>> governor bill weld gets tonight's last word. coming up on msnbc this independence day, the democratic debates. both nights in their entirety. that's next. good evening, everyone, i'm lester holt, and welcome to the first democratic debate in the race for president. >> hi, i'm savannah guthrie. tonight it's our first chance to see these candidates go head to head on stage together. we'll be joined in our questioning tonight by our colleagues, jose diart. >> what sets them apart and which of these presidential hopefuls has what it takes. >> well, now it's time to find out. >> tonight, round 1. new jersey senator cory booker, former housing secretary julian castro, new york city mayor, bill de blasio, former maryland congressman john delaney, hawaii

congresswoman tulsi gabbard, amy klobuchar, former texas congressman beto o'rourke. ohio congressman tim ryan, and massachusetts senator elizabeth warren. from nbc news, decision 2020, the democratic candidates debate, live from the performing arts center in miami, florida. >> and good evening again, everyone. welcome to the candidates and to our candidates and all across the country. tonight we're going to take on many of the most pressing issues of the moment, including immigration, the situation unfolding at our border and the treatment of migrant children. >> and we're going to talk about the conditions with iran, climate change and the economy,

those kitchen table issues. >> before we begin, 20 candidates qualified for 24 first debate. we'll hear from 10:00 tonight. the breakdown for each was selected at random. the candidates will have 60 seconds to answer and 30 seconds for any follow-ups. >> because of this large field, not every person will be able to comment on every topic. but over the course of the next two hours, we will hear from everyone. we'd also like to ask the audience to keep the reactions to a minimum. we're not going to be shy about making sure the candidates stick to time tonight. >> we'll we'll start with senator elizabeth warren. senator, good evening to you. >> thank you. good evening. >> you have many plans. free college, free child care, government health care, cancellation of student desk, new taxes, new regulations. the breakup of major corporations. but this comes at a time when 71% of americans say the economy is doing well, including 60% of

democrats. what do you say to those who worry this kind of significant change could be risky to the economy? >> i think of it this way. who is this economy really working for. it's doing great for a thinner and thinner slice at the top. it's doing great for giant drug companies. it's doing great for people who want to invest in private prisons. not for the families whose lives are destroyed and whose communities are ruined. it's doing great for giant oil companies that want to drill everywhere. just not for the rest of us who are watching climate change bear down upon us. when you've got a government, when you've got an economy that does great for those with money and isn't doing great for everyone else that is corruption pure and simple.

we need to make structural change in our government, in our economy and in our country. >> senator klobuchar, you called programs like free college something you might do if you were, quote, a magic genie. to be blunt, are the government programs and benefits some of your giving voters a false sense of what's actually achievable? >> first the economy. we know not everyone is sharing in this prosperity. and donald trump just sits in the white house and gloats about what what's going on. when you have so many people affording college and trouble affording their premiums. so i do get concerned about paying for college for rich kids. i do. but i think my plan is a good one. and my plan would be to make community college free, and make

sure everyone else besides that top percentile gets help with education. my own dad and sister got their first degrees with community college. there are many paths to success as well as certifications. secondly, i'd double programs from $6,000 to $12,000 a year and expand to it the number of families that get covered. to families that make up $100,000. and the third thing i would do is make it easier for students to pay off their loans. if billionaires can pay off their yachts, students should be able to pay off their student loans. >> that's time. thank you. congressman o'rourke, what we have just been discussing is how much fundamental change to the economy is desirable and how much is actually doable. some democrat want a tax rate of $70 million on the highest earners. would you support that?

and if not, what would your top individual rate be? >> this economy has got to work for afternoon. and right now it's going to take all of us coming together that it does. [ speaking spanish ] >> now we have a system that favors those who can pay for access and outcomes. that's how you explain a economy rigged to the very wealthest. a $2 trillion tax cut that favored wealthiest while they were sitting on piles of catch at a time of historic wealth inequality. a new democracy because we returned power to the people. no pacs, no gerrymandering,

automatic and same-day registration and a new voting rights act. >> congressman o'rourke. >> that's how we each have a voice in our democracy and make this work for everyone. >> that's time, sir. i'll give you ten seconds to answer. would you support a 70% individual marginal tax rate? yes, no, or pass? >> i would support a tax rate and a tax code that is fair to everyone. >> same rate? >> take that corporate tax rate up to 28%. you would generate the revenues you need to pay for the programs. >> that's time. thank you. senator booker, there is a debate in this party about the role of negotiations, as you know. publiced to break up companies like facebook, amazon and google. you said we should not, quote, be running around pointing at companies and breaking them up without any kind of process. why do you disagree? >> i don't disagree. i think we have a serious problem in our country with

serious consolidation. you see the evidence of that in how dignity is being stripped from labor. and we have people that work full-time jobs and make a living wage. we see that because companies often have monopolistic holds on drugs. this is an economy that is hurting small businesses and not allowing them to compete. one of the most aggressive bills in the senate is about corporate consolidation in the ag sector. i feel very strongly about the need to let the free market work. i live in a low income black and brown community. i see every single day this economy is not working for average americans. the indicators that are being used from gdp to wall street's rankings is not helping people in my community. it is about time that we have an economy that works for everybody, not just the wealthiest in our nation. >> quickly, senator booker, you

didn't think it was right to name names, to single them out as senator warren has. briefly, why is that? >> i will single out companies like halliburton or amazon. when it comes to antitrust, i will appoint judges that will enforce it. number two, have a doj and a federal trade commission that will go through the processes necessary to check this kind of corporate concentration. at the end of the day, we have too much of a problem with citizens united and the way they're trying to influence washington. it's about time we have a president that fights for the people in this country. >> that's time, sir. >> we need someone as a champion for them. >> senator warren, i mentioned you. are you picking winners and losers? >> there is way too much consolidation in giant industries in this country. that hurts workers.

it hurts small businesses. it hurts independent farmers. it hurts our economy overall, and it helps constrict real innovation and growth in this economy. now, look, we've had the laws out there for a long time to be able to fight back. what's been missing is courage, courage in washington to take on the giants. that's part of the corruption in this system. it has been far too long that the monopolies have been funding the superpacs, have been out there making sure that their influence is heard and felt in every single decision that gets made in washington. where i want to start this is i want to return government to the people and that means calling out the names of the monopolists and saying have i the courage to go after them. >> take castro, the next question is for you. democrats have been talking

about the pay gap for decades. what woo you do to make sure women are paid fairly in this country? >> thank you very much for that question, lester. i grew up with a mother who raise mid brother joaquin and me as a single parent. i know what it's like to struggle. i know what it's like to rent a home and to worry about whether you're going to able to pay the rent. and to know that moms across this country are getting paid less simply because they're women. i would do several things, starting with something we should have done a long time ago, which is to pass the equal rights amendment, finally in this country. and also pursue legislation so that women are paid equal pay for equal work in this country. it's past time that we did that. and we have to this. if we want to be the most prosperous nation in the 21st century, we need to make sure women are paid what they deserve. >> thank you. i want to put the same question to congresswoman gabbard. your thoughts on equal pay.

