem, the facthat there is a wall of mistrust put up one racisting aa atime. net just from what's happed in the past. but from what's happening around the cotry in the present.hr it teatens the well-being of every community i am determined to bring about a day when a white person driving a vehicle and a black person driving a vehicle, when they see a police officer approaching feels the exact same thing the feeling not of fear, but of safety. i am determined to bring that day about. >> thank you. . >> mayor buttigieg, if i can asn one questiecause i think. >> governor, i'll give you 30 seconds. ey i think the question th're asking if south bend, i think

it's across the country is why has it taken so long? wead a shooting when i fir became mayor ten years before ferguson and the community came together. we created an office of independent monitor, a civilian oversight commission. we diversified the pice force in two years and actually did deescalation training.in i ththe real question america should be asking is why five years after fern every city doesn't have this level of police accountability. >> i got to the respond to that. ok, we've taken so many steps towards police accountability that the fop just denounced me for too much accountability. we're obviously not there yet. i accept responsibility for that because i'm in charge. >> then you should f e the chief. >> so under indiana law, this will be investigated and there will be accountably for the officer involved. >> are you the mayor, you should fire the chief if that's the cy polind someone died. >> all of these issues are extremely important. there are symptoms. the underlying cause has to deal

with deep realms of racial injustice in our criminal justice system and the democratic party should be on osthe side of reparation fser slavery r this very reason. do i not believe the average manner p american is a racist. but the average american is woefully under educated about the history of race in the united states. >> vice president biden, we will get to you. >> i would like to speak on the issue of race. >> senior harris. >> and so what i will say. >> we will give you 30 second we will come back to you on this again in just a moment. go for 30 seconds. >> okay. on the issue of race, i couldn't agree more that this is an issue that is still fought being talked about truthfully and honestly. there is not a black man i know be he a relative a friend or a co-worker who has not been the subject of somform of profiling discrim make the. growing up, my sister and i had

to deal with the neighldr who us her parents couldn't play with us because we were black. i will say also that in this , campaiwe have also heard and i'm going to now direct this at vice president biden, i do not believe yoe a racist. and i agree with you when you commit yourself to the importance of finding common ground, but i also believe and i it is personalwas actually very hurtful to hear you talk about the reputations of two united states senators who built their reputation and career on the segregation of race in this country and it was not only that but you also em worked with tho oppose bussing. and you know there was a little girl in california who was a part of the second class to integrate her public schools an she was bussed to school every day.

and that little girl was me. so i will tell you that on this subject it cannot be an intellectual debate among democrats. we have to take it seriously. we have to act swiftly. as attorney general california, i was very proud to put in place a requirement that all my special agents wear body cameras and keep those cameras on. >> senator horizon, thank you. >> vice president biden. you we are giving you a chance o espond. vi president biden. >> a mischaracrization of my position across the board. ied the fought praise racists. >> that is not true. number one.nu er two, if we want to have this campaign litigated on who supports civil rights and whether i did or not, i'm happy to do that i was a public defender. i didn't become a prosecutor. i came out and left a od law firm to become a publifender when, in fact, wn, in fact,

when, in fact, my city was in flames because of the fascinion of dr. king. number one, number two excuse me as the vice president of the united states i worked with a man who, knack, we worked very hard to see it to, we dealt with these issues. and in a major, major way. the fact is that in terms of busing. the bussing i never -- you would have been able to gohool the same exact way because it was a local decision made by ur city council. that's fine.th that's one of e things i argued for that we sd not be -- we should be breaking down these lines. so the bottom line here is, look, everything i have done in my career, i ran because of civil rights. i continue to think we have to make undamental am changes in civil rights and those civil rights, by the way, include not just ancken americans but the lbgtq communities. ic >> but ve president biden, do you agree today, do you agree today that you were wrong to a pose bussing in america then? do you agree?

>> i did not oppose bussing in america. what i opposed is bussing ordered by the department of education. that's what i opposed. >> it's a failure of states to integrate public schools i america, i was a part of the second class to integrate berkeley, california, public schools almost two decades after brown v. board of education. >> because your city council t madet decision. it was a local decision. >> the federal government must step in, and the federal rights act. that's why we need to pack the equalitying a, we need to pack the era.us becathere are moments in history where states fail to preserve the civil rights of all people. >> i have supported the era from the very beginning when i ran -- >> 30 second >> ie upported the era from th very beginning. i'm the y the that extended the voting rights.act for 25 we got to the place where we got 98 out of 98 votes in the uniten statate doing it.ve i halso argued very strongly

