Bloomberg takes fire, Warren goes on offense in debate

Six Democratic presidential hopefuls unleashed a barrage of political and sometimes personal jabs at one another on stage at the Paris Las Vegas during the ninth primary debate — easily the most contentious of the 2020 cycle.

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was a frequent and immediate target during his debut appearance on the Las Vegas debate stage, as was Sen. Bernie Sanders — now the clear front-runner in the race.

But the other four candidates — former Vice President Joe Biden, Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren and former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg — also lobbed and deflected attacks just days before they attempt to solidify their campaigns with a solid showing in the Nevada caucuses. Each is seeking to fill in a huge hole left between the more liberal Sanders and conservative Bloomberg.

Perhaps the biggest salvo against Bloomberg, who was criticized for using his immense personal wealth to greatly outspend the more modest campaigns, was fired immediately by Warren in her opening statement.

“So I’d like to talk about who we’re running against, a billionaire who calls women ‘fat broads’ and ‘horse-faced lesbians,’” Warren said. “And, no, I’m not talking about Donald Trump. I’m talking about Mayor Bloomberg.”

She accused Bloomberg of supporting racist policies and holding female employees captive with nondisclosure agreements. She called for the former mayor to publicly, on live TV, release his female employees and former employees from the agreements.

Bloomberg said the agreements were signed “consensually” and could not be reversed in such a way, drawing boos from the crowd.

Warren on offense

Warren was a major aggressor during the debate, attacking all of the candidates in various ways. At one point, she said Buttigieg’s health care policy read like a PowerPoint presentation and Klobuchar’s was “a Post-it note.”

Allison Stevens, a DNC committeewoman from Nevada and Warren supporter, said the senator showed her many facets to voters Wednesday.

“She can be thoughtful, she can thorough, she can be all of the things that we need,” Stevens said.

In his debut opening statement, Bloomberg touted his record as mayor of the largest, most diverse city in the country and his ability to match up with Trump as a moderate who has been even more successful as a businessman.

Bloomberg also parried attacks on whether or not he would release his tax returns, saying he planned to do so within the next few weeks.

Another combative moment came near the end of the debate, when Buttigieg unloaded on Klobuchar’s record on immigration, saying she supported a bill to make English the country’s national language and seeking to twist the knife on the senator forgetting the name of Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador at a Las Vegas forum earlier this week.

Klobuchar accused Buttigieg of trying to call her stupid and challenged, as she has in the past, his experience. She said she worked diligently on the 2013 immigration bill that would have addressed many key issues had it been taken up by the House of Representatives.

“I’m actually so proud of the work I’ve done on immigration reform,” Klobuchar said. “And you know what, you have not been in the arena doing that work. You’ve a bunch of talking points and a bunch of things, but I can tell you one thing: The people of this country want a leader that has the heart for the immigrant, and that is me.”

Buttigieg then fired back at Klobuchar, saying he was “used to senators telling mayors that senators are more important than mayors.”

“You don’t have to be in Washington to matter,” Buttigieg said.

Middle course

The two are both seeking to carve a moderate path as amiable Midwesterners and have frequently sparred in the past. Both are hoping to hang on to momentum gained in the first two states while also proving they can appeal to voters of color. Nevada is the first true test of all of the candidates’ abilities to appeal to diverse communities.

Sanders took the usual attacks on his signature “Medicare for All” policies and his open support of other socialistic policies, doubling down on his message of corruption, rampant wealth inequality and what he described as a cruel health care system that needs to be corrected at all costs.

Jeff Weaver, a top Sanders adviser and his former campaign manager, said Sanders sought to distinguish himself on the issues.

“This campaign now is going through a phase when people want to have a sharp distinction on the issues,” he said, “but it is being handled in a way that will allow the party to come together.”

Bloomberg railed against Sanders’ views on the economy, saying Sanders’ policies would gift the presidency back to Donald Trump.

Howard Wolfson, a top Bloomberg adviser, told reporters after the debate that the former mayor sought to draw a clear distinction between himself and the current front-runner.

“I think Bernie Sanders has gotten a free pass up until tonight,” Wolfson said. “Mike was unafraid and willing to go toe to toe with him. We feel pretty good about that.”

Supporter harassment

Sanders also addressed allegations by Nevada’s powerful Culinary union regarding apparent harassment from his supporters, saying “I disown those people. They are not part of our movement.”

Other candidates, including Buttigieg, tried to tell Sanders he bore more responsibility for the conduct of his followers as their leader.

Buttigieg used his opening statement to take aim at both Sanders and Bloomberg, calling them “the two most polarizing figures on this stage” and not actual Democrats. Bloomberg was previously a Republican, and Sanders is an elected independent.

“Buttigieg was able to get his message across — that he is not about revolution, he is not about status quo, he is about creating something for everyone in America,” said André Wade, executive director for Silver State Equality, which endorsed Buttigieg.

Biden stayed more-or-less out of the major fighting. He again took on the mantle of continuing the successes of the Obama administration and touting his lengthy legislative record.

Rep. Dina Titus, the Democrat who represents the district that hosted the debate and a Biden endorser, praised Biden’s approach.

“He took it to them a little, but he didn’t get down in the petty sniping, which is a sign of character and leadership.”

Contact Rory Appleton at RAppleton@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0276. Follow @RoryDoesPhonics on Twitter. Review-Journal White House correspondent Debra J. Saunders contributed to this report.