On Wednesday, 10 of the candidates for the Democratic nomination for president met in Atlanta, Georgia for the fifth debate of the Democratic primary. The debate was hosted by MSNBC and The Washington Post, featuring an all-female moderator team.

Impeachment

The first topic of the night was the ongoing impeachment inquiry. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren fielded the first question.

"We have to establish the principle: No one is above the law," Warren said. "We have a constitutional responsibility, and we need to meet it."

Warren also used the example of Ambassador Gordon Sondland's testimony to promote her anti-corruption plan. She said she is calling for other candidates to join her in pledging to refuse to give ambassadorships to donors.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said that while impeachment is important, the country cannot be consumed by this issue because of other pressing issues such as healthcare, homelessness and climate change.

"What the American people understand is that the Congress can walk and chew bubblegum at the same time," Sanders said, reminiscent of former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Juliàn Castro in October's debate. "In other words, we can deal with Trump's corruption, but we also have to stand up for the working families of this country."

South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg said impeachment needs to be beyond politics and it wouldn't be central to his campaign because he is running to be president in a post-Donald Trump era, but that Trump's conduct would be part of his campaign.

Former Vice President Joe Biden was asked about his calls for bipartisan unity by moderator Andrea Mitchell.

"You've suggested in your campaign that if you defeat President Trump, Republicans will start working with Democrats again," Mitchell said. "But right now, Republicans in Congress, including some of whom you've worked with for decades, are demanding investigations not only of you but also of your son. How would you get those same Republicans to work with you?"

Biden said he would defeat Trump and regain a Democratic majority in the Senate but didn't address how he would cross party lines.

Economy

One of the major conflicts of the night came between Senator Warren and New Jersey Senator Cory Booker over Warren's proposed wealth tax.

Warren said her wealth tax is not about punishing the rich but having them chip in so others have a better chance of making it to the same level. She said those who make a fortune only make it with the help of others.

"That's something that Democrats care about, independents care about, and Republicans care about," Warren said, "because regardless of party affiliation, people understand across this country, our government is working better and better for the billionaires, for the rich, for the well-connected, and worse and worse for everyone else."

Senator Booker argued a wealth tax would deter people from wanting to start businesses and said the Democratic party needs to start talking about how to create wealth, not just how to tax it. He also said the real problem is in tax loopholes and evasion.

"If I am president of the United States, we're going to have a fair, just taxation where millionaires and billionaires pay their fair share," Booker said, "but, dear God, we're going to have pathways to prosperity for more Americans."

Warren said her two-cent wealth tax would create those opportunities through programs such as universal childcare, increased public school funding, and student loan debt cancellation.

Booker said the wealth tax was "cumbersome" and has failed in other nations. He said the same amount of revenue could be created through a just taxation system.

Warren's proposed plan is estimated to bring in $2.75 trillion over a 10-year period, according to University of California-Berkeley economists Gabriel Zucman and Emmanuel Saez.

According to the IRS, ending tax evasion completely would generate $458 billion per year, which amounts to $5 trillion over a 10-year period, although it is unlikely the full amount would be recovered.

Healthcare

The next topic covered in the debate was healthcare, a topic that has dominated every debate to date.

Warren defended her new Medicare for All plan released earlier this month, which starts out with a public option, albeit a more expansive one than proposals by candidates such as Mayor Buttigieg. Warren's plan would automatically enroll everyone under 18 or with an annual income under $50,000 at no cost, while allowing anyone else to opt-in. In the third year, the next step to single-payer will be taken.

"When people have had a chance to feel it and taste it and live with it," Warren said, "we're going to vote and we're going to want Medicare for all."

Senator Sanders contrasted his single-step Medicare for All plan with Warren's new plan. He said he would introduce Medicare for All in the first week of his presidency, eliminating private insurance, deductibles, co-pays and premiums.

Former Vice President Biden said he would build on Obamacare and give people a choice because the majority of Democrats do not support Medicare for All.

Sanders disagreed.

"Not true," Sanders said.

According to a Reuters-Ipsos survey, 85% of Democrats support Medicare for All, joining even a majority of Republicans that support it, bringing bipartisan support to 70% nationwide.

Party Identification

Another contentious moment Wednesday was an exchange between Hawaii Representative Tulsi Gabbard and California Senator Kamala Harris over Gabbard's criticism of the Democratic Party.

"Our Democratic Party, unfortunately, is not the party that is of, by, and for the people," Gabbard said. "It is a party that has been and continues to be influenced by the foreign policy establishment in Washington, represented by Hillary Clinton and others' foreign policy, by the military industrial complex, and other greedy corporate interests."

Harris said Gabbard had appeared regularly on Fox News during her time in office, often criticizing the Obama administration and the Democratic Party as a whole, and the Democratic nominee for president should be able to bring the party together.