>> first of all, let's recognize the situation we're in, that the american people deserve a president who will put your interests ahead of the rich and powerful. that's not what we have right now. i enlisted in the national guard after the terrorist attacks on 9/11 so i could go after those who attacked us on that day. i still serve as a major, deployed twice to the middle east. and in congress served on the foreign affairs and armed services committee for over six years. i know the importance of our national security, as well as the terribly high cost of war. and for too long our leaders have failed us, taking us from one regime change to the next, leading us into a new arms war costing us trillions of our hard-earned taxpayer dollars and countless lives. this insanity must end. as president, he will take your hard earned tax dollars and invest those dollars into serving your needs, things like health care, good paying jobs,

protecting our environment, and so much more. >> mayor de blasio. you're the mayor of the biggest city in the united states, but it's also one of the cities in the country with the greatest gap between the wealthy and the poor. how would you great income inequality? >> well, we've been addressing income inequality in new york city by raising wages, by raising benefits, by putting money back in the hands of working people. $15 minimum wage, paid sick day, pre-k for all things that are making a huge difference in working people's lives. what we're hearing already in the first round of questions is that this is supposed to be the party of working people. yes, we're supposed to be for 70% tax rate on the wealthy. yes, we're supposed to be for free college, for free public college. we're supposed to break up big corporations when they're not serving our democracy.

this democratic party has to be strong and bold and progressive. and in new york we've proven that we can do something very different. we can put money back in the working hands of people. every time you talk about investing in people and their communities, you hear folks say there is not enough money. what i hear every single day, there is plenty of money in this world, in this country. it's just in the wrong hands. democrats have to fix that. >> congressman delaney, you agree? >> i think we need to do real things to help american workers and the american people, right? this is the issue that all of us on the campaign trail. we need to make sure everyone has a living wage. i called for raising the minimum wage, and creating paid family leave that will create a situation where people actually have a living wage. that gets right to workers. then we've got to fix our public education system. it's not delivers the results our kids need. nor is college and technical

training programs doing that. i'm very different than everyone else here on the stage. prior to being in congress, i was an entrepreneur. i started two businesses. i created thousands of jobs. i spent my whole career helping small to midsized businesses all over the country. 5,000 of them i supported. the obama administration gave me an award for lending to disadvantaged communities. i know how to create jobs. we need raising the minimum wage and create paid family leave and we need to have a long-term strategy to make sure this company is competitive and we're creating jobs everywhere in this country. >> how would you address income inequality? >> well, i'm a little bit surprised. i think plans are great, but i'm a governor. and we got to realize the people who brought us the weekend unions are going to bring us a long overdue raise in america. and i'm proud of standing up for unions. i've got a plan to reinvigorate collective bargaining so we can

increase wages finally. i marked with the sciu spokes. it's not right tra that the ceo of mcdonald's makes 2,100 times more than the people slinging hash at mcdonald's. and the next thing i'll do is put people to work in the jobs of the president and the future. donald trump is simply wrong. he says wind turbines cause cancer. we know they cause jobs. and we know we can put millions of people to work in the clean energy jobs of the future. carpenter, machinists. we're doing it in my state today. and then we can do what america always does, lead the world and invent the very and put people to work. that's what we're going to do. promised manufacturing jobs are all coming back to places like your home state of ohio. you make that same promise? >> yes, i believe you can. but first, let's say the president came. he said don't sell your house to

people in youngstown, ohio. in his administration in just the last few years we lost 4,000 jobs at a general motors facility. that rippled throughout our community. general motors got a tax cut. general motors got a bailout. and then they have the audacity to move the new car that they're going to produce to mexico. i've had family members that have to unbolt a machine from the factory floor, put it in a box and ship it to china. my area where i come from in northeast ohio, this issue we're talking about here, it's been going on 40 years. this is not a new phenomenon in the united states of america. the bottom 60% haven't seen a raise since 1980. meanwhile, the top 1% control 90% of the wealth. we need an industrial policy saying we're going to dominate building electric vehicles. there is going to be 30 million made in the next senn years. i want half made in the united states. i want to dominate the solar industry and manufacturer those.

>> thank you. senator warren, are they coming back? are these jobs coming back? >> so we've had an industrial policy in the united states for decades now, and it's basically been let giant corporations do whatever they want to do. giant corporations have exactly one loyalty, and that is to profits. and if they can save a nickel by moving a job to mexico, to asia or canada, they're going to do it. here is what i propose for an industrial policy. start with a place where there is a real need. there is going to be a worldwide need for grown technology, ways to clean up the air, ways to clean up the water. and we can be the ones to provide that. we need to go tenfold in our research and development on green energy going forward. and then we need to say any corporation can come and use that research. they can make all kinds of products from it. but they have to be manufactured right here in the united states of america. and then we have to double down and sell it around the world.

there is a $23 trillion market come coming for green products. we should be the leaders and the owners, and we should have that 1.2 manufacturing jobs here in america. we can do this. >> we're going to turn to the issue of health care right now and understand whether there may or may not be daylight between you. many people watching at home have health insurance coverage through their employer. who here would abolish their private health insurance in favor of a government-run plan, just a show of hands to start out with? senator klobuchar, you're one of the democrats who wants to keep frieft insurance. why is an incremental approach in your view better? >> i think it's a bold approach. it's something barack obama wanted to do. that is a public option.

i am simply concerned about kicking half of america off of their health insurance in four years, which is exactly what this bill says. so let me go beyond that. there is a much bigger issue in addition to that, and that is pharmaceuticals. the president literally went on tv on fox and said that people's heads would spin spin when they would see how much he would bring down pharmaceutical prices. instead 2500 drugs have gone up in downtown digits since he came into office. instead, he gave $100 billion in giveaways to the pharma companies. for the rest of us, for the rest of america, that's what we call at home all foam and no beer. we got nothing out of it. so my approximately is to do something about pharma, to take them on, to bring in less expensive drugs from other countries, and pharma thinks they own washington. well that. >> don't own me. >> your time is up. thank you. senator warren, you signed on

bernie sanders's medicare for all plan. it would put essentially everybody on medicare and eliminate private plans that offer similar coverage. is that the plan or the path that you would pursue as president? >> so, yes, i'm with bernie on medicare for all. let me tell you why. one of the number one reasons is the cost of health care, medical bills. that's not just for people who don't have insurance. it's for people who have insurance. look at the business model of an insurance company. it's to bring in as many dollars as they can in premiums and to pay out as few dollars as possible for your health care. that leaves family with rising premiums, rising copays, and fighting with insurance companies to try to get the health care that their doctors say they and their children need.

and i understand. there are a lot of politicians who say oh, it's not poll. a lot of political reasons for it. what they're telling you is they just won't fight for it. health care is a basic human right, and i will fight for basic human rights. >> thank you. >> congressman. congressman o'rourke, when you ran for senate, you also praised a bill that would replace private insurance. this year you're saying you're no longer sure. you explain why? >> my goal is to ensure that every american is well enough to live to their full potential, because they have health care. in laredo, texas, i met a young man, 27 years old. had been to a doctor once in his life. on that visit he was told he had diabetes, glaucoma, and because he doesn't have health care, he'll be dead before the age of 40. getting to high quality universal health care as quickly and surely as possible has to be

our goal. the ability to afford your prescriptions and go to a primary care provider, the ability to see a mental health care provider. in texas, the single largest provider of mental health care services is the county jail system today. and every woman can make her own decisions her own body and has access to that care that make it possible. if you're insufficiently ensured, you can't afford your premiums, we enroll you in medicare. but if you're a member of a union that negotiated for a health care care plan that you like, you're able to keep it. we preserve choice by. >> your time is up, congressman. i do want to ask a follow-up on this. just to be very clear. would you replace private insurance? no. i think the choice is fundamental to our ability to get everybody -- >> private insurance is not working for 10s of millions of americans. when you talk about the copay, the deductibles, the premiums, the out-of-pocket expense, it's not working.

