Front-Runners Exchange Jabs As Health Care Once Again Takes Center Stage At Democratic Debate

The Washington Post: September Democratic Debate Highlights: Democrats Argue Over Health Care, Guns, Immigration
Biden, Warren and Sanders opened the debate with a clash over health care that was a proxy argument over the future of the Democratic Party. Warren and Sanders arguing that Medicare-for-all would save Americans money and Biden, joined by the more moderate candidates, made a case against a wholesale overhaul of the health-care insurance industry as too expensive and unpopular. It was part of a broader divide onstage, between candidates who favor less sweeping but more attainable goals and those calling for huge structural change. (Sonmez, Wootson and Viser, 9/13)

The Wall Street Journal: Top 2020 Democratic Candidates Spar Over Health Care In Third Debate
The candidates largely agreed on what they see as the most important issues facing the country—a lack of universal health care, income inequality, the threat of climate change and the prevalence of mass shootings—but they diverged on how to address them. Mr. Biden, who has been atop the polls, drew fire from several candidates, but they saved the sharpest words for President Trump over his rhetoric and trade policies. (Day, Collins and Glazer, 9/13)

The New York Times: Attacks On Biden In Debate Highlight Divide Over The Obama Legacy
Facing all of his closest competitors for the first time in a debate, Mr. Biden, the Democratic front-runner, repeatedly invoked President Barack Obama’s name and policy record as a shield against rivals who suggested his own record was flawed, or implied his agenda lacked ambition. On health care, immigration, foreign wars and more, Mr. Biden’s central theme was his tenure serving under Mr. Obama. By constantly invoking Mr. Obama, a popular figure among Democrats, Mr. Biden sought to mute the ideological and generational divisions that have left him vulnerable in the primary race. (Martin and Burns, 9/12)

Reuters: Some Democrats Snipe, Others Unite In Third Presidential Debate
An anticipated fiery matchup between Biden, the moderate former vice president, and Elizabeth Warren, a liberal senator who has gained the No. 2 spot in recent opinion polls, did not quite materialize. U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, running a close third, sounded hoarse as he expounded on his favorite progressive topics, including healthcare, political corruption and income inequality. (9/13)

Reuters: Biden Attacks Warren, Sanders Over Cost Of Healthcare Plans In Democratic Debate
Biden, who served as vice president for eight years under Barack Obama, said he would build on Obama's landmark 2010 Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare. He accused Warren and Sanders of wanting to tear it down with Medicare for All, a proposed government-run healthcare program that would eliminate private insurance. "I know that the senator says she's for Bernie. Well I'm for Barack. I think Obamacare worked," Biden said, asking Warren and Sanders to explain how they would pay for their plans. "This is about candor, honesty, big ideas." (9/13)

The Wall Street Journal: The Moments That Mattered In Thursday’s Democratic Debate
The former vice president was backed up by Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. “It says that we will no longer have private insurance as we know it,” she said of the Sanders bill. “That means that 149 million Americans will no longer be able to have their current insurance. That’s in four years. I don’t think that’s a bold idea, I think it’s a bad idea.” Ms. Warren responded that her policies would be paid for by the wealthiest. “Costs are going to go up for wealthier individuals and costs are going to go up for giant corporations,” she said. “But for hardworking families across this country, costs are going to go down.” (Parti and McCormick, 9/13)

The Associated Press: Key Takeaways From The Democratic Candidates' Debate
Sanders took heavy fire on his single-payer health insurance proposal, with Biden and others hammering the Vermont senator for the cost and the political palatability of effectively eliminating the existing private insurance market. (9/12)

The Hill: Biden, Sanders, Warren Clash Over Medicare For All In Houston
Sanders said most Americans were getting a raw deal in terms of their present health care costs compared with countries that have systems more similar to his Medicare for All approach. “Let us be clear, Joe, in the United States of America we are spending twice as much per capita on health care as the Canadians or any other major country on earth,” Sanders said. “This is America,” Biden retorted. “Yeah, but Americans don’t want to pay twice as much as other countries and they guarantee health care to all people,” Sanders responded. (Sullivan, 9/12)