"We need someone on that stage who has the ability to go toe-to-toe with Donald Trump and someone who has the ability to rebuild the Obama coalition and bring the party and the nation together," Harris said.

Electability

The next topic up for debate was experience. Mayor Buttigieg and entrepreneur Andrew Yang were both questioned on their lack of traditional political experience.

Yang said the bigger issue than experience was the introduction of modern threats.

"As commander-in-chief, I think we need to be focused on the real threats of the 21st century," Yang said. "And what are those threats? Climate change, artificial intelligence, loose nuclear material, military drones, and non-state actors."

Yang also said the United States was behind on technology and innovation, citing an artificial intelligence "arms race" with China.

Buttigieg defended his lack of Washington experience by saying he has the right experience to take on Trump.

"In order to defeat this president, we need somebody who can go toe-to-toe who actually comes from the kinds of communities that he's been appealing to," Buttigieg said. "I don't talk a big game about helping the working class while helicoptering between golf courses with my name on them. I don't even golf."

Buttigieg said his military experience prepared him for the role of commander-in-chief and that Washington needed to be run more like his community.

"I believe we need to send somebody in who has a different kind of experience," Buttigieg said, "the experience on the ground, solving problems, working side by side with neighbors on some of the toughest issues that come up in government, recognizing what is required of executive leadership, and bringing that to Washington so that Washington can start looking a little more like our best-run communities in the heartland before the other way around starts to happen."

Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar said of Buttigieg's background that a woman with his lack of experience would not be viable in the race.

"Women are held to a higher standard," Klobuchar said. "Otherwise, we could play a game called name your favorite woman president, which we can't do, because it has all been men."

Klobuchar cited the numerous stereotypes people hold of presidential candidates and why they especially affect women.

"I govern both with my head and my heart," Klobuchar said. "And if you think a woman can't beat Donald Trump, Nancy Pelosi does it every single day."

Former Vice President Biden said his time as Vice President prepared him for the presidency more than any other candidate.

"There's no time for on-the-job training," Biden said. "I've spent more time in the Situation Room, more time abroad, more time than anybody up here. I know every major world leader. They know me, and they know when I speak, if I'm the president of the United States, who we're for, who we're against, and what we'll do, and we'll keep our word."

Unification

The next issue raised was the divide between parties in the country. Senator Booker addressed the way Trump divided the nation and how he would bridge the gap.

"In that office I will do whatever it takes to make sure we bring this country together," Booker said. "But it's not for a 'Kumbaya' moment. We are a nation that achieves great things when we stand together and work together and fight together."

Senator Sanders agreed, but said he rejected the premise of a divided nation.

"I think when you talk about the pain of working families in this country, majority of the American people want to raise the minimum wage to a living wage," Sanders said. "When you talk about the climate crisis, the overwhelming majority of the American people know that it is real, they know we have to take on the fossil fuel industry, they know we have to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel to energy sufficiency and sustainable energy. Even on issues like guns, the American people are coming together to end the horrific level of gun violence.

So I believe, yeah, we've got to deal with Trump, but we also have to have an agenda that brings our people together so that the wealth and income doesn't just go to the people on top but to all of us."

Family Issues

The debate then turned to childcare and paid family leave. The first question went to entrepreneur Yang.

"There are only two countries in the world that don't have paid family leave for new moms: the United States of America and Papua New Guinea," Yang said. "That is the entire list. And we need to get off this list as soon as possible."

Yang said his "Freedom Dividend," his proposal for a universal basic income, would ease the financial burden of childcare by allowing parents to stay home, rather than forcing them to work, as he said a universal childcare plan would do.

Senators Klobuchar and Harris both promoted their plans for paid family leave. Harris's plan provides up to six months of paid family leave, while Klobuchar's provides up to three months.

Klobuchar said that while it is crucial to provide paid family leave and childcare, it is equally important to be fiscally responsible, additionally criticizing proposals for other issues.

"We have an obligation as a party to be, yes, fiscally responsible, yes, think big, but make sure we have people's backs and are honest with them about what we can pay for," Klobuchar said. "And that is everything from sending rich kids to college for free, which I don't support, to kicking 149 million off their current health insurance in four years."

Harris said her plan supports up to six months of paid family leave because families are having children later and consequently often have to simultaneously care for children and elderly parents, and the burden mainly falls on women.

"Many women are having to make a very difficult choice whether they're going to leave a profession for which they have a passion to care for their family, or whether they are going to give up a paycheck that is part of what that family relies on," Harris said. "So six months paid family leave is meant to and is designed to adjust to the reality of women's lives today."

Housing

The next topic discussed was housing, an issue the previous debates were criticized for not including.