>> for those to whom it's not working, they can choose medicare. >> congressman, you got to start by acknowledging that it's not working for people. >> they're able to keep them. >> why are you defending private insurance? >> they like their private health insurance. it should be noted 100 million americans. i think we should be the party that keeps what's working and fixes what's broken. doesn't that make sense? we should give everyone in this country basic health care for free, full stop. but we should also give them the option to buy private insurance. why do we have to stand for taking away something from people? and also, it's bad policy. if you go the every hospital in this country and you asked them one question, which is how would it have been for you last year if every one of your bills were paid at the medicare rate? every single hospital administrator said they would close. and the medicare for all bill requires payments to stay at current medicare rates. so to some extent, we're

basically supporting a bill that will have every hospital close. my dad was a union electrician. i actually grew up in a work class family. he loved the health care that the ibew gave him. i think about my dad and anything i would do from a policy perspective. he would look at me and say good job, john, for getting health care for every american. but why you taking my health care away? >> let this play out a little bit. i'm fascinated to hear the daylight between you. congresswoman gabbard, why don't you weigh in here? >> we're talking one bill over another bill. what we're talking about is our objective, making sure that every single sick american in this country is able to get the health care that they need. i believe medicare for all is the way to do that. i also think that employers will recognize how much money will be saved by supporting a medicare for all program, a program that will reduce the administrative costs, reduce the bureaucratic costs and make sure that everyone gets that quality health care that they need. i also think if you look at

other countries in the world who have universal health care, every one of them has some form of a role of private insurance. i think that's what we've got to look at, taking the best of these ideas, but making sure unequivocally that no sick american goes without getting the care that they need, regardless of how much or little money they have in their pockets. >> congresswoman, let me turn to senator booker on this. explain to me where you are. this is hugely important to people. tell us where you are. >> first of all, we talk of this as a health care issue. in low income communities, it's an education issue, because kids who didn't have health care are not going to succeed in school. it's an issue for jobs and employment because people that do not have good health care do not succeed at work. it's even a retirement issue, because in my community, african americans have a lower life expectancy because of poor health care. and so where i stand is very clear. health care is not just a human right, should it been a american right. and i believe the best way to get there is medicare for all. but have i an urgency about this. when i am president of the

united states, i'm not going to wait. we have to do the things immediately that are going to provide better care. and on this debate, i'm sorry. there are too many people profiteering off of the pain of people in america. from pharmaceutical companies to insurers. literally, the overhead for insurers that they charge is 15%, while medicare's overhead is only at 2%. we can do this better, and every single day i'll be fighting to give people more access and more affordable costs to get to my goals which is every american with health care. >> i want to go become to congresswoman -- >> and that is that the insurance companies last year alone sucked $23 billion in profits out of the health care system. $23 billion. and that doesn't count the money that was paid to executives, the money that was spent lobbying washington. we have a giant industry that wants our health care system to stay the way it is.

because it's not working for families, but it sure as heck working for them. it's time for us to make families come first. >> it should not be an option in the united states of america for any insurance company to deny women coverage of their exercise of their right of choice. and i am the only candidate here who has passed a law protecting a woman's right of reproductive health in health insurance, and i'm the only candidate who has passed a public option. and i respect everybody's goals and plans here. but we do have one candidate that's actually advanced the ball, and we got to have access for everyone. i've done it. >> senator, senator klobuchar, i want to get you in. >> i just want to say there are three women up here who have fought pretty hard for a woman's right to choose. and i want to make very clear, i

think we share the goal of universal health care. and the idea that i put out there, the public option, which the governor was just talking about, this idea is that you use medicare or medicaid without any insurance companies involved. the estimates are 13 million people would see a reduction in their premiums. 12 more million people would get covered. so i think it is beginning and the way you start and the way you move to universal health care. >> secretary castro, this is for you. all of you support a woman's right to abortion. you all support some version of a government health care option. would you plan cover abortion, mr. secretary? >> yes, it would. i don't believe only in reproductive freedom. i believe in reproductive justice. and, you know, what that means is that just because a woman let's also not forget someone in the transcommunity, a transfemale is poor, doesn't

mean they shouldn't have the right to exercise that right to choose. i would cover the right to abortion. more than that, nerve this crowd knows a person's ability to choose is under assault in places like missouri and alabama and georgia. i would appoint judges to the federal bench that understand the precedent of roe v. wade and will respect it. and in addition to that, make sure that we fight hard as we transition to one where everybody can get and exercise that right. >> senator warren works you put any limits on abortion? >> i would make certain that every woman has access to the full range of reproductive services. and that includes birth control. it includes abortion. it includes everything for a woman. i want to add on that. it's not enough for us to expect the courts to protect us.

47 years ago roe v. wade was decided, and we've all looked to the courts all that time as state after state has undermined row, has put in exceptions, has come right up to the edge of taking away protections. >> your time is up, senator. >> we now have an america where most people support roe v. wade. we need to make that law. >> thank you. senator booker, i want to kind of come back on a discussion we were having about health and the opioid crisis. you represent a state where 14 of the 20 largest pharmaceutical companies are based. should pharmaceutical companies that manufacture these drugs be held criminally liable for what they do? >> they should absolutely be held criminally liable, because they are liable and responsible. this is one of the reasons while before i was rung for president, i said i would not take contributions from pharma companies, not take contributions from corporate pacs because they are part of

this problem. and this opioid addiction in this country, we in cities like mine have been seeing how we've tried to arrest our way out of addiction for too long. it is time to have a national urgency to deal with this problem and make the solutions that are working be thely of the land and make the pharmaceutical companies responsible. help them to pay for that. >> congressman o'rourke, how would you deal? >> tonight in this country we have 2.3 million americans behind bars. it's the largest prison population on the face of the planet. many are there for nonviolent drug crimes, including possession of marijuana at a time that more than half the states have legalized or decriminalized it. despite what perdue pharma has done, their connection to the opioid crisis and the overdose deaths, they've been able to act with complete impunity and pay no consequence, not a single night in jail. unless there is accountability, this crisis will continue.

my administration will hold them to account. we will make sure they pay a price and help those who have been victims of this malfeasance in this country. get them treatment and long-term care. >> i know immigration is on a lot of your minds here. we need to take a break. we'll be back with more from miami after this. you try hard, you eat right... mostly. you make time... when you can. but sometimes life gets in the way, and that stubborn fat just won't go away. coolsculpting takes you further. a non-surgical treatment that targets, freezes, and eliminates treated fat cells, for good. discuss coolsculpting with your doctor. some common side-effects include temporary numbness, discomfort, and swelling. don't imagine results, see them. coolsculpting, take yourself further.

i'm richard liu following breaking news at the bottom of the hour. there is a state of emergency in ridgecrest, california after the strongest earthquake in 20 years struck this morning. the 6.4 magnitude quake caused downed powers and gas leaks. a few people reported hurt. and president trump just wrapped up his speech at his sleuth to america july 4th celebration. the event is drawing some criticism. critics say it politicizes the holiday. for now, back to the democratic debate. we want to turn to an issue that has been in the news, especially this week. there are undocumented children

being held alone in detention, even as close as homestead, florida, right here, less than 30 miles from where we are here tonight. fathers and mothers and children are dying while trying to enter the united states of america. we saw that image today that broke our hearts and they had names. oscar martinez and his 23-month-old daughter, valeria died trying to cross the river to ask for asylum in this country. last month more than 130,000 migrants were apprehended at the southern border. secretary castro, what would you specifically do? >> thank you very much, josé. i'm proud that in april was the first candidate to put forward a comprehensive immigration plan. we saw those images. watching that image of oscar and

valeria, his daughter, is heartbreaking. it should also piss us all off. if i were president today and it should spur us to action. if i were president today, i would sign an executive order that would get rid of trump's zero tolerance policy and the remain in mexico policy and the metering policy. this metering policy is what prompted oscar and valeria to make that risky swim across the river. they had been playing games with people come and trying to seek asylum. oscar and valeria went to a port of entry, and they were denied to make an asylum claim. so they got frustrated and they tried to cross the river, and they died because of that. >> on day 1. sorry. >> on day 1 i would do an executive order that would address metering. and i would follow that up in the first 100 days with immigration reform that would put undocumented immigrants, as long as they haven't committed a serious prime krooim on a path

to citizenship and would get to the root cause of the issue which is we need a marshall plan for guatemala and honduras and el salvador so people can find safety and opportunity at home instead of coming to the united states to seek it. >> senator booker, what would you do on day one? and this is a situation that the next president will inherit. >> yes, sir. [ speaking spanish ] on day one, i will make sure that number one, we end the ice policies and the customs and border policies are violating the human rights. when people come to this country, they do not leave their human rights at the border. number two, i will make sure that we reinstate daca and we reinstate pathways to citizenship for daca recipients, and to make sure that people that are here on temporary protective status can stay and

remain here. finally, we need to make sure that we address the issues that made oscar and valeria come in the first place by making play major investments in the northern triangle, not what this president is doing, but by resources that can help solve the problem. we cannot surrender our values. we will lose security and our values. we must fight for both. >> if i might very briefly, this is an important point -- my plan, and i'm glad to see that senator booker and senator warren and inslee agree. get rid of section 1325 of the immigration and nationality act, to go back to the way we used to treat this when somebody comes across the border, not to criminalize desperation, to treat that as a civil violation. and here's why it's important. we see all of this horrendous family separation.

