Who won the Democratic debate in Atlanta? – By Shannon Pettypiece (NBC News) / Nov 21 2019
Analysis: Here’s who held their ground, who made a bid to break out from the pack, and whose presidential hopes may be on the ropes.
ATLANTA — Voters bracing for fierce candidate-on-candidate fights, with just weeks to go before the first Democratic presidential primary votes are cast, might have been surprised by the action on stage here Wednesday night: the politician who got hit most often — nearly twice as much as the entire field combined — was President Donald Trump.
With the field of candidates narrowing, a four-person race has emerged at the top, but the pack of candidates in the low-single digits is still fighting to keep their presidential ambitions alive — though not as much as expected with each other. In their fifth debate, the 10 candidates here appeared more comfortable on stage, with sharper talking points, quicker timing, and more moments of comic relief.
Here is a look at who held their ground, who made a bid to break out from the pack, and whose presidential hopes may be on the ropes:
South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg: He recently grabbed the lead among Iowa Democrats — but his rivals made little attempt to chip away at that momentum. (At least, his Democratic rivals: the Trump campaign sent out an email during the debate titled “Fact Check: Pete Buttigieg’s South Bend Record of Failure.”) Buttigieg sought to defend both his efforts to appeal to black voters and his relatively thin political resume, making a strong pitch for the Washington outsider mantle. “What goes on in my city might look small, but from where I live, the infighting on Capitol Hill looks small,” he said.
Former Vice President Joe Biden: Biden, who has battled softening poll numbers, lacked a stand-out moment on stage. He largely stuck to a familiar argument: that he is the contender best positioned to beat Trump, based on his appeal to moderates and his experience. “You have to ask yourself, up here who is most likely to be able to win the nomination in the first place, to win the presidency in the first place? And secondly, who is most likely to increase the number of people who are Democrats in the House and in the Senate?” he said.
Continue to article: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/who-won-democratic-debate-atlanta-n1087726
