Democratic debate in Nevada

Pete Buttigieg stood by the essay he wrote in 2000 lauding then-Rep. Bernie Sanders, telling the debate audience on Wednesday night that he was “into Bernie before it was cool.”

The line, referring to an essay Buttigieg wrote in high school, earned laughs from the room – and from Sanders, who smiled broadly when Buttigieg said it.

Then Buttigieg turned his subtle praise into an attack, going after Sanders on health care by saying taxes will go up under his “Medicare for All” plan and questioning how he would pay for the sweeping health care proposal.

“Where is the other $25 trillion supposed to come from? At a certain point, you’ve got to do the math,” Buttigieg said.

Sanders defended himself by saying the tax hikes on the middle class would be “saving people money because they don’t pay any premiums out-of-pocket, co-pays or deductibles” and pointed to a pay-roll tax as a way to raise funds for the plan.

As his potential Democratic rivals debate in Las Vegas, President Trump is in Phoenix hosting a campaign rally.

It’s a by-the-book Trump event – albeit somewhat less dark than some of his past rallies, with long sections on a strong American economy, deregulation, and his 2016 victory.

Trump has addressed Democrats a few times in his usual terms:

Trump suggested the Nevada caucuses were heading for Iowa-like disaster: “I’m hearing bad things about their vote count, like they don’t know what the hell they’re doing.”

Trump railed again against the FBI’s leadership calling them “absolute scum.”

As of the second commercial break, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has spoken the most at nearly 15 minutes.

Follow the full breakdown in real time here.

Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg was critical of a plan from Sen. Bernie Sanders that would guarantee workers eventually take control, through the issuance of new stock, of 20% stakes in the country’s largest companies.

More on Sanders’ plan: The Sanders plan would mandate that employees elect 45% of corporate boards of directors and also impose strict new guidelines on mega-mergers, while asking a revamped Federal Trade Commission to review deals pushed through during the Trump administration.

Sanders has argues that the measures, sure to be fiercely opposed by corporate leaders and moderate political rivals, would benefit companies and workers by fostering a more engaged, loyal and productive workforce.

Michael Bloomberg said on Wednesday night that it was “exactly wrong” to say he blamed the end of “redlining” for the 2008 financial collapse, despite video showing the then-New York mayor at a Georgetown University forum in 2008 arguing that getting rid of the biased housing practice was partly to blame for the collapse.

The video of Bloomberg, which began getting attention earlier this month as the former mayor began to rise in the polls, rankled Democrats, many of whom worked to get rid of the biased practice and have campaigned about taking it on from the federal level.

Bloomberg continued: “Redlining is still a practice in some places, and we’ve got to cut it out.”

Then, referring to the accusation, he said, “It’s just not true.”

But in the video of his 2008 remarks, Bloomberg said the crisis “started back when there was a lot of pressure on banks to make loans to everyone. Redlining, if you remember, was the term where banks took whole neighborhoods and said, ‘People in these neighborhoods are poor, they’re not going to be able to pay off their mortgages, tell your salesmen don’t go into those areas.’”

Bloomberg then said the “Congress got involved, local officials as well” and said, “‘Oh, that’s not fair, these people should be able to get credit.’ And once you started pushing in that direction, banks started making more and more loans where the credit of the person buying the house wasn’t as good as you would like.”

Bloomberg spokesperson Stu Loeser said earlier this month that the then-mayor was “saying that something bad — the financial crisis — followed something good, which is the fight against redlining he was part of as mayor.”

The financial crisis of 2008 was, in part, caused by banks and financial institutions offering predatory loans to homebuyers and others who were unable to fully pay them back. But blaming part of the collapse on the abolition of redlining runs afoul in many Democratic circles, the same people Bloomberg needs to court in his presidential bid.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren accused former New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg of saying derogatory things about women. 

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

Facts First: It’s not clear whether Bloomberg ever said these specific words, but they have been attributed to him. The quote Warren is referencing is from a booklet of alleged Bloomberg quotes given to him by an employee as a gift for his birthday in 1990. While the introduction of the book says “these are all actual quotes,” Bloomberg has denied that he actually said any of them.    

The Washington Post recently uploaded a copy of the booklet of alleged Bloomberg quotes, which includes a criticism of the British Royal family, calling them “a bunch of misfits — a gay, an architect, that horsey faced lesbian, and a kid who gave up Koo Stark for some fat broad.”   

Bloomberg’s presidential campaign spokesperson Stu Loeser told the Post that “Mike simply did not say the things somebody wrote in this gag gift, which has been circulating for 30 years and has been quoted in every previous election Mike has been in.”   

The Post also reported that a Bloomberg spokesperson said in 2001 that “‘some of the things he might have said’ and Bloomberg apologized to ‘anyone that was offended by’ the comments.” 

Some more context: However, as CNN has reported, Bloomberg has been accused of sexist and misogynistic behavior in the past.

His campaign chairwoman responded to new questions about those accusations to CNN, saying in part, “In any large organization, there are going to be complaints — but Mike has never tolerated any kind of discrimination or harassment, and he’s created cultures that are all about equality and inclusion.”

Michael Bloomberg has been practicing for tonight’s debate for several weeks, spending countless hours with a team of advisers who have been preparing him to go toe-to-toe with his Democratic rivals.

