After five debates over the past seven months, we’ve finally reached the last event of 2019 with seven Democratic candidates descending on the city of Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University. The debate tonight is sponsored by PBS NewsHour and POLITICO and will air live on PBS stations with a live simulcast on CNN. You can watch it live right here with the embedded live stream below.
PBS NewsHour/POLITICO Democratic Debate (6th Debate)
Date: Thursday, December 19, 2019
Time: 8 pm ET (7 pm CT, 6 pm MT, 5 pm PT)
Watch On: PBS, CNN
Location: Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles
Sponsors: PBS NewsHour, POLITICO
Moderators: PBS NewsHour anchor and managing editor Judy Woodruff, Politico chief political correspondent Tim Alberta, PBS NewsHour senior national correspondent Amna Nawaz, and PBS NewsHour White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor
Debate Live Stream
PBS has provided a live stream embed via YouTube which is set to begin coverage around 8 pm ET below:
Alternate Live Stream: PBS NewsHour, PBS.org, Politico.com, CNN.com
Other Ways To Watch
The debate will air live on every local PBS station and will be simulcast on CNN, CNN International, and CNN en Español.
On TV: PBS, CNN, CNN International
Satellite Radio: SiriusXM Channels 116, 454, 795
Other: Politico’s Facebook, Youtube, and Twitter pages
Debate Candidates
There are seven candidates set for the debate stage in Los Angeles. Originally Sen. Kamala Harris was also in the lineup but she dropped out of the race in early December.
From left to right in podium order on stage:
- Entrepreneur Andrew Yang
- South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
- Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren
- Former Vice President Joe Biden
- Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders
- Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar
- Businessman Tom Steyer
All the participants had to reach at least 4 percent support in four approved national or early-state polls, as well as raise money from at least 200,000 donors, including a minimum of 800 individuals in 20 states.
Debate Format
There will be no candidate opening statements. Questioning will begin at the immediate start of the debate. Candidates will have 1 minute and 15 seconds for responses to moderator questions, and 45 seconds for follow-up answers or rebuttals to other candidates. Candidates will receive one minute each at the end of the debate to make a closing statement which will be delivered in reverse polling order from lowest to highest.
There will be three commercial breaks, totaling eleven minutes, during the broadcast, which spans a total of three hours.
What To Watch For
There are many storylines heading into this debate. One particular set of candidates to watch, according to the NY Times, is Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Elizabeth Warren. The two have been sparring as of late, with Warren calling out Buttigieg by name at times:
Mr. Buttigieg and Ms. Warren have been increasingly going after each other, most recently over transparency. She demanded he open his fund-raisers, disclose bundlers and reveal past McKinsey clients (he has done all three). He demanded she release old tax returns (she has disclosed what private clients paid her).
Over a three hour debate, with only seven candidates, there is bound to be a confrontation between the two. If not the candidates, then the moderators will surely being up Warren’s criticism and make them discuss it.
Fortune Magazine also offers four key things to watch for tonight as well:
1. Can Buttigieg withstand an onstage onslaught?
Buttigieg held his own during last month’s debate as he continues to either climb or remain ahead in many polls in key early states. He is surging in New Hampshire and continues to be a favorite among Iowa caucus participants strongly considering him as their first choice for president.2. Can Biden (finally) have a good debate?
Despite being the leader in some national polls, Biden still hasn’t had a strong debate from start to finish. Will Thursday’s performance change that?3. Will Warren rebound?
The Massachusetts senator, who was considered the top frontrunner just a couple of months ago, and has seen her support dip to as low as third in national polling, needs to have a strong showing on Thursday.4. A Sanders surge?
Perhaps if there’s a frontrunner who may benefit from a smaller debate stage, it might be Sanders.
Question number two about Joe Biden seems almost irrelevant. If Biden’s debate performance was going to tank him, it would have done so already. He’s felt a sting in prior debates, but nothing seems to really shake his support loose below a twenty-five to thirty percent floor.
Warren perhaps has the most to gain or lose tonight given that her campaign has been suffering in recent months. Depending on how things go, she’ll either be able to turn the ship around or continue ceding more ground to Buttigieg and Sanders.
Sen. Bernie Sanders seems to be on an upswing and maybe he can capitalize on that tonight with his consistent messaging.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar is also a wild card in terms of debate impact, but expect her to continue carrying the “moderate” flag and try to gain more attention on a smaller stage.
Andrew Yang could also have a night to watch since he’ll be allowed much more speaking time with fewer candidates. After all, making it on stage at this point must give moderators pause if they think they can continue shortchanging him on questions or talk time.
The coverage starts around 7 pm ET with the debate kicking off at 8 pm ET (7 pm CT, 6 pm MT, 5 pm PT).
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