Businessman Tom Steyer said specifically in California, there is not enough housing, which causes homelessness and unaffordable rent. He said he would change policies to allow more housing to be built but stressed the importance of building sustainably.

Senator Warren agreed.

"Our housing problem in America is a problem on the supply side," Warren said, "and that means that the federal government stopped building new housing a long time ago, affordable housing."

Warren said her plan for housing included not only building more affordable housing, but also addressed red-lining, the process of denying government subsidies, mortgages or loans to areas deemed to be "financially at-risk," but often translates into racial discrimination.

Senator Booker said another issue that needs to be addressed is gentrification and de facto racial segregation. Booker's plan includes a tax credit for those who spend more than one-third of their monthly income on rent.

Climate Change

The next issue addressed was climate change, an issue widely regarded as an existential threat. Representative Gabbard received the first question.

Gabbard said hyper-partisanship was the reason nothing has gotten done on climate change yet and that Congress needed to immediately end subsidies to the fossil fuel industry, investing instead in green energy.

Businessman Steyer said climate change is the number-one priority of his campaign, and it would be his top priority as president in matters of foreign policy and the economy.

"We can do this and create literally millions of good-paying union jobs across this country," Steyer said. "I would make sure that my climate policy was led by environmental justice and members of the communities where this society has chosen to put our air and water pollution, which are low-income black and brown communities."

Former Vice President Biden agreed climate change is the number-one issue but challenged Steyer on his record investing in coal.

Steyer founded and managed Farallon Capital Management, a hedge fund that has heavily invested in coal and fossil fuels. Steyer left Farallon in 2012 because he objected to the investments, but remains a passive investor, according to his campaign. After leaving Farallon, Steyer founded NextGen Climate, now called NextGen America, a nonprofit and political action committee.

Steyer responded by saying everyone has benefited from a society based on fossil fuels, but he realized a decade ago it was the biggest issue facing society, which is why he has spent his time and money fighting it.

Senator Sanders said he has introduced legislation to make climate change a national emergency and is considering holding the fossil fuel industry criminally liable.

"What we have got to do tonight, and I will do as president, is to tell the fossil fuel industry that their short-term profits are not more important than the future of this planet," Sanders said.

Foreign Policy

The next topic of the debate was foreign policy. Senator Harris criticized President Trump's foreign policy and his relationship with foreign dictators.

"Part of the strength of who we are as a nation - and therefore, an extension of our ability to be secure - is not only that we have a vibrant military," Harris said, "but that when we walk in any room around the globe, we are respected because we keep to our word, we are consistent, we speak truth, and we are loyal."

Senator Sanders said he would bring American troops home from Afghanistan, no matter what it took, including negotiating with the Taliban. He also said that the U.S. needs to get involved and restore relations between other contentious allies.

"We have got to bring Iran and Saudi Arabia together in a room under American leadership and say we are sick and tired of us spending huge amounts of money and human resources because of your conflicts," Sanders said. "And by the way, the same thing goes with Israel and the Palestinians. It is no longer good enough for us simply to be pro-Israel. I am pro-Israel. But we must treat the Palestinian people as well with the respect and dignity that they deserve."

Senator Booker also criticized President Trump's foreign policy.

"At the very time that China is breaking international rules, is practicing unfair practices, stealing technology, forcing technology transfer, and violating human rights," Booker said, "this nation is pulling away from critical allies we would need to show strength against China."

Booker said the U.S. needs to have a foreign policy led by American values and call out countries that violate those values.

"But not only that, we will stop engaging in things that violate American rights," Booker said, "because it is a human rights violation when people at our border, children are thrown in cages. It's a human rights violation without coming to the United States Congress for an authorization for the use of military force for us to refuel Saudi jets to bomb Yemeni children.

It is about time that this country is led by someone who will say the values of freedom and democracy are what we are going to lead with and begin to check China, check Putin, and the other folks that are trying to undermine American values and democratic values around the globe."

Diversity

Senator Harris challenged Mayor Buttigieg on his ability to appeal to African-American voters. Harris said black women are the backbone of the Democratic party and are tired of showing up for politicians who don't stand up for them.

"When black women are three to four times more likely to die in connection with childbirth in America," Harris said, "when the sons of black women will die because of gun violence more than any other cause of death, when black women make 61 cents on the dollar, the question has to be, 'Where you been? And what are you going to do? And do you understand who the people are?'"

Harris said to win in 2020, the Democratic nominee has to excite the voters who turned out for Obama, including people of color, the LGBTQ+ community, and working-class people.

Buttigieg agreed with Harris and said he "welcomed the challenge" of exciting African-American voters. He believes he can connect with them because he said while he has never experienced racial discrimination, he has felt marginalized due to his sexual orientation.