One thing he hasn’t done: Taken questions from voters.

He’s held no town hall meetings, according to reporters who have regularly covered him, which has isolated him from one of the best preparations for a presidential candidate: thinking on your feet during unscripted moments.

Since jumping into the presidential race three months ago, Bloomberg has logged thousands of miles campaigning across the country. But his events are carefully staged rallies, which begin and end with a prepared speech, almost always delivered with the aid of a teleprompter.

At a rally last week in Raleigh, North Carolina, Bloomberg breezed through his speech in about 15 minutes. Long after he left the room, a few of his admirers lingered.

As I sit here tonight in Las Vegas, watching Bloomberg’s unsteady debate performance, I’m thinking back to my conversation with Mickey Ramchandani, the founder and CEO of OBX Associates, a medical device company.

Ramchandani came out to see Bloomberg during a lunchtime stop in downtown Raleigh. The first thing he asked me: Why did Bloomberg not answer questions?

“I was surprised he didn’t take questions,” Ramchandani said. “I wanted to see him answer questions.” 

There’s no question that presidential debates are incredibly difficult. Jumping into a campaign at this late stage makes it even more challenging.

But as Bloomberg’s team prepares him for his second debate, which is set for next Tuesday in Charleston, South Carolina, will he face test questions from anyone not on his payroll?

Michael Bloomberg insisted he would not release women who alleged sexism and misogynistic behavior from non-disclosure agreements they’d signed at his company and allow them to describe their experiences. 

The former New York City mayor was asked about sexually suggestive comments he’d made in the 1990s, and claims from women that Bloomberg LP was a hostile workplace for women. 

He responded by touting his company as being ranked highly as a place for women to work now, and pointing to female executives at his company and foundation. 

Elizabeth Warren interjected, saying: “I hope you heard what his defense was: I’ve been nice to some women. That just doesn’t cut it.” 

She asked Bloomberg whether he would release women who had signed non-disclosure agreements from those agreements so that they could describe their experiences. 

Warren responded by asking if he’d release women who don’t wish to keep their experiences quiet live on television. Bloomberg said he wouldn’t — and Warren responded that he was keeping women “bound and muzzled” and that their stories would become a liability in a general election against President Donald Trump. 

Joe Biden jumped in, pointing out that Pete Buttigieg had asked his former employer, McKinsey, a major consulting firm, to release him from non-disclosure agreements that prohibited him from listing the companies he’d worked for. 

“It’s easy. All the mayor has to do is say, you are released from the non-disclosure agreements, period,” Biden said. 

But Bloomberg wouldn’t budge. 

“I’m simply not going to end these agreements because they were made consensually and they have every right to expect they will stay private,” he said. 

Some background: The allegations facing Bloomberg include claims from the 1990s that prior to a male colleague’s wedding, Bloomberg told a group of female employees to “line up to give him a blow job as a wedding present”; that he would regularly direct comments like “look at that nice piece of ass” at women in the office; and that upon learning that a female employee was expecting a baby, he responded: “Kill it!”

Bloomberg, through his representatives, has denied making the “kill it” comment and other comments laid out in at least two lawsuits, but has also acknowledged that he has made comments that do not align with his values.

Bloomberg having to answer for past controversial issues:

Amy Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg sparred over the Minnesota senator forgetting the name of the president of Mexico on Wednesday night, with the senator eventually asking the former mayor directly if he was “saying I’m dumb.”

Klobuchar and Tom Steyer both couldn’t name the president of Mexico when asked during a Telemundo interview while campaigning in Nevada this week. Klobuchar, when asked if she knew the president’s name, simply said no.

The senator looked to explain her misstep by saying that she didn’t think “momentary forgetfulness actually reflects what I know about Mexico and how much I care about it.”

Buttigieg has tried to use the misstep against Klobuchar, suggesting it shows her Washington experience has not prepared her to be President. And he did the same on Wednesday night.

“You are staking your candidacy on your Washington experience,” Buttigieg said. “You’re on the committee that oversees border security. You’re on the committee that does trade. You’re literally in the part of the committee that’s overseeing these things.”

The argument further descended into an argument over electability, with Klobuchar arguing her ability to win in Minnesota proves she can win nationally.

“This is a race for president,” Buttigieg fired back, before arguing that if being a senator from Minnesota was a prerequisite, he would have “grown up under the presidency of Walter Mondale.”

Klobuchar interned for Mondale when she was in college.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren slammed former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg over allegations of sexist and misogynistic behavior.

“I’m sorry, the question is, are the women bound by being muzzled by you? You could release them from that immediately. Because understand, this is not just a question of the mayor’s character,” she said.

Former Vice President Joe Biden interjected and said the solution is simple.

“It’s easy. All the mayor has to do is say, you are released from the nondisclosure agreement. Period. Talk about transparency here,” he said.

What’s this about: The allegations include claims from the 1990s that, prior to a male colleague’s wedding, Bloomberg told a group of female employees to “line up to give him a blow job as a wedding present”; that he would regularly direct comments like “look at that nice piece of ass” at women in the office; and that upon learning that a female employee was expecting a baby, he responded: “Kill it!”