that we, in fact, dealthe notion of denying people access to the ballot box. i agree eta everybody wants, anyway, my time is up, i'm sorry. >> thank you, vice president. >> all of these things e this i think so have to do. >> senator sande, i'm going to youen this, you said on the day you launched your campaign thate vo should vote on what people stand for, not a candidate's race, age or sexual orient ache. mate democrats are very exci by the diversity of this field on this stage and on last night's stage and the th perspective at diversity brings to this contest and to these issues.ar you telling democratic voters thadiversity shouldn't matter when they make this decision? >> no absolutely not. unlike the republican party, we encourage the diversity.el we bieve in diversity. that's what amica is about. but in addition to diversity in terms of having more women, morh people flbgt community, o we alshave to do something else.

and that is we have to ask ourse a siuestion, and that how come today, the worker in the middle of r economy is making no more money than he or she made 45 years ago and that in the last 30 years the top 1% has seen a 21 trillion dollar n increaeir wealth? we need a party that is diverse. hewe need a party that has t gutso stand up to the powerful special interests who have so much power over the economic and poli.cal life of this country >> senator gillibrand, i wt to give you 30 seconds on this. >> first of all where bernie left off, we heard a lot of good ideas on this stage tonight t d plans. the heuth is until you go to t root of the corruption, the in moolitics, the fact that washington is run by the special interests. you are never going to solve any of these probabilitiese this most comprehensive approacr that experts is the most

trons formative plan to take on political corruption to get money out of politics to publicly fded elections. to have clean elections. if we do that and get money out of pitics, we can guarantee healthcare is a right, not a privilege. we can take on income and equality and the corporate corruption that corrupts washington. me>> it was introduced by when i was a young store. >> we want to shift topics here. senator bennett. on the issue of partisan id grlock, president obama promise affidavit his election, fever would break. >> that did not happen. now ce president biden is saying the same thing, if he is elected in 2020, both parties want to work toke.sh ld voters believe somehow if there is a democratic president in 2021, that gridlock is going to magically disappear >> gridlock will not magically disappear as long as mitch mccoell is there, first. second, second, second, that's

rey it is so important for us to win not just the pdency, to have somebody at can run in all 50 states. but to win the senate as well. and that's why we have to propose policys that can be supported like medicare act so t e can build a broad coalition of americans to overcome broken washington, d.c. i agree withhat senator gillibrand was saying, i share a lot of her views. we need to end gerrymandering in washington. we need to ends political gerrymandering in walk. the court todasaid they couldn't do anything about it. we need to overturn citizens united. the court was the one that gave us citizens united and the attack on voting rights in shelby versuholder is something we need to deal with. all of those things has happened since vice president biden was in the senate and we face structural problems that we have to overcome with a broad coalition. it's the only way we can do it. we need to root t the corruption in walk.

expand people's rights to get to the polls. i think then we can succeed. >> vice president biden, 30 seconds, what, it does sound as te you haven't seen what's been happening in the ustates senate or the last 12 years. it didn't happen, why? >> i have seen what happened. just since we were vice president. we needed three votes to pass ar $800 billionoverying a that kept us from going into depression. i got three tes changed. we needed to be able to ke the government from shutting down and going bankrupt. i got mitch mcconnell to raise taxes $600 billion by raising the top rate. and let us recently ask, after president got elected. i was able to put togeth a coalition and a cures act that billions of dollars go into cancer research. bipartisan, but sometimes you can't do that, sometimes you have to go out and beat them. i wempbt into 20 states, over 60 candidates and guess what? we beat them. we won back the senate. >> thank you. >> chuck, the problem with what the vice president.

>> 30 second. gohead. >> sometimes you do have to beat them. but the deal that he tald about with mitch mcconnell was a complete victory for the tea part it extended the bush tax cuts permanently. the democratic party has been running against that for ten years. we have lost that economic argument because that deal extended almost all those bush tax cuts permanently and put inh place mindless cuts that we still are dealing with today d that are calle sequester. that was a great deal for mitch mcconnell. it was a terrible deal for america. >> the reason why the trump tax cut had to be passed is because they had to pay back their donors. you heard it. they actually said those words. so the corruption in washington is real and its something that makes every one of the plans we've heard about over the last several months impossible. i have the most compive approach to do it withlean

