Twenty candidates will face off in the second Democratic presidential primary debate in Detroit this week: half on Tuesday and half on Wednesday. The debates will air on CNN at 8 p.m. Eastern time both nights. Here’s some of what to expect.
A Biden/Harris rematch. The most viral moment of the first round of debates came when Sen. Kamala Harris attacked former Vice President Joe Biden about his failure to support school busing in the ’70s. Biden seemed taken aback then but may be looking to return fire. “I’m not going to be as polite this time,” Biden said at a Detroit fundraiser on Wednesday, according to Politico. “Because this is the same person who asked me to come to California and nominate her in the convention.”
A more prepared Biden. The former vice president was criticized by many for seeming as if he hadn’t done his homework and for coming off as awkward and passive, at one point cutting himself off by saying, “My time is up.” Some contend that his performance reflected exactly that. But Biden held on to his first-place standing in the polls, and he’s been hinting he’ll be more aggressive this time around. That could mean fireworks or — given Biden’s propensity for gaffes — more Maalox moments for his advisers.
Sanders vs. Warren, and a battle for bona fides. Progressive heroes Sens. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren will share a debate stage for the first time on Tuesday. They’re largely competing for the same bloc of voters and could drive the evening’s discussion of progressive stances on Medicare for All, free college tuition and immigration even further left. But the moderate Biden won’t be pressed to respond; he’s debating on Wednesday.
Booker tries to break out. Sen. Cory Booker had a solid but unremarkable performance in the first debate, in which he was part of the solid but unremarkable first evening. In the second debate, he’s going head-to-head with Biden and has challenged the former VP directly in the last few days, attacking Biden’s role in the 1994 crime bill; Biden volleyed back, criticizing Booker over stop-and-frisk policies during his time as Newark mayor. Look for Booker to aim for his own “T-shirt moment” (minutes after Harris slammed Biden over school busing, her campaign started selling T-shirts printed with a childhood photo of Harris waiting for the bus).
More denunciations of Trump’s racism. Since the first debate, President Trump has ratcheted up his re-election strategy of racial division, telling four freshman congresswomen of color that the should “go back to where they came from” instead of criticizing his administration, calling Rep. Elijah Cummings’ hometown “rodent-infested” and tweeting that Rev. Al Sharpton “hates whites and cops.” The Democratic candidates will likely try to score points early with buzzy condemnations.
Some Hail Mary moves. The field will almost certainly be winnowed before September’s debate, and low-polling candidates may resort to flame-throwing in a last attempt to get some traction. According to the Real Clear Politics average of polls, 13 of the Democratic presidential candidates are polling at or below 2 percent as of July 28. The rest are Biden (30.3%), Sanders (15.3%), Warren (14.7%), Harris (10.7%), Pete Buttigieg (5.7%), Andrew Yang (2.3%) and Beto O’Rourke (2.3%).
Which candidates will debate on Tuesday?
Marianne Williamson
John Delaney
John Hickenlooper
Tim Ryan
Steve Bullock
Amy Klobuchar
Beto O’Rourke
Pete Buttigieg
Elizabeth Warren
Bernie Sanders
Here’s the final lineup for CNN’s Democratic debates. These candidates will take the stage Tuesday, July 30. #TheDraw
• Williamson
• Delaney
• Hickenlooper
• Ryan
• Bullock
• Klobuchar
• O’Rourke
• Buttigieg
• Warren
• Sandershttps://t.co/X1iflgPkZ2 pic.twitter.com/gwVL0BNa01— CNN (@CNN) July 19, 2019
Which candidates will debate on Wednesday?
Jay Inslee
Kirsten Gillibrand
Tulsi Gabbard
Michael Bennet
Bill De Blasio
Cory Booker
Tim Yang
Julian Castro
Kamala Harris
Joe Biden
These candidates will take the stage Wednesday, July 31. #TheDraw
• Inslee
• Gillibrand
• Gabbard
• Bennet
• De Blasio
• Booker
• Yang
• Castro
• Harris
• Bidenhttps://t.co/2e1uatzM5y pic.twitter.com/1l3YgO4wVa— CNN (@CNN) July 19, 2019
