JUDY WOODRUFF: Ten Democratic candidates aiming to replace President Trump in the Oval Office
met on stage last night for their fifth debate of the 2020 campaign.
Amna Nawaz reports on how the candidates tried to stand out.
AMNA NAWAZ: Nearly 1,000 miles from Washington, D.C...
SEN.
KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), Presidential Candidate: We have a criminal living in the White House.
AMNA NAWAZ: ... the impeachment inquiry was still the first topic at the Democratic debate
in Atlanta, where five of the candidates on stage would have a vote in the Senate on removing
President Trump from office, if it got to that point.
SEN.
ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), Presidential Candidate: We have to establish the principle no one
is above the law.
We have a constitutional responsibility, and we need to meet it.
SEN.
AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN), Presidential Candidate: ... this impeachment proceeding about is really
our democracy at stake.
SEN.
BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), Presidential Candidate: Sadly, we have a president who is not only
a pathological liar; he is likely the most corrupt president in the modern history of
America.
AMNA NAWAZ: Former Vice President Biden, who, along with his son Hunter, is central in the
Republican pushback on impeachment, weighed in on the week's hearings.
JOSEPH BIDEN (D), Presidential Candidate: I learned, number one, that Donald Trump doesn't
want me to be the nominee.
AMNA NAWAZ: For Pete Buttigieg, gaining ground in some early state polls, Wednesday night
was the first time the 37-year-old mayor of South Bend, Indiana, faced direct questions
about his experience to be president.
PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), Presidential Candidate: There is more than 100 years of Washington
experience on this stage, and where are we right now as a country?
AMNA NAWAZ: It's experience Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar said she respects, but also
took issue with.
SEN.
AMY KLOBUCHAR: Women are held to a higher standard.
Otherwise, we could play a game called name your favorite woman president.
AMNA NAWAZ: The sharpest critique on Buttigieg came from fellow military veteran Hawaii Congresswoman
Tulsi Gabbard.
REP.
TULSI GABBARD (D-HI), Presidential Candidate: I think the most recent example of your inexperience
in national security and foreign policy came from your recent careless statement about
how you, as president, would be willing to send our troops to Mexico to fight the cartels.
PETE BUTTIGIEG: I know that it is par for the course in Washington to take remarks out
of context, but that is outlandish, even by the standards of todays politics.
REP.
TULSI GABBARD: Are you saying that you didn't say that?
PETE BUTTIGIEG: I was talking about U.S.-Mexico cooperation.
AMNA NAWAZ: In Atlanta, a city that is more than 50 percent black, the candidates also
tried to state their case on who would best serve Democrats' most reliable demographic.
SEN.
KAMALA HARRIS: They show up when it's, you know, close to election time, show up in a
black church, and want to get the vote, but just haven't been there before.
PETE BUTTIGIEG: I welcome the challenge of connecting with black voters in America who
don't yet know me.
SEN.
CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), Presidential Candidate: I have a lifetime of experience with black
voters.
I have been one since I was 18.
(LAUGHTER)
JOSEPH BIDEN: I have more people supporting me in the black community that have announced
for me because they know me, the only African-American woman that's ever been elected to the United
States Senate, a whole range of people.
SEN.
KAMALA HARRIS: No, that's not true.
SEN.
CORY BOOKER: That's not true.
AMNA NAWAZ: New Jersey Senator Cory Booker also questioned Biden's criminal justice stance,
one that disproportionately affects African-Americans.
SEN.
CORY BOOKER: This week, I hear him literally say that, I don't think we should legalize
marijuana.
I thought you might have been high when you said it.
(LAUGHTER)
JOSEPH BIDEN: I think we should decriminalize marijuana, period.
AMNA NAWAZ: The candidates debated kitchen table issues like taxes.
SEN.
ELIZABETH WARREN: Doing a wealth tax is not about punishing anyone.
SEN.
CORY BOOKER: The wealth tax, I'm sorry, it's cumbersome.
It's been tried by other nations.
It's hard to evaluate.
AMNA NAWAZ: And how much paid family leave should be required.
SEN.
AMY KLOBUCHAR: I'm not going to go for things just because they sound good on a bumper sticker
and then throw in a free car.
ANDREW YANG (D), Presidential Candidate: I would pass paid family leave as one of the
first things we do.
AMNA NAWAZ: With less than three months before the first votes are cast, the candidates are
running short on time to introduce themselves to voters.
For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Amna Nawaz in Atlanta.
JUDY WOODRUFF: The Democrats will share the stage again one month from now in Los Angeles,
as the "PBS NewsHour" partners with Politico to host the final debate of this year.
That's on Thursday, December the 19th.
You can mark your calendars now.