elections, public lip funded elections, so we restore the power of our democracy into the hands of the voters, not into the koch brothers. we were talking about issues. imagine, we're in florida, imagine the parkland kids havin as much powe our democracy as the koch brothers or the nra. imagine their voices carry an farther d wider than anyone se else becauheir voice is needed. >> senator gillibrand. >> it's the first thing i am going to do, nothing else is possible than education or healthcain or ending itutions. >> senator sanders, i'd like to put a different question to you. roe versus wade has been the law the land since 1973. now that there is a conservative majority on the supreme court, several republican controlled states have passed laws to severely restrict or ban abortion. one of those laws could very well make it to the supreme court during your presidency if you are elected president. what is your if roe is struck down in the courts while are you president? >> well, my plan as somebody who

believes for a start that a woman's right to control her owy bo is a constitutional right that government anpoliticians should not infringe on that right. we will do everything we can to defend our roe versus wade. second of all, lete make, let me make a promise here. you ask about litmus test.it my lmus test is i will never appoint any nominate atice to the supreme court unless that justice is 100% clear he or she will defend roe v. wade. first of all, i do not believe in packing the court. we got a trible majority, conservative court right now. but i do believe that constitutionally we have the e power to rotatjudges to other courts. d that brings in new blood into the supreme court and a majority i hope that will understand that a womahas the right to control her own body th

and corporations cannot run the occupation of america. >> i will give you ten additional questions the question is, what if the court has already overturned roe and roe is gone, all of the things byou just described woulde to trto preserve roe. ldif roe is gone, what couou do as president to preserve ti abor rights? >> first of all, it didn't comeh e, let's face this med compare for all guarantees every woman in this country the right to have an abortion if she wants it. >> thank you, senator. >> can i just address this for a second, i want to talk directly, directly, to america's women anw to m love them. women's reproductive rights are under assault by president trump and the republican party. 30 states are trying to overturn roe v. wade right now and it is mind-boggling to me that we are debating this on this stage in 2019 among democrats whether women should have access to reproductive riemts.

i think we have totop playing defense and start playing offense. let me tell you one thing about politics c it goes to theruption and deal making. when the door is closed negotiations are made.e there arnversations about women's rights and compromises have been made on our bags. that's how we got to hyde. the hyde amendment was made by compromise of leaders o both parties. then we have theca, during the aca negotiation i had to fight like heck with other women to make sure that contraception wa sn't sold down the river or abortion service. and so what we neeto know is imagine this one question, when beat president trump and mitch mcconnell walks into the oval office, god more bid, to go negotiatns, who do you want when that door closes to be sitting behind that desk to fight for women's radio its? i have been the fiercest advocate for women's ti reprod freedom for over a decade. i promise you as president when that door closes i will guarantee women's rights no

matter what. >> thank you. we're moving to climate. guys. senator harris, addressing you first on this.n you live ia state that has been hit by drought. wildfires, flooding, climate change is a major concern in your state. it's pretty obvious, this state as well. n laht voters heard many of id the candates weigh in on their proposals. explain specifically what yours is. >> well, firstf all i don't call climate change, it's a climate crisis.it resents an existential threat to us as a species. the fact we have a president of the ited states who embraced science fiction of science fact will be to our collective per im. i've visited, while the embers were smoldering the wildfires in california. i spoke with firefighters who htwere in the midst of figing aw firehile their own homes were burning. and on this issue, it is a critical issue that is about bat we must do to confront what is immediate andefore us right now.

>> that is why i support a green new deem. it is why i believe onay one and as president will us into the paris agreent. because we have to take these issues seriously. frankly, we have a president of the united states. you talked about. you asked before, what is the greatestational security threat to the united states? it's donald trump. i'm going to tell you. and i'm going to tell you why. because i agree, climate change represents an existential threat. he dies the science. you want to ta about north korea, real threat in terms of nuclear ars nam. what does he do? he eraces kim jong-un, a dictator for the stake of a photo op. putin. you want to talk about russia? he takes the word of the russia president over the word of the american intelligence community when imes to a threat oour democracy and our election there thank you, senior harris. >> these are the issues before us, chuck. >> i hear you. thank you,enior harris. mayor bute gig. in your climate plan, if are you elected president in your first

term, how is ts going to help farmers impacted bclimate change in the mid-west? >> well, the reality is, we need to begin adapting right away. on also can't skip a beat protecting climate change from getting worse. that's whye need aggressive and ambitious endeavors. we need a carbon taxividend. i would propose a way do it as it is rebated out in a progressive fashioso most americans are made m.e than hole this isn't theoretical for us. parts of california on fire, they're talking about sea level rise. in indiana, i had to activate the emergency center twice in less than two years, the first time was a thousanyear flood. the next time was a 3500 year flood. this is not just happening on the arctic ice caps. this is happening in the middle ofhe country. we've got to be amatically more aggressive ving forward. here's what very few people talk about. first of all, rural america can instead of being they're a part