they use that law, section 1325 to justify under the law, separating children from their families. >> thank you. >> i want to challenge every single candidate on this stage to support the repeal of section 1325. >> 30 seconds. >> as my friend here said, i agree with him on that issue, but folks should understand that the separation of children from families doesn't just go on at our border. it happens in the community as ice are ripping away parents from children and spouses at like and creating fear in cities across the country where parents are afraid to even drop their kids off to school or the go to work. we must end those policies as well. >> must have a discussion about immigration in this country. look at the bottom line here. the tragic photo of that parent, that child, and i'm saying this as a father, every american should feel that in their heart, and every american should say that is not america. those are not our values. but we have to get under the skin of why we have this crisis in our system. because we're not being honest

about the division that's been fomented in this country. the way that american citizens have been told that immigrants somehow created their misery and their pain and their challenges. for all the american citizens who feel they're falling behind, who feel the american dream is not working for you, the immigrants didn't do that to you. the big corporations did that to you. the 1% did that to you. we need to be the party of working people and that includes a party of immigrants, but first we have to tell working people who are hurting we will be on their side every time against the big corporation who is created this mess to begin with. and remind people we're all in this together. if we don't change that debate, the politics that is holding us back, we won't get the reforms we need. that's what we need to. >> if coy. [ speaking spanish ] what would you do day one at the white house? [ speaking spanish ]

we would not turn back valeria and her father, oscar. we would accept them and follow our own asylum laws. we would not build walls and put kids in cages. in fact, we would spare no expense to reunite the families that have been separated already. >> congressman -- >> and we would not criminally prosecute any family that is fleeing violence and persecution. >> 1325. >> we would make sure. >> secretary, let him finish. let him finish. let him finish. yes? >> we would not detain any family fleeing violence. in fact fleeing the deadliest countries on the face of the planet today. we would implement a family case management program so they could be cared for in the community at a fraction of the cost. and then we would rewrite our immigration laws in our own image. free dreamers forever from any fear of deportation by making them u.s. citizens here in this country. invest in vusolution in central

america so there is no reason to make that journey to america. >> we have 30 seconds. >> let's be very clear. the reason that they're separating children from trer families is they're using section 1325 which is coming across the border to incarcerate the parents and then separate them. some of us on the stage have called the section to terminate it. some, like congressman o'rourke, have not. i want to challenge all the candidates to do that. i think it's a mistake. i think it's a mistake. and i think if you truly want to change the system, that we have to repeal that section. >> thank you. >> if not, it might as well stay the same policy. >> respond briefly. >> as a member of congress, i helped to introduce legislation that would ensure that we don't criminalize those who are seeking asylum and refuge in this country. if you're fleeing -- >> i'm not talking -- >> i want to make sure -- >> i'm still talking about everybody else. >> but you're looking at just one small part of this. i'm talking about a comprehensive rewrite of our immigration laws. >> that's not true.

>> and if we do that, i think it's -- >> that's not true. >> to all our laws when they come to this country. >> millions of folks. a lot of folks that are coming are not seeking asylum. a lot of them are undocumented immigrant, right? and you said recently the reason you didn't want to repeal section 1325 is because you were concerned about human trafficking and drug trafficking. but let me tell you what, title 18 of the u.s. code, title 21 and title 22 already cover human trafficking. >> a known smuggler or drug trafficker. >> if you did your homework, you would know -- thinking is an issue that we should and could be talking about for a long time, and we will for a long time. >> can we talk about the conditions and why people are coming here? >> lester. >> savannah, i know. we could go on. but rather than talk about specific provisions, we have to talk about why these people are coming to our country and what we're going to do to actually make a difference in these

countries. >> congressman, you'll get your chance. let's continue the discussion. senator klobuchar. >> yes. >> let's talk about what secretary castro just said. he wants to have it no longer be a crime to illegally cross the border. do you support that? do you hit the should be a civil offense only? and if so, do you worry about potentially incentivizing people to come here? >> immigrants, they do not diminish america. they are america. and i am happy to look at his proposal, but i do think you want to make sure that you have provisions in place that allow you to go after traffickers and allow you to go after people who are violating the law. what i really think we need to step back and talk about is the economic imperative here. and that is that 70 of our fortune 500 countries are headed by people who came from other countries. 25% of our u.s. nobel laureates were born in other countries. we have a situation right now

where we need workers in our fields and our factories. we need them to start small businesses. we need their ideas. this president has literally gone backwards. at a time when our economy needs immigrants. my proposal is to look at that 2013 bill that passed the senate with republican support to upgrade that bill, to make it as good as possible and get it done. it brings the debt down by $158 billion. it gives a path to citizenship for citizen -- for people who can become citizens. it will be so much better for our economy and america. >> that's time. thank you. congressman ryan, same question. should it be a crime to illegally cross the border? or should it be a civil offense only? >> i agree with secretary castro. i think there are other provisions in the law that will allow you to prosecute people for coming over here if they're dealing in drugs and other things. that's already established in the law. so there no need to repeat it. i think it's abhorrent we are talking about this father who

got killed with his daughter and the issues here and the way these kids are being treated. if you go to guantanamo bay, there are terrorists that are held that get better health care than those kids who tried to cross the border into the united states. that needs to stop and the president should immediately ask doctors and nurses to go immediately down to the border and start taking care of these kids. what kind of country are we running where we have a president of the united states who is so focussed on hate and fear and division and what happened now, the end result is we have kids literally laying in their own is not with three-week-old diapers that haven't been changed. we need to tell this president that is not a sign of strength, mr. president, that is a sign of weakness. >> senator booker, a lot of people -- josé asked the president, what will you do with the fact that you will have families here. there has been a lot of talk

about what you'll do in the first 100 days about legislation. what will you actually do with these families? how will you care for them and will they be detained or will they not be? >> this is a related and brief point. what we're talking about, what secretary castro and i are talking about is we have the power to better deal with this problem through the civil process than the criminal process. i have been to some of the largest private prisons when are repugnant to me that people are profiting off of incarceration. our country made so many mistakes by criminalizing things whether it's immigration or mental illness, whether it's addiction. we know that this is not the way to deal with problems. there is a humane way that affirms human rights and dignity and actually solves this problem. donald trump is not solving this problem. under his leadership there has been a surge at the border. we solved this problem by making investments in the northern triangle to stop the reasons why

people are driven here in the first place, and we make sure we use our resources to provide health care to affirm the values and human dignity of the people that come here. we cannot sacrifice our values and ideals as a nation for border security. we can have both by doing this the right way. >> all right, senator, thank you. let me go to governor inslee on this. what would you do on day one? same question i just asked cory booker. i have yet to hear an answer. anyone on this stage, what will you do with the families that will be here? >> there is no reason for the detention and separation of these children. they should be released pending their hearings, and they should have a hearing and the law should be followed. that's what should happen. we should do what we are doing in washington state. i'm proud we passed a law that prevents local law enforcement from being turned into mini i.c.e. agents. i'm proud to be the first governor who stand up against the heinous muslim ban and a person who not only talked about dreamer, but being one of the

first to make sure they get a college education so that they can realize their dreams. these are some of the most inspirational in our state. i will leave you with this thought. if you want to know what i think. donald trump the other day tried to threaten me. he thought it was a threat to tell me that he would send refugees in washington state if we passed a law that i passed. and i told him that's not a threat at all. we welcome refugees into our state. we recognize diversity as a strength. this is how we built america, that tradition will continue if i'm president of the united states. >> we will switch to another topic. we have a lot to get to. >> my grandfather was actually separated from his family hen he came here. >> we're working against the clock. tankers have been attacked. and a drone has been shot down and disturbing threats issued by both the u.s. and iranian leadership. i would like if you can to put aside how you think we may have gotten here, but what i want to know is how do you dial it back? a show of hands, who has president would sign on to the

