Democratic debate in Washington, DC

Joe Biden, in response to an exchange about how economic inequality factors into the current spread of coronavirus, said that while there are “legitimate concern about income inequality in America,” most Americans are “looking for results, not a revolution.”

Bernie Sanders followed up by saying that it is “not good enough not to be understanding how we got here and where we want to go into the future.”

The back-and-forth highlighted the key differences between the two candidates: Biden is proposing more traditional leadership, while Sanders is offering more wholesale change, even in the face of a crisis.

Biden pointed to people who have lost jobs, struggled to care for their children and were impacted by health care costs in the face of the coronavirus.

“We can make them whole,” Biden said. “Now.”

“That has nothing to do with the legitimate concern about income inequality in America. That's real,” he said. “But that does not affect the need for us to act swiftly and very thoroughly and in concert with all the forces that we need to bring to bear to deal with the crisis now.”

Sanders responded by saying that “it goes without saying that as a nation we have to respond as forcefully as we can to the current crisis.”

“But,” Sanders added, “it is not good enough not to be understanding how we got here and where we want to go into the future.”

“In fact, it was my idea originally to make sure every person in this country is made whole as a result of this crisis,” the Vermont senator said. “God willing, this crisis is going to end. We're going to have to develop an economy in which half of our people are not living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to put food on the table.”

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Former Vice President Joe Biden said he would not deport any undocumented person who came forward for coronavirus treatment or testing.

He said that there are certain things undocumented immigrants cannot be deported for, and added "that would be one of them."

Sen. Bernie Sanders also answered, and mentioned that his Medicare for All plan includes heath care coverage for undocumented immigrants.

"So we have to make sure that everybody feels comfortable getting the health care that they need. That should be a general principle above and beyond the coronavirus," he said.

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Bernie Sanders suggested that the United States should be working with China on dealing with coronavirus.

CNN's Dana Bash asked: "When the outbreak first started, the government censored the whistleblower doctor who sounded the alarm and downplayed the true gravity of the the virus. What consequences should China face for its role in this global crisis?"

Sanders said one of the consequences to learn is "you cannot lie to the American people. You cannot be less than frank about the a nature of the crisis."

He went on say that he doesn't think it's the time to be punishing people.

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Joe Biden pointed out another area of agreement with Bernie Sanders during Sunday night's debate: Those on Wall Street responsible for the 2008 economic collapse should have gone to jail.

But he also criticized Sanders over his vote against the bank bailout. 

The former vice president said individuals Sanders says he cares about would have been in “deep trouble” had banks been allowed to collapse. 

Then he added: “I agreed with Bernie, someone should have gone to jail.” 

It was the second time in the debate’s first half-hour that he said he agreed with Sanders. The first was over surging efforts at hospitals to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. 

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Joe Biden said having Medicare for All in the United States would not help solve the coronavirus crisis. 

Italy has been put under total lockdown as coronavirus spreads in the country. 

Bernie Sanders, who has spearheaded Medicare for All, responded to Biden’s assertion and said experts have said that one of the reasons the US has been unprepared to handle this crisis is "we don't have a system.” 

“We’ve got thousands of private insurance plans," Sanders said. "That is not a system that is prepared to provide health care to all people. In a good year, without the epidemic, we're losing up to 60,000 people who die every year because they don't get to a doctor on time." 

Under Sanders' Medicare for All plan, Americans would be enrolled in a national health insurance program, also known as a "single-payer" system, and the federal government would run the program. 

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Asked if he'd deploy the US military to fight the coronavirus outbreak, Bernie Sanders said he'd use "all of the tools that make sense."

Former Vice President Joe Biden said he'd call on the military immediately, adding they could help build hospitals.

"I would call out the military. Now," Biden said. "So it is a national emergency. I would call out the military."

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Joe Biden compared the coronavirus pandemic to war, portraying himself as a leader who is prepared to tackle a crisis and contrasting his approach with Bernie Sanders’ call for a single-payer health care system tonight. 

“Everything that you need in terms of dealing with this crisis would be free,” he said. “It is paid for by the taxpayers generally. Generally. It has nothing to do with Bernie’s Medicare for All.” 

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Joe Biden looked for commonality early in tonight's Democratic debate, saying “I agree with Bernie” on how to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Biden said he and the Vermont senator were on the same page about making sure hospitals are prepared for a surge in sick patients.

Biden said the United States has dealt with similar viruses before, citing “N1H1,” a reference to 2009’s H1N1 pandemic, and “what happened in Africa” -- a reference to Ebola. 

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Bernie Sanders said tonight that the first step to tackling the spread of coronavirus — whether he becomes president or not — would be to “shut this President up right now.”

Democrats have faulted President Trump’s response to coronavirus, blaming him for downplaying the impact the virus may have while his scientific advisers have outlined the widespread implications the virus could have on life in America.

Sanders said he believes the government needs to move “aggressive” to make sure everybody in this country “understands that when they get sick with the coronavirus … that all payments will be made.”

“They don't have to worry about coming up with money for testing,” he said. “They don't have to worry about coming up with money for treatment.”

He added: “Do not worry about the cost right now. Because we're in the middle of a national emergency."

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