of the prosch. t withhe right kind of soil manage. and investments, rural can be a hugpart of how we get this done. secondly, we have to look to the communities, there are networks from cities around the world who have come together not waiting for o r national governments t camp up. we should have a pittsburgh summit where we bring them together as well as joining the perris summit. >> i want to bring if governor hickenlooper into this for a moment. you said oil and gas companies should be a part of the solution on climate change. lots of your colleagues on stage have talked about moving away from fossil fuels entirely. can oil and gas companies be ghreal partners in this fi >> well, i share the sense of urgency. i'm a scientist. so i recognize in ten or 12 ll years of actuasuffering irreversible damage. but, you know, guaranteeing everybody government job is not going to get us there. so socialism in that sense is not the solution. we have to look at what really

will make a difference colorado, i'm proposing a couple coal plants, replacing them with window, solar, batteries. the monthly bills go down. we're building a network for electric vehicles. we are working with the oil and gas industry and we've created the first methane regulations in the country. methane is 25 times worse than co2. st part.o get to that the industrial heavy industry. we haven't seen the plans yet. if you look at the real problem. isco2 the worst polluters china, the united states and concrete and beyond that, i think we've got to recognize that only by bringing people toe, businesses, non-profits in, we can't demonize business, we have to bring them toke. ultimately, if wre not able to do that, we will be doomed failure. we have no w of doing this without bringing everyone together. >> vice president biden. o on the issuehow do you this democrats from arguing robustly among themselves about whas the best way to tackle climate

change? but if we're honest, many republican including the president, are not sure if they believe it is a serious problemo are there significant ways you can cut caon emissions if you have to do it with no ypport from congress? >> the answer ises. numberne, our administration, the largest wind farm in the world. the largest solar energy facility in the world. we've drove down the competitive price of both of those renewable sources. i would immediately insist tha wein fact, build 500,000 recharging stions throughout oe united stas of america governors, mayors,ers, so well can go to a fu electric future by the year 2020, by the year 2030. i woedd make sure we've invest $400 million in new science and technology to be the exporter, not only of the green economy but economy that can create millions of jobs. what i would immediately jn

the paris climate accord. i uld up theante in that accord which it calls for, bee use we make up 15% of th problem. 85% of theorld makes up the rest. so we have to have someone that knows how to corral the rest of the world, bring them together and get something done like we did in our admintration. >> senior sanders, i want to give you 30 seconds to follow 0.. i will hold to you >> the old ways are no longer relevant. the scientists tell us we have 12 years before there is irreparable damage to this planet. this is a global issue. what the president of the united states should do is not deny the reality of climate change but tell the rest of the world that instead of spending a trillion-and-a-half dollars on weap s of destruction, let us get together for the common th enem is the to transform the world energy system away from fossil fuel, to energy efficiency and sustainable energy. the future of the planet rests on us doing this. >> before we gork hang on. >> before we leave this topic.

>> here's the solution, pass the torch. pass the torch to the generation that wil climate change. of >> that's enough. thank you both. >> before we leave this topic. here's something you all want to weigh in on.ol >> hone moment. >> trust us on this.t >> jusbecause you have a younger body doesn't mean ha you old ideas. john kennedy did not say, i have a plan to get a plan to the moon and so we're going to do it. i this i we can all work together and maybe we can get a man on the moon. john kennedy sd, by the end of this decade, we are ing to put sea man on the moon, becau johna kennedy s back in the day when politics included thpeople, included imagination, included great drea and included great plans and i had a career not making the political plans, but thhave had a career harnessing the inspiration an motivation and the excitement of people t re thank you police williamson. >> when we know we say we are going to turn from a dirty a

economy to clean economy, we're going to have a green if you deem, we're going to create millions of jobs, we're going to do this within the next 12 years agbecause i'm not interest in just winning the next election. we are invting in our grandchildren, then it will happen. >> we will sneak in a break in a minute. before we go, i ll go down the liner, i'm asking you please for one or two words only. please. ma really. >> president oban his first year wanted to address both healthcare and climate and he co d only get one signature issue accomplished. it was, obviously, healthcare. he didn't get to do imate change you may only g one shot in your first issue you are going to push, you get one shot it may be the only thing you get passed.s what iat first issue. eric swalwell, you are first. >> for parkland, for orlando, er evcommunity affected by gun