2015 nuclear deal as it was originally negotiated? that's everyone. senator booker, why not? >> may i address that? first and foremost, it was a mistake to pull out of that deal. one of the reasons we are seeing the hostility now is donald trump is marching us to a far more dangerous situation. literally he took us out of a deal that gave us transparency into their nuclear program and pushed back a nuclear breakout 10, 20 years. and now we see iran threatening to go further, and we're being pulled further and further into this crisis. we need to renegotiate and get back into a deal, but i'm not going to have a primary platform to say unilaterally to rejoin the deal. when i'm president of the united states, i will do the best i can to secure the country and the region and if i have an opportunity to leverage a better deal, i'm going to do it. >> all right. senator klobuchar, you said you would negotiate yourself back into the iranian agreement. can you argue that that nuclear

pact as it was ratified was a good deal? >> yes, it was. >> it was imperfect, but it was a good deal for that moment. i would have worked to get longer sunset periods and that's something we can negotiate to get back in the deal. the point is, donald trump told us when he got out of it, he was going to give us a better deal. those were his words. we are a month away from the iranians who claim now they are going to blow the caps on enriching uranium, and the iranians have told us this. so that's where we are right now. he has made us less safe than we were when he became president. so what i could do is negotiate us back into that agreement, is stand with our allies and not give unlimited leverage to china and russia, which is what he has done. and then, finally, i would make sure that if there is any possibility of a conflict, and we're having this debate in congress right now, that he comes to congress for an authorization of military force. i would do that. this president is literally

every single day 10 minutes away from going to war. one tweet away from going to war. i don't think we should conduct foreign policy in our bathrobe at 5:00 in the morning. >> all right. your time is up. congresswoman gabbard, you've said you would sign back on to the 2015 deal. would you insist though that it addressed iran's support for hezbollah? >> let's deal with the situation where we are. this president and his chicken hawk cabinet led us to the brink of war with iran. i served in the war in iraq at the height of the war in 2005, a war that took over 4,000 of my brothers and sisters in uniforms' lives. the american people need to understand this war would be far more devastating, far more costly than anything we saw in iraq. it would take many more lives and exacerbate the refugee crisis and it wouldn't be contained within iran.

this would turn into a regional war. this is why it's so important that every one of us, every single american stand up and say no war with iran. we need to get back into the iran nuclear agreement and we need to negotiate how we can improve it. it was an imperfect deal and the issues like their missile development that needs to be addressed. we can do both simultaneously to prevent iran from developing a nuclear weapon and preventing us from going to work. >> your time is up. a very quick follow-up. what would your red line be for military action against iran? >> look, obviously, if there was an attack against the american -- our troops, then there would have to be a response. but my point is, and it is important for us to recognize this, is donald trump and his cabinet, mike pompeo, john bolton and others are creating a situation that just a spark would light off a war with iran, which is incredibly dangerous. that's why we need to de-escalate tensions.

trump needs to get back into the iran nuclear deal and swallow his pride. put the american people first. >> yes out of time. we're up against a hard break. but we will have much more -- mayor de blasio, we'll have more. the commercial is coming. we'll continue our questioning next with chuck todd and rachel maddow. stick around. we'll have a lot more with some very anxious candidates, just ahead. once-daily toujeo helps you control your blood sugar. toujeo provides significant a1c reduction, and stable blood sugar control, around the clock. find your groove with toujeo. ♪ let's groove tonight. toujeo is used to control high blood sugar in adults with diabetes. it contains 3 times as much insulin in 1 milliliter as standard insulin. don't use toujeo to treat diabetic ketoacidosis, during episodes of low blood sugar, or if you're allergic to insulin. get medical help right away if you have a serious allergic reaction such as body rash, or trouble breathing. don't reuse needles, or share insulin pens.

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hi, i'm richard lui following breaking news this hour. southern california experienced its strongest earthquake in 20 years this morning. it hit 125 miles east of bakersfield. local law enforcement report multiple injuries, as well as gas leaks and some property damage. and in a rainy washington, d.c., president trump spoke at a fourth of july event that featured a large amount of military hardware on the ground and in the air. that's the latest from msnbc. for now back to the democratic debate. we believe have the technical difficulties fixed. >> never say that. >> never say never. but we will march forward here. and i will lean forward here a little bit. senator warren, we're going to get to the question here.

parkland, florida, it's just north of here in broward county. use know, it has created a lot of teenaged activism on the gun issue. it has inspired a lot of you to come out with more robust plans to deal with guns, including a assault weapons ban. but even if you're able to implement that, what do you do about the hundreds of millions of guns already out there, and does the federal government have to play a role in dealing with it? >> so in this period of time that i've been running for president, i've had more than 100 town halls. i've taken more than 2,000 unfiltered questions. and the single hardest question, i got one from a little boy and i got one from a little girl and that is to say when you're president, how are you going to keep us safe. that's our responsibility as adults. seven children will die today from gun violence, children and teenagers. and they won't just die in mass

shootings. they'll die on sidewalks. they'll die in playgrounds. they'll die in people's backyards. gun violence is a national health emergency in this country, and we need to treat it like that. so what can we do? we can do the things that are sensible. we can do the universal background checks. we can ban the weapons of war. but we can also double down on the research and find out what really works. where it is that we can make the differences at the margins that will keep our children safe. well need to treat this like the virus that is killing our children. >> okay. do you think the federal government needs to go and figure out way too get the guns that are already out there? >> what i think we need to do is we need to treat it like a serious research problem which we have not done. you know, guns in the hands of a collector who's had them for decades, who has never fired them, who takes safety seriously, that's very different from guns that are sold and turned over quickly.

we can't treat this as an across the board problem. we have to treat it like a public health emergency. that means bring data to bear and make real change in this country, whether it's politically popular or not. >> thank you. senator booker, you have a program -- >> we need to fight for our children. >> senator booker, you have a federal government buyback program in your plan. how is that going to work? >> well, first of all, i want to say my colleague and i both have been hearing this on the campaign trail. what is even worse is i hear gunshots in my neighborhood. i think i'm the only one. i hope i'm the only one on this panel here that had seven people shot in their neighborhood just last week. someone i knew was killed with an assault rifle at the top of my black last year. for millions of americans, this is not a policy issue. this is an urgency. and for those who have not been directly affected, they're tired of living in a country where their kids go to school to learn about reading, writing and

arithmetic, and how to deal with an active shooter in their school. this is something that i'm tired of, and i'm tired of hearing people all they have to offer is thoughts and prayers. in my faith, people say faith without works is dead. so we will find a way. but the reason we have a problem right now is we've let the corporate gun lobby frame this debate. it is time that we have bold actions and a bold agenda. i will get that done as president of the united states because this is not about policy. this is personal. >> thank you. >> secretary castro, i'd like to talk to you about something that senator booker just mentioned there, the idea of active shooter drills in schools. school shootings seem like an almost everyday or every week occurrence now. they don't make a complete news cycle anymore, no matter the death toll as parents are so afraid as their kids go off to school that their kids will be caught up in something like this. next to nothing has changed in federal law that might affect the prevalence of school shootings.