Senator Booker said he shared Senator Harris's concerns about nominating a candidate who doesn't excite African-American voters, pointing to Hillary Clinton's loss in Wisconsin as a mistake from which to learn.

"Nobody on this stage should need a focus group to hear from African-American voters," Booker said. "Black voters are pissed off, and they're worried. They're pissed off because the only time our issues seem to be really paid attention to by politicians is when people are looking for their vote. And they're worried because the Democratic Party, we don't want to see people miss this opportunity and lose because we are nominating someone that isn't trusted, doesn't have authentic connection."

Booker also questioned former Vice President Biden's support from and connection with African-American voters.

"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," Booker said. "And let me tell you, because marijuana in our country is already legal for privileged people. And the war on drugs has been a war on black and brown people."

Biden said he has the highest support in the African-American community out of all the candidates, and his relationship with black voters was the reason he was selected as Obama's running-mate. Biden is currently polling at 50% among black voters, according to the latest NBC/WSJ poll.

Reproductive Rights

The next topic of debate was reproductive rights. Senator Klobuchar fielded the first question.

Klobuchar said she supports codifying Roe v. Wade and cited Trump's extreme comments on abortion, such as jailing women who receive abortions and doctors who perform them, as the reason extreme laws are being passed nationwide.

"The people are with us," Klobuchar said. "Over 70 percent of the people support Roe v. Wade. Over 90 percent of the people support funding for Planned Parenthood and making sure that women can get the health care they need. He is off the track on this, and he will hear from the women of America, and this is how we're going to win this election."

According to a June NPR poll, 77% of Americans support Roe v. Wade. However, support for government funding of Planned Parenthood was, at highest, 80%, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll.

Senator Warren said rich women will always have access to abortion even if it is made illegal.

"It's just going to fall hard on poor women," Warren said. "It's going to fall hard on girls, women who don't even know that they're pregnant because they have been molested by an uncle. I want to be an America where everybody has a chance."

Warren said she acknowledges the difficulty of the decision, but that it is not the government's place to be involved in that decision.

Senator Sanders agreed.

"I get very tired, very tired of hearing the hypocrisy from conservatives who say get the government off our backs, we want small government," Sanders said. "Well, if you want to get the government out of the backs of the American people, then understand that it is women who control their own bodies, not politicians."

Sanders also highlighted the importance of men fighting for reproductive rights.

"Let me just tell you that if there's ever a time in American history where the men of this country must stand with the women, this is the moment," Sanders said, garnering applause.

Senator Booker said the issue of reproductive rights is not just that, but also a voter suppression issue. He said Georgia's recently-passed "heartbeat bill" is opposed by over 70% of Georgians, but voter suppression kept former gubernatorial candidate Stacy Abrams from winning the election and consequently allowed the bill to be passed.

Military

The debate finished up with a combative exchange between Mayor Buttigieg and Representative Gabbard, the two veteran candidates.

Gabbard said military service alone does not qualify someone to be commander-in-chief, referring to Buttigieg's earlier comments about his military experience. She cited her experience on numerous national security and foreign policy committees in Congress.

"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," Gabbard said.

Buttigieg said his comments were in relation to the security and law enforcement cooperation.

"That is outlandish even by the standards of today's politics," Buttigieg said. "I was talking about U.S.-Mexico cooperation. We've been doing security cooperation with Mexico for years, with law enforcement cooperation and a military relationship that could continue to be developed with training relationships, for example."

"Do you seriously think anybody on this stage is proposing invading Mexico?" Buttigieg asked, receiving a laugh from the audience.

Buttigieg then criticized Gabbard's meetings with dictators such as Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria. He said his judgment would have kept him from meeting with people like al-Assad.

Gabbard disagreed.

"And what you've just pointed out is that you would lack the courage to meet with both adversaries and friends to ensure the peace and national security of our nation," Gabbard said.

In Conclusion:

Wednesday's debate came after almost 12 hours of witness testimony in the ongoing impeachment inquiry. Many believed there was no way the debate could seem consequential following several bombshells in Ambassador Gordon Sondland's testimony, including the direct admission of a quid pro quo ordered by President Trump. However, amidst the overwhelming and disheartening revelations of corruption at the heart of the American government, Wednesday's debate was informative, honest, and even light-hearted at times – a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel.

On the web:

The Washington Post- Transcript: The November Democratic debate https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/11/21...

UC Berkeley- On Elizabeth Warren's Wealth Tax http://gabriel-zucman.eu/files/saez-zucman-wealtht...

Fortune- Here's How Much Tax Cheats Cost the U.S. Government Each Year https://fortune.com/2016/04/29/tax-evasion-cost/

Vox- Elizabeth Warren's New Medicare for All Plan Starts With a Public Option https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/11/15...