violence, ending gun violence.>> enator bennett. >> climate change and the lack of economic mobility bernie talks about. >> senator gillibrand. >> passing a family bill of rights that includes a national paid leave plan, universal pre k, affordable day care and making sure that women and families are thrive in the workplace no matter who they are. >> i like that. i had it. so passing a middle class working families tax cut. daca, guns. >> okay.gi >> i'll ve you credit for the first ipg you this said, the tax cut. s >> senatorders, the first thing. >> the premis that there is e or two issues out there. >> i'm not saying there is one or two. >> this is an enormous crisis. we need a political revolution. people have to stand up and take .on the special interests question transform this country. >> vice president biden, your first issue, mr. vice president. >> i thi you are so underestimating what barack obama did. he's the first man to bring

together the entire wod, 196 nations to commit to deal with climate change. immediately. i don't buy that. but the first thing i would do is make sure that we defeat donald trump period. >> may bute gig, your first priority, your first issue as president that you are going to block and tackle? >> we got to fix our democracy before it's tolate. get that right, climate immigration, taxes and every other issue gets done. >> mr. yang. >> i would pass a $1,000 freedom dividend for every adult at age 18, which would speed up on climate change, if you get the boot off people'throats, they're focus on climate change much more clearly. >> governor hickenlooper. >> i would do a climate change and pronounce it well before the election so we don't reelect the worst president in american history. >> my first call is to prime minister of new zealand who said her goal is to make new zealand d e best place in the worlfor a child to grow up.

i would tell a girlfriend, are you so on, because the united states of america is going to be the best place in the world for a child to grow up. we are going to have -- >> you guys were close, at least it was shorter responses. >> not at all. not at all. >> all right. taminus. >> we're going to a quick break. we'll be right back with these candidates right after this. ♪

we're reporters from the new york times. no flights. no roads. we're trying to figure out what animals are beingffected.

galápagos is a really challenging place to work. el niñtarting to go haywire. everywhere is going to get touched by climate change.

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welcome back to the democratic candidates debami in i. we're going to continue the questioning now with lester in u the ence. we are? we are a second going to have a question from lester in the audience. but that was just a fakeout. >> that's good. we're going to the issue of guns. >> and congressman swalwell. among this field of candidates,

you have a unique position on gun reform. are you proposing the fost should buy back every sault weapon in america and it should be mandatory. how do you envision that working especially in states where gun rights are a strong flash pointk >>eep your pistols, keep your rifles, your shotguns, we can take the most dangerous weapons from the most ngerous people. we have nra on the ropes, because of moms, giffords, march for our lives. i'm the only candidate on the d age calling for a ban an buyback of every assault weapon in america.ns i seen the plaf other candidates here. they would leave 15 assault weapons in our communities. they wouldn't do a single thing to save a single life in parkland. i'll approach it as a , prosecas the only person s on tage that voted and passed background ecks. but also as a parent of a ne getion who send our children to school where we look at what they're wearing, so we can remember it in case we have to

identify them later. a generation w has seen thousands of black children killed in our streets and a generation who goes to the theater, and we actually look where the fire exits are. we don't have to live this way. we must be a country who loves our children more than we love our guns. >> senator sanders. a vermont newspaper recently released portions of an interview you gave in , in which you said, quote, my own view on guns is, everythg being equal, states should make those decisions. >> no. >> has your thinking changed thins then? do you now think there is a -- >> it's a mischaracterization. > it's a quote of yours? we have a gun crisis right now. 40,000 people a year aed getting kill. in 1988, rachel, when it wasn't popular, i ran on platform of banninassault weapons and in fact lost that race for congress.

i had a d minus voting record from the nra. and i believe what we need is tmprehensive gun leation that among otherngs provides universal background. we end the gun show loophole. we e. the straw man provision and i believed it 1988. abelieve today assault weapons, assault weapons are weapons of the military and that they should not be hon the stre many earthquake. >> your plan leaves them on streets. you leave 15 milliet on the stres. >> we ban the sale and distribution and that's what i believedore many years. me will you buy them back? >> if the governnt wants to do that. >> you're going to be the government will you buy them pack? >> yeah. >> senior harr. >> i tnk your idea is a great one congressman swalwell. congress has nod had the courage to act. which is when am elected esident of the united states,