is this a problem that will continue to get worse over our lifetimes or is there something you would do as president that would turn it around? >> rachel, i am the dad of a 10-year-old girl, karina who is here tonight. the worst thing is knowing that your child might be worried about what could happen at school, a place that is supposed to be safe. the answer is no, we don't have to accept that. i believe that on january 20th, 2021, at 12:01 p.m., we're going to have a democratic president, a democratic house and a democratic senate. [ applause ] the activists of parkland folks fro moms to men who have risen up across the united states and inspired so many people, we may not have seen yet legislative action, but we're getting closer. the house took a vote. in the senate, the question

often is, if the decision is between 60 vote, a filibuster, or passing common sense gun reform, i'm going choose common sense gun reform. so i believe we're going to able to get that done in 2021. >> thank you. >> rachel, i have something to add to this. >> we give you 30 seconds for follow-up on that answer from secretary castro. congressman ryan. >> you're talking about in the schools. these kids are traumatized. i support all the gun reforms here. we need to start dealing with the trauma the kids have. we need trauma-based care in every school and social and emotional learning in every school. 90% of the shooters who do school shootings come from the school they are in and 73% feel shamed, traumatized or bullied. we need to make sure these kids feel connected to the school and that means a mental health counselor in every single school in the united states. we need to start playing offense. if our kids are so traumatized, that they're getting a gun and

going into our schools, we are doing something wrong and we need reform. >> thank you. >> congressman o'rourke, you campaigned all over the state in the most conservative parts of your state. what do you tell a gun owner who may agree on everything else, but with says you know what? the democrats, if i vote for them in there, they're going to take my gun away. and even though i agree with you on these other issues, how do you have that conversation? >> here's how we had that conversation in texas. i shared what i learned from the student who is survived the santa fe high school shooting. a young student named brie. her friend marcel who survived another shooting, the mother of a victim who lost her life, rhonda hart, they talked about universal background checks where you close every loophole. we know that they save lives. talked about ending the sales of assault weapons into our communities. those weapons of war were designed to kill people as effectively and efficiently as possible. they should belong on the battlefield and not in our communities. red flag laws so that if someone

pose as danger to themselves or somebody else, they're stopped before it's too late. and what i found in each one of those 254 counties is democrats and independents and republicans, gun owners and nongun owners alike agreed. but this effort must be led by the young people that you referenced at the beginning of this issue, those students from margie stoneman douglas led the charge here in florida, and they've been able to change those laws. they're making our democracy work, ensuring that our values and our interests and our priorities are reflected in the laws that we pass. >> thank you, congressman o'rourke. hang on. let me give 30 seconds, senator klobuchar, iron range, i'm curious. gun confiscation. if the government is buying back, how do you not have that conversation? >> that's not confiscation. you could give them the offer to buy back their gun. i will say this. i look at these proposals and say does this hurt my uncle dick and his deer stand, coming from a proud hunting and fishing state. these proposals don't do that.

when i was a prosecutor, i supported the assault weapon ban. when i was in the senate, i saw the moms from sandy hook try to advocate for change and we all failed. now these parkland kids from florida, they started a literally a national shift. like with gay marriage. when kids talked to their parents and grandparents and can't understand why they can't put the sensible things in place. say listen, if we get bested by 17-year-olds, it's the best thing that ever happened. >> senator, thank you. >> senator, booker, let me go to you on another matter. senator mitch mcconnell says his most consequential achievement as senate majority lead is preventing president obama from filling a supreme court seat. having served with republicans on a judiciary committee, do you believe they would confirm your court nominees? >> i'm going to use 20 of my seconds to say there is one thing we don't all agree with when it comes to guns. i think it's common sense and over 70% of americans agree with me. if you need a license to drive a

car, you should need a license to buy and own a firearm. not everybody in this field agrees with that, but in states like connecticut, they saw 40% drop-ins gun violence and 15% in suicides. we need to start having bold agendas on guns. when it comes to the supreme court, very clearly. i agree with my friend, secretary castro. we are going to get to 50 votes in the senate. this is a team sport. whoever is our nominee needs to campaign in places like south carolina. we can elect jamie harrison and they need to campaign in places like iowa, because we can win a senate seat there. this is about getting us back to having 50 votes in the senate and more so we cannot not only balance the supreme court, but start to pass an aggressive agenda that frankly isn't so aggressive because most of america agrees with the policy objectives of our party. >> mayor de blasio, mayor de blasio. >> we have to actually -- >> congressman delaney, you'll have some time in a moment on

this issue. congressman delaney, i'll give you some time in a moment. mayor de blasio, as an executive in the largest city in this country, you are used to saying what you want to have happen and having it happen. if you nominate a supreme court nominee and mitch mcconnell is still senate leader, what makes you believe he'll allow you to nominate a nominee >> rachel, i am chief executive of the largest city and want to say something on the gun issue and come to your question. i run the largest police force, we have to get the guns off the street, we need a different relationship between the police and the community. i also want to say there is something that sets me apart from all my colleagues running in this race, and that is for the last 21 years, i've been raising a black son in america, and have i had to have very, very serious talks with my son dante about how to protect himself on the streets of our city and all over this country, including how to deal with the fact that he has to take special caution because of too many

tragedies between young men and our police too, as we saw recently in indiana. so we need to have a different conversation in this country about guns, but also a different conversation about policing that brings police and community together. we've done that in new york city, and we've driven down crime while we've done it. but to your question about mitch mcconnell, there is a political solution that we have to come to grips with. if the democratic party would stop acting like the party of the elites and be the party of working people again and go into states, including red states to convince people we're on their side we can put pressure on their senators to actually have to vote for the nominees that are put forward, decent jurists deserve that right. >> thank you, mayor de blasio. >> i'm going to get you. i will get you 30 seconds. i promise. let me get this question. we're trying. i know you guys, we got other issues we're trying to get to, including a big one coming up in a minute. senator warren, i want to continue on the mitch mcconnell thing, because you have a lot of ambitious plans. you have plan for that. >> i do. >> okay. we talked about the supreme court. do you have a plan to deal with

mitch mcconnell if you don't beat him in the senate, if he is still sitting there as the senate majority leader. it's very plausible i don't can be elected president with a republican senate. do you have a plan to deal with mitch mcconnell. >> i do. [ applause ] we are a democracy, and the way a democracy is supposed to work is the will of the people matters. now we for far too long have had a congress in washington that is just completely dismissed what people care about across this country. they have made this country work much better for those who can make giant contributions, make it work much better for those who can hire an army of lobbyists and lawyers and made it not work better for the people. here's how i see this happening. sure, i want to see us get a democratic majority in the senate, but short of a democratic majority, you better understand the fight still goes on.

it starts in the white house and it means that everybody we energize in 2020 stays on the front lines come january 2021. we have to push from the outside have leadership from the inside, and make this congress reflect the will of the people. >> i'm going to get a couple of you in here. a couple in here. 30 seconds, congressman delaney, you seem to believe you can do everything in a bipartisan manner. mitch mcconnell doesn't operate that way. he operates differently. why do you think he is going to conform to your style? >> i think we need to get things done. that's why i think we need to operate in a bipartisan manner. listen, i'll sign into law bills that come to the white house that are passed on a party line basis, absolutely. but all the big transformative things we've ever done in this country's history have happened when huge majorities of the american people get behind them, which is why we need real solutions, not impossible

promises. we need to put forth ideas that work, whether it's on health care, creating universal health care so every american gets health care, but not running on making private insurance illegal. >> okay. >> the gun safety issue is related because i can't tell you how many times i've been folks in western maryland, and they've said to me, you know, democrats don't do anything for us. republicans don't do anything for us. you fight all the time. so they vote on that single issue. if we become the party of getting things done. >> i understand. >> for the american people, real solutions, not impossible promises, we'll be able to get all these things done. >> senator booker, 30 seconds. how do you deal with mitch mcconnell? you've been in the senate. you can't get bills on the floor right now with mitch mcconnell. presidents can't do it. is president booker going to get his bills on the floor with senator mcconnell? >> you know, when i got to the united states senate going back to what de blasio said as an african american man in an african american dominated community, i knew one of the

biggest issues was criminal justice reform. from police accountability to dealing with the fact we have a nation that has more african americans under criminal supervision than all the slaves in 1850. when i got to the senate, people told me we could not get a comprehensive criminal justice reform bill done. i fought on that bill from the day i got to the senate, built coalitions across the aisle, and today we passed the first step act. it's not as far as i want to go, but thousands of people will be liberated. i have gotten -- i have taken on tough problems. people said we cannot achieve and i've been able to get things accomplished. >> thank you. senator booker, rachel has the next question. >> hold on, governor, you're going to be happy with where we go. governor inslee, this next question is to you. you got me? you got me? you have staked your candidacy on the issue of climate change. it is first, sec, and third priority for you. you said it's all the issues. let's get specific. we're here in miami, which is already experiencing serious flooding on sunny days as a result of sea level rise.