The Washington Post: Democrats Clash Over Health Care And More In Debate That Started With Calls For Unity
Several other candidates were more than willing to take on their fellow Democratic contenders directly, despite beginning the debate saying they wanted to unify the country and highlight the party’s broad unanimity on public policy. “I don’t think it’s a bold idea, I think it’s a bad idea,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) said of Sanders’s health-care bill. “For a socialist, you’ve got a lot more confidence in corporate America than I have,” Biden said to Sanders, scoffing at the idea that companies would pay workers more if they had fewer health-care costs. (Olorunnipa, Kinskey and Viser, 9/13)

Los Angeles Times: Biden Clashes With Warren And Sanders At The Democratic Debate Over The Party’s Future
“We all owe a huge debt to Barack Obama, who fundamentally transformed healthcare in this country,” Warren said. “Now, the question is how can we best improve that? Those at the very top, the richest individuals, the biggest corporations, are going to pay more and middle-class families are going to pay less,” Warren said. “That is how this is going to work.” (Halper and Mehta, 9/12)

Reuters: Democratic Debate Highlights: Democrats Spar Over Healthcare, Opponent Attacks
Sanders acknowledged the cost of his signature plan – but said studies show the status quo will cost Americans $50 trillion over the same time period. "I wrote the damn bill, if I may say so," he said, repeating his main applause line from the second debate in July. Biden emphasized again that his plan would allow people who like their private insurance to keep it, a key point of distinction from Sanders' and Warren's approach. (9/13)

Kaiser Health News: Despite Repeated Calls For Unity, Democrats Throw Some Debate Punches On Health Plans
“Everyone on this stage is well-intentioned,” said Sen. Kamala Harris of California. But she also issued a reminder that Trump has worked aggressively to fight the ACA — even taking it to court — and listed some of its most popular provisions, such as its protections for people with preexisting conditions and the ability to stay on your parents’ insurance until you turn 26. “If we don’t get Donald Trump out of office, he’s going to get rid of all of it,” she said. (Huetteman, 9/13)

The New York Times: Fact-Checking The Democratic Debate
WHAT MR. CASTRO SAID: “I also worked for President Obama, Vice President Biden, and I know that the problem with your plan is that it leaves 10 million people uncovered.” Later, he added, “The difference between what I support and what you support, Vice President Biden, is that you require them to opt in, and I would not require them to opt in — they would automatically be enrolled.” This is mostly true. (9/12)

USA Today: Democratic Debate: Health Care, Gun Control, Attacks Dominate Night
The more centrist candidates — New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, Buttigieg and Klobuchar — talked about finding common ground. But Warren, Sanders and Julian Castro argued for throwing the long ball. "But the truth is that our problems didn't start just with Donald Trump, and we won't solve them by embracing old ideas," Castro, the former Housing secretary, said in what seemed to be a slight aimed at Biden. "We need a bold vision." (Page, 9/13)

Texas Tribune: Julian Castro Hits Joe Biden On His Memory, Commitment To Barack Obama
Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro aggressively challenged Joe Biden — a fellow former Obama administration official — on the debate stage here Thursday, seeming to question the former vice president’s memory and saying he was not fulfilling former President Barack Obama’s “vision” on health care. The showdown early in the debate at Texas Southern University came after Biden criticized the Medicare-for-all health care plan touted by U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, among others. (Samuels, 9/12)

The Washington Post: Julian Castro Questioned Joe Biden’s Acuity. But Did Castro Get It Right?
To many, it was the most loaded question at Thursday night’s Democratic presidential debate. “Are you forgetting what you said two minutes ago?” Julián Castro asked Joe Biden in a heated exchange over health care. The crowd inside the debate hall reacted with a collective gasp, as if they had witnessed a scandalous twist on an afternoon talk show. Then, Castro repeated himself. Twice. (Sullivan, 9/13)

CNN: Third Debate Shows Why Democratic Primary Could Take A While To Decide
The lack of a clear winner among the 10 candidates on the stage underscored a key point about the 2020 Democratic primary: It may be a while before a winner emerges, as the Democratic Party wrestles with both an ideological divide and the crucial question of whether it's time for the next generation to take up the mantle. (Reston, 9/13)

ABC News: Read The Full Transcript Of ABC News' 3rd Democratic Debate
Read the full transcript of the third 2020 Democratic Debate airing on Thursday night, Sept. 12, 2019, on ABC News. (9/13)