i will give the united states congress 100 days to pull their act together, bring all these good ideas together and put a bill omy desk for signature, if they do not, will take executive action and put in place the most comprehensive background check policy we've havard. i will require the atf to take l the wi bes of gun dealers who violate the law and i will ban by executive order the impo a importation ofssault weapons. t i'm going tol, as a prosecutor, i have spsn more autoy photographs than i care to tell you. i have hugged more mothers, the mothers of homicide victims andt i have aended more police officer funerals. its enough. it is enough. there have been plenty of food idead for members of the unite states congress. there has been no action. as president i will takection. >> mayor buttigieg. i want to bring new on this sir. >> a lot of discussions about riryes shorthanded as milita style weapons. are you the only person on this stage with military experience

as a veteran of the afghanistan war. will military families, the u.s. that inform your thinking othon this view, do you think militar families arge will have a different take on this than the other americans we have been talking abt who congressman swalwell is appealing to with his buybacprogram? >> of course. ie trained on these weapons. every part of my ee informs. this. being a mayor of a city where the worst part is dealing with violence we lose as many as we are lost at parkland every two or three years in my ci alone. and this is tearing communities apart. if more guns made us safer, we'd be the safest country on earth.d itoesn't work that way. oud common sense measures, like universal backgrnds checks can't seem to get delivered by washington. even when most republicans, let alons most americans agree it' the right thing to do. as somebody who trained on of

weapar, i can tell you that there are weapons that have absolutely no place in american cities or neighborhoods in peace time. ever. >> vice president biden, 30 seconds. >> a real 30 seconds? >> a real 30 seconds. >> i'm the only person that beat the nra nationally. i'the guy that fought the brady billassed, background checks, number one. number two, we increaseed that a ground check during the obama-biden administration. i'm also thenly guy that got assault weapons banned, banned, and the numberf clips in a gun banned. so, folks, look, i would buy back those weapons. we already started talking abour that we ied to get it done. d this i it can be done anit should be demanded thawe do it and that's a good expenditure money. lastly with show you would have smart gun itself. no gun should be able to be sold unless your biometric measure can pu that trigger.it within our right to to that we can do that. our enemy is the gun manucturers, not the nra. the gun manufacturer.

>> but the nra is taking orderers from the gun manufacturer.. >> lester holt >> all right, chuck, this is a question from our viewers. we put some suggestions they asked me tshare son. here's one from kat line from oregon. who writes many fear the current administration has inflied erevokable harm on our governing institutions and norms and the process on our reputation abroad. the question is, what do you see as important early steps if reversing the damage done and we'll put this to senator bennett. >> thank you very much. what an excellent question. first of all, we have to restore our democracy at home. the rest of the world is looking for us as leadership. we have a president that doesn't believe in the rule of law, he doesn't believe in the freedom of the press. he believes in corruption he's brought to washington, d.c. that is what we have to change. that's why everybody is up here tonight and i preciate the fact that they're up here for that reason.nd seco, we've got to, we've got

to restore the relationships that he's destroyed with our allies. not just in europe, he flew to the g-20 last night and attacked japan, germany and a third ally of ours witht saying anything about north korea or russia. and when you got a situation where you have a preside that says something happened in the states straights of hor mus and the -- strait of hormuz and that's a huge problem when it comes to the united stes of america. >> thank you, senator. a perfect time to do another down the line. this is what this question s. you have to likely have toeset a relationship between america and another country vp country or entity if you become president perhaps because of some relationship that you just mentioned about president trump. what is the first relationship you like to reset as president, go down the line?ll i'tart with miss williamson.

>> well, one of my first phone calls will be to call the european leaders and say we're back. i understand how important it is the united states be a part of the western alliance. >> i'm trying to get one or two lines. governor hickenlooper. >> i talk about constant engage p, the first country i rstand they have been stealing intellectual property is china. you will deal with public health. >> thank you. e you deal with all the challenges of thglobe, you got to have relationships with everyone. >> mr. yang, we're trying to squeeze in a couple more things before break. >> china, we need to cooperate on climate change noher issues h korea. >> thanks for if quickness, player buttigieg. >> we have no idea which aloose he will have [ bleep ] off between now and then. we know the entire world starts to change. it starts with modeling american values that's home. >> mr. vice president. we want to be quick. >> we know nato will fall apart, it's the single most important

ialliance in the history of the united nations. on >> it's not e country. i think it's rebuilding trust in the united nations and rs undend that we can solve conflicts without war but with diplomacy. >> senior harris. >> all the members of the nato alliance. >> senator gym brand. >> president trump is he bent on starting a war with iran. my first act will be to engage iran to stabilize thmiddle east and make sure we do not u start ananted never ending war. >> senator bennett, quickly. >> our european allies and eve latin america country ready to have a conversation about dealing with a refugee crisis. my firsting a, breaking up with russia and makening up with nato. >> thank you all. last question for mr. president urden tonight. you have made yoecades of experience if foreign policy a pillar of your campaign. but when the time came to say yes or no or one of the most consequential foreign policy decisions of the last century, you voted for the iraq war.

you since said you regret that vote. why should voters trust your judgment when itomes to making a decision about taking the country to war the nt time? >> because once bush abuseed that power, what happened was w ected after that i made sure the presint turned to me and said, joe, get our combat ut troof iraq. i was responsible for getting 150,000 combat troopout of iraq and my son was one of them. i also thi we should not have combat troops in afghanistan. it's long overdue. it should end. thirdly, i believe that you are not going to find anybody who has pulled together more of our alliances to deal with what is e the real statess threat out there. we cannot go it alone in terms ofealing with terrorism. so i'd eliminate the act that allowed us to go into war and not the amf and make sure that it can only be used for what its intent was. >> that is trrgo after teorists. but never do it alone. that's why you have to repair r

liance. we put together 65 countries to make sure we dealt witisis in iraq and other placeles. that's what i wod do. that's what i have done. and i know how to do it. >> senator sanders, 30 seconds. >> one of the differences that joe and i have in our record is joe voted for that war, i helped lead the open x to that war, which is a total disaster. second of all, i helped lead the ef rt for the first time to utile the war powers act to get the united states out of th saudi-leintervention in yemen, asich is the most horrific humanitarian dister on earth and, thirdly, let me be very inclear, i will do everythg i can to prevent a war with iran, which will be far worse than disastrous war with iraq. >> senator sanders. >> all right, guys. we got good news is you get more time to talk, but i have to eak in one more break.

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trying to make medblations more affordae is important, but if washington isn't careful we might leave innovation behind. let's fix the system the right way. innovation is hope, and the last thing you want to lose in life is hope. . we are back if miami. now each candidate will have a final chance to make their case to the voters. 45 second each. we begin with congressman

swalwell. >> we can't be a forward looking party if we look to the past foh our lead. i'm a congressman but also a father of a 2-year-old an infant. when i not changing diapers, i'm changing washington. most of the time, the diapers smell better. gtwent to congress at 31. i found a washin that doesn't work for people like you and me. d it's made of the rich ane disconnected. i was the first in my family to go to college and have student loan debt. t i have effort to elect the next members of congress. we have a moment to seize. this is a can-do generation. this is the generation that will end climate chaos. this is the geration that will solve student loan debt. this is the generation that will say enough is enough and end gun violence. this generation demand bold solutions.at th's why i'm running for president. >> congressman, thank you. >> i'm sorry we haven't talked more tonight about how 23 will beat donald trump. i have an idea about donald trump. t donaldmp is not going to be beaten just by insider politics

talk.oi he's not g to be beaten by somebody who has plans, he's going to be beaten by somebody who has an idea of what th man has done this man has reached into the psyche of the americand people aarnessed fear, so, mr. president, if you are listening. you have harnessed fear and only love can cast that out. so i sir, i have a feeling you know whayou are doing. i am going to harness love for political purposes. i will meet you on that field and sir, love will win. >> thank you. senator bennett. thank you. >> thank you. thank you. my mom and her parents came to the united states to rebuild their shattered lives. in the only country that they could. 300 years before that my parents' family came, searchg religious freedom here. theable for one generation to do better than the next is now re seve at risk in the occupation, especially among children livinike

the ones i used to work for intv the denver publischools. that itself why i'm running for president. i've had two tough races in colorado.ng by bing people together, not by making empty promises. and i believe we need to build a broad coalition of americans to beat donald trump and end the corruption in washington and build a new era of the american democracy and american opportunity. this is going to be hard to do. but it's what our parents would have expected. 's what our kid deserve. i hope you will join me in this effort. thank you. >> governor hickenlooper. >> i'm a small business owner who brought that same scrappy spirit in colorado to one of the most progressive states in america. we've expanded teenage abortion by 64%. we were the first state legalize marijuana, we transported ourious tis system in the process. we passed univerl background