parts of miami beach and the keys could be under water in our lifetimes. does your plan save miami? >> yes. first by taking away the fill buster from mitch mcconnell to start with. we have to do that. look, look, we are the first generation to feel the sting of climate change, and we are the last that can do something about it. our towns are burning. our fields are flooding. miami is inundated. we have to understand, this is a climate crisis, an emergency. and it is our last chance in the administration next one to do something about it. and we need to do what i have done in my fates tate. we've passed a 100% clean electrical grid bill. we now have a vision statement. my plan has been called the gold standard of putting people to work. but the most important thing on this, in the biggest decision for the american public is who is going to make this the first

priority. and i am the candidate and the only one who says this has to be the top priority of the united states, the organizing principle to mobilize the united states so that we can do what we've always done, lead the world and invent the future and put 8 million people to work. that's what we're going to do. >> congressman o'rourke, you also put out a big climate change plan from your campaign. you want some big changes in a pretty short period of time, including switching to renewable energy, pushing to replace gas-powered cars in favorite of electric ones. what's your message to a voter who supports the overall goal of what you're trying to do, but suddenly feels as if government is telling them how to live and ordering them how to live? what is that balance like? >> i think you've got to bring everybody in to the decisions and the solutions to the challenges that we face. that's why we're traveling everywhere, listening to everyone. we were in pacific junction, a town that had never meaningly flooded before just up against

the missouri river in iowa. and every home in that community had flooded. there were farms just outside of pacific junction that were effectively lakes. those farmers already under water in debt. their markets closed to them by a trade war under this administration, and now they don't know what to do. we in our administration are going to fund resiliency in those communities, in miami, in houston, texas. those places that are on the front lines of climate change today. we're going to mobilize $5 trillion in this economy over the next ten years. we're going to free ourselves from a dependence on fossil fuels, and we're going to put farmers and ranchers in the driver's seat, renewable and sustainable agriculture to make sure that we capture more carbon out of the air and keep more of it in the soil. paying farmers for the environmental services that they want to provide. if all of us does all that we can, we're going to be able to keep this planet from warming another 2 degrees celsius and make sure we match what this country can do and live up to our promise and our potential. >> 30 seconds.

secretary castro, does who pays for the mitigation to climate, whether it's building seawalls, for people that are perhaps living in places that they shouldn't be living, is this a federal government issue that needs to do that? do they have to move these people? what do you do about that where maybe they're building a house some place that isn't safe. who pays to build that house, and how much should the government be bailing them out? >> well, i don't think that represents the vast majority of the issue. in fact, my first visit after i announced my candidacy wasn't to iowa or new hampshire, it was to san juan, puerto rico. because people should know if i'm elected president, everybody will count. i'm one of the few candidates in this race with executive experience, with a track record of getting things done. when i was mayor of san antonio, we moved our local public utility. we began to shift it from coal-fired plants to solar and other renewables, and also created more than 800 jobs doing

that. and when i was hud secretary, we worked on the national disaster resilience competition to invest in communities that were trying to rebuild from natural disasters in a sustainable way. that's the way that we're going to help make sure that we're all safer in the years to come, and that we combat climate change. if i'm elected president, the first thing i would do, like senator klobuchar is sign an executive order recommitting us to the paris climate accord. >> thank you. congressman ryan, i got a full question for you here, which is simply this. there are a lot of the climate plans includes pricing carbon, taxing carbon in some way. this type of proposal has been tried in a few places, whether it's washington state where voters voted it down. you had the yellow vest movement. in australia we had one party get rejected out of the fear of the costs of climate change being put on the backs of the consumer. if pricing carbon is politically impossible, how do we pay for climate mitigation? >> well, there is a variety of different ways. we talk about different ways of

raising revenue. and i think we've got to build our way out of this and grow our way out of this. let me talk real quick to the previous question about real politics. we could talk about climate. we can talk about guns. well can talk about all of these issues that we all care about. we have a perception problem with the democratic party. we are not connecting to the working class people in the very states that i represent in ohio, in the industrial midwest. we've lost all connection. we have got to change the center of gravity of the democratic party from being coastal and elitist and ivy league, which is the perception to somebody from the forgotten communities that have been left behind for the last 30 years, to get those workers back on our side so we can say we're going build electric vehicles. we're going to build solar panels. but if you want to beat mitch mcconnell, this better be a working class party if you want to go kentucky and take his rear end out, and if you want to take

lindsey graham out, you better have a blue collar party that can go into the textile communities in south carolina. >> thank you, congressman ryan. >> all i'm saying here. >> thank you, congressman ryan. >> all i'm saying here is if we don't address that fundamental problem with our connection to workers, white, black, brown, gay, straight, working class people. >> thank you, congressman. >> none of this is going to get done, chuck. >> thank you very much. we're going to keep moving. congressman delaney, i'm going to get to you. >> i introduced the only bipartisan carbon tax bill. >> 30 seconds sh seconds. go. >> all the economists agree a carbon pricing mechanism works. you just have to do it right. you can't put a price on carbon, raise energy prices and not give the money back to the american people. my proposal, which is put a price on carbon, give a dividend back to the american people, it guess out one pocket, back in the other. >> thank you, congressman. >> i can get that passed my first year as president with a coalition of every democrat in the congress and the republicans who live in coastal states. >> congressman, thank you. >> the republicans from florida,

they care about this issue. this has to be our way forward if we're actually serious about this issue. >> thank you. congresswoman gabbard, we're going to move here. one of the first thing you did after launching your campaign is issue an apology to the lgbtq about your past stances and statements on gay rights. a telephone trump administration's rollbacks of civil rights protections for many in that community, why should voters in that community, or voters that care about this issue in general trust you now? >> well, let me say that there is no one in our government at any level who has the right to tell any american who they should be allowed to love or who they should be allowed to marry. my record in congress for over six years shows my commitment to fighting for lgbtq equality. i serve on the equality caucus, and recently voted for passage of the equality act. maybe many people in this country can relate to the fact that i grew up in a socially conservative home, held views when i was very young that i no longer hold today.

i've served with lgbtq service members, both in training and deployed down range. i know that they would give their life for me, and i would give my life for them. it is this commitment that i'll carry through as president of the united states, recognizing that there are still people who are facing discrimination in the workplace, still people who are unable to find a home for their families. it is this kind of discrimination that we need to address. >> thank you. >> but it's not enough. it's not enough. if i can add. >> 30 seconds. >> it's not enough. look, civil rights is the place to begin. but in the african american civil rights community, another place to focus on was to stop the lynching of african americans. we do not talk enough about trans-americans, especially african american trans-american, and the incredibly high rates of murder right now. we don't talk enough about how many children, about 30% of lgbtq kids who do not go to school because of fear. it's not enough just to be on

the equality act. i'm an original co-sponsor. we need to have a president that will fight to protect lgbtq americans every single day, thank you. >> from violence. >> thank you, senator booker. >> senator -- >> let me put this to you. on the issue of civil rights, for decades, on the issue of civil rights and politics, for decades, the democratic party has counted on african american voter turnout as step one to winning elections on national level. democrats are counting on the latino community now and in the future in the same way. what have you done for black and latino voters that should enthuse them about going to the polls for you if you're your party's nominee? >> my life and my career and my work in the senate has been about economic opportunity. and to me this means better child care for everyone in this country. and when you want to have an economy that works, you need to have retirement that works. you need to have public schools that work. and you also need to make sure that that -- those communities are able to get those jobs of

the future, the s.t.e.m. jobs. in fact donald trump, one of the first bills he sign to have had 34 he signed where i was the lead democrat, okay, that's the first up here, was one that was about that, making sure that minority community members could share in those jobs. to me, this is about a few things. it's about a african american woman that goes to a hospital in new orleans and says her hands are swollen, and then the doctor ignores her and her baby dice. it's about the fact that african american women make 61 cents for every dollar a white man makes. in short, we need to, one, and i will do this in my first 100 days as president. we will work to make sure everyone can vote at this table, everyone can vote in this country. and we will also go to the next step of criminal justice reform. senator booker and i worked on that first step back, but we should go the second step act, which is to help all our communities. >> senator, thank you very much. 30 second follow up to you. secretary castro, this is a 70%

latino city here in miami you. the only latino democrat who is running this year in the presidential race. is that enough of an answer? what senator klobuchar is describing there, an economic justice agenda. is that enough to mobilize latino voters to stand with the democratic party in a big way? >> well, i also think that we have to recognize racial and social justice. i was in charleston not too long ago, and i remembered that dylann roof went to the mother emanuel ame church, and he murdered nine people who were worshipping and then he was apprehended by police without incident? what about eric gardner and tamir rice and laquan mcdonald and sandra bland and pamela turner and antonio arce. i'm proud i'm the only candidate that put forward legislation that would reform our policing in america that no matter what color your skin is, you're treated the same, including latinos who are mistreated too oftentimes by police. >> thank you. >> let me go to lester holt, who has a question, i believe, a

viewer question. >> i'm over here, chuck. thanks. we ask voters from across the country to submit their questions to the candidates. let me read one now. this comes from john in new york who submitted this request. he asks does the united states have a responsibility to protect in the case of genocide or crimes against humanity, do we have a responsibility to intervene, to protect people threatened by their governments, even when atrocities do not affect american core interests? i'd like to direct that question to congressman o'rourke. >> john, i appreciate the question. the answer is yes, but that action should always be undertaken with allies and partners and friends. when the united states presents a united front we have a much better chance of achieving our foreign policy aims. and preventing the kind of genocide to which you refer, the kind of genocide we saw in rwanda, the kind of genocide we want to stop going forward. but unfortunately, under this

administration, president trump has alienated our allies and our friends and our alliances. he has diminished our standing in the world, and he has made us weaker as a country, less able to confront challenges, whether it's iran or north korea or vladimir putin in russia who attacked and invaded our democracy in 2016, and who president trump has offered another invitation to do the same. he has embraced strong men and dictators at the expense of the great democracies. as president, he will make sure that we live our values in our foreign policy. i will ensure that we strengthen those alliances and partnerships and friendships and meet any challenge that we face together. that makes america stronger. >> what about the war powers act? >> congressman o'rourke, thank you. >> what about the war powers act being a part of that equation? with deep respect to the congressman, look, we've learned painful lessons as americans, that we've gone to war without congressional authorization. look, this is very personal for me. i know the cost of war. my dad served in the pacific in world war ii in the u.s. army,

battle of okinawa, had half his leg blown off, and he came home with scars both physical and emotional, and he did not recover. he spiraled downward and he ultimately took his own life. and that battle didn't kill him, but that war did. and look, even in the humanitarian crisis, and i think we should be ready, congressman, to intervene, god forbid there is a genocide, but not without congressional approval. democrats and republicans both in the congress have not challenged presidents and have let them get away with running the military without the congressional approval. we learned the lesson in vietnam. we seem to have forgotten. >> i want to put this to congressman ryan. today the taliban claimed responsibility for killing two american service members in afghanistan. leaders as disparate as president obama and president trump have both said that they want to end u.s. involvement in afghanistan, but it isn't over for america. why isn't it over? why can't presidents of very

different parties and very different temperaments get us out of there? and how could you? >> i appreciate that question. so i've been this congress 17 years, and 12 of those years i've sat on the armed services committee, the defense appropriations committee or the armed services committee. and the lesson that i've learned over the years is that you have to stay engaged in these situations. nobody likes it. it's long. it's tedious. but right now we have -- so i would say we must be engaged in this. we must have our state department engaged. we must have our military engaged to the extent they need to be. but the reality of it is, this president doesn't even have people appointed in the state department to deal with these things, whether we're talking about central america, whether we're talking about iran, whether we're talking about afghanistan. we've got to be completely engaged. and here's why. because these flare-ups distract us from the real problems in the country. if getting drones shot down for $130 million because the

president is distracted, that's $130 million that we could be spending in places like youngstown, ohio or flint, michigan, or rebuilding -- >> i'm going to give you 30 seconds, actually, to jump off what he said. he described engagement as the problem. >> is that what you will tell the parents of those two soldiers who were just killed in afghanistan, well, we just have to be engaged. as a soldier, i will tell you, that answer is unacceptable. we have to bring our troops home from afghanistan. we are in a place in afghanistan where we have lost so many lives. we've spent so much money, money that's coming out of every one of our pockets, money that should be going into communities here at home, meeting the needs of the people here at home. we are no better off in afghanistan today than we were when this war began. this is why it's so important to have a president, commander in chief who knows the cost of war and who is ready to do the job on day one. i am ready to do that job when i walk into the oval office. >> i'm going to go down the

line -- i'm going to go down the line here. you know what, you get 30 seconds. >> i appreciate that. >> i would just say i don't want to engaged. i wish we were spending all this money in places that i represented that have been completely forgotten, and we were rebuilding. but the reality of it is if the united states isn't engaged, the taliban will grow. and they have bigger, bolder terrorist acts. we have got to have some presence there. >> the taliban was there long before we game in. >> yeah, exactly. >> and they will be there long after we leave. we cannot keep u.s. troops in afghanistan thinking we are somehow going to squash this taliban that has been there. >> i didn't say squash them. i didn't say squash them. when we weren't in there, they started flying planes into our building. >> the taliban didn't attack us on 9/11. al qaeda did. i. >> i understand that. >> that's why i and so many

other people joined the military, to go after al qaeda. not the taliban. >> go ahead, congressman, finish up. >> the taliban was protecting those people who were plotting against us. all i'm saying is if we want to go in to elections, and we want to say that we got to withdraw from the world, that's president trump is saying. >> okay. >> we can't. i would love for us. >> you know who is helping al qaeda right now is saudi arabia. >> i want to go down the line and finish up foreign policy. it's a simple question. who is the geopolitical threat to the united states. just give me a one-word answer. congressman delaney? >> could you repeat the question? >> greatest geopolitical threat to the understand. >> right now. congressman delaney? >> the biggest geopolitical challenge is china. but the biggest geopolitical threat remains nuclear weapons. those are different questions. >> totally get it. go ahead. governor inslee? >> the biggest threat to the security of the united states is donald trump. there is no question. >> congresswoman gabbard? >> the greatest? >> greatest geopolitical threat.

>> the greatest threat we face is the fact we're at a greater risk of nuclear war today than ever in history. >> two threats, economic threat china, but our major threat right now is what is going on in the mid east with iran if we don't get our act together. >> slimmer than what we've been going here, one or two words. >> our existential threat is climate change. we have to confront it before it's too late. >> senator warren? >> climate change. >> senator booker? >> nuclear proliferation and climate change. >> secretary castro? >> china and climate change. >> congress ryan? >> china without a question. they're wiping us around the world economically. >> and mr. mayor? >> russia, because they're trying to undermine our democracy, and they've been doing a pretty damn good job of it, and we need to stop them. >> all right. thank you for that wide variety of answers. and i mean that. no, i mean that in a -- that's what this debate is about. this is the best part of a debate like this. congressman o'rourke, special counsel robert mueller's report outlines multiple instances of

potential criminal behavior by president trump. house speaker pelosi has publicly and privately resisted any movement towards impeachment in the house. if the house chooses not to impeach, as president, would you do anything to address the potential crimes that were outlined in mr. mueller's report? >> yes, and i'll tell you why. >> how, by the way, if the answer is yes? >> one of the most powerful pieces of art in the united states capitol is the trumbull paining of george washington resigning his commission to the continental congress. at the height of his power, submitting to the rule of law and the will of people that has withstood the test of time for the last 243 years. if we set another precedent now that a candidate who invited the participation of a foreign power, a president who sought to obstruct the investigation into the invasion of our democracy, if we allow him to get away with this with complete impunity, then we will have set a new

standard, and that is that some people because of the position of power and public trust that they hold are above the law, and we cannot allow that to stand. we must begin impeachment now so that we have the facts and the truth and we follow them as far