systems, we attacked climate change with the toughest methane relations in the country a for the last three years, we have been the number 1 economy in america. you don't need big government to do big thing. i know that because i'm the ones peon up here whose actually tdone the big progressivehings everyone else isking about. if we turn toward socialism, we run the risk of helping to reelect the worst president if american history. >> thank you, vernor. senator gillibrand, have you the floor for 45 second. >> women in america, women in america are on fire. we've marched, we've organized. we've run for office and we won. but our rights are under attack like never before by president n trd the republicans who want to repeal roe v wade, whi is why i went to the front lin in georgia to fight tore them. president, i will take on the fights that no o elsewhere. oni stood up to the pentag and repealed don'tsk don't tell. i stood up to the banks and

voted against the baout twice. i stood up to trump re than any other senator in the u.s. senate. i have the most comprehensive approach for getting money out of politics with publicly funded olelections to deal with pitical corruption. now is not the time tolay it safe. now is not the time to be afraid of firsts. we feed a president who will take on the big challenges even if she stand alone, join me in fighting for this. >> senator glibrand, thank you. second ang, you have for your closing. f >> i am prooour democracy anill works. democrats and ameraround the country, you have one question for the nominee that ih o can beat donald trump in es20? that is the right on. and the right candidate to beat donald trump will be solving ths proble that got donald trump elected and will have a sion of a trickle up economy that is already drawing thousa sa diffected trump voters, conservatives, libertarians as well as progressivat and i am thandidate.

i can build a much broader coalition to beat donald trump. it is not left, it is not right. it is forward. >> that is where i'll take the country in 2020. >> mr. yang, thank you. >> senator harris. the floor is yours. >> thank you, well, i just want to leave you with a couple of things. a one, we need nominee who has the ability torosecute the case against four moreears of donald trump and i will do that. second, this election is about you. athis is about your hopesnd your dreams and yourears and what wakes you up at 3:00 in the morning. that's why i have what i call a 3:00 a.m. agenda, that is about everything from what we feed to do to deliver healthcare to how you will be able to y the bills by the end of e month. and when i think about wt our un try need, i promise you, i will be a president whleads with a sense of dignity, with

honesty, speaking the truth and giving the amerin family all that they need to get through of the the month in a way that allows them to prosper. so i pope e hope to earn your support. please join us aiskamela harrrg. >> mire buttigieg. seconds. a >> nothingbout politics is theoretical for me. i've had the experience of wr n g a letter to my family and putting it ian envelope c marked just ife and leaving it where they would know where to find it in case iidn't come back from afghanistan. i have the experience of being in a marriage xa exists by a single vote on the u.s. supreme court. i havehe experience of guideing aommunity where the per capitancome was below $20,000 when i toooffice into a brighter future. i'm running because the decisions we make inhe next three or fouyears will last over the next 20 years, when i c lok on these years and sayat

my genern delivered climate solutions, racial eq auatynd help me deliver that new neration to washington before it's too late. >> thank you. >> senator sanders, 45 seconds, the floor is yours. >> i suspect people alover the countries are watching this debate are saying these are good people. >> that i have great ideas. but how come nothing really changes? how come for the last 45 years wages have been stagnant for the middle class? how come we have the highest rate of childhood poverty.ho come 45 million people have student debt. how come 3 million own the bottom half of america. here is the answer. nothing will change unless we have the guts to take on wall street, the insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the military, industrial complex and the fossil fueindustry. if we don't have the guts to

take them on, we'll continue to have plans, we'll continue to ha talk and the rich will get richer and everybody else will be struggling. >> senator. >> and lastly, we'll hear from vice presint biden. sir, you have 45 seconds. er >> thank you vy much. i'm ready to leave this country because i think it's important s to restore the soul of t nation. this president hast.ipped it ou's the only president in our history who has equated racist and white supremacist with ry ordina and decent people. 's the only president wh a that engagednd embraced at our allies.thumbed her nose secondly, i'running for president, i think we have to restore the backbone of america. the poor and hard workinpemiddle class ople. you can't do thawithout replacing them with the dignity they had. once we have to unite the united states of americ if we do, there is not a sgle thing the american people can' do. this is the united staa.s of americ we can do anything if we're ge

er, together, so god bless you all and may god protect our troops. >> we want to thank our candidates. we've had two nights of seriousg debate on a raof issue. 20 candidates in all. >> it takes guts to run and stick your neck out like this, to you guys and to the ten last night for having the guts to do it. >> i'd like to thank the dience for completely ignoring our suggestions. >> also, our thanks to the democratic national committee and the florida democratic party. >> and, of course,hank you to everyone at the adrian arts center for hosting us here. >> terrific. >> for savannah, jose, chuck and rachel, i'm lester holt, good night, everyone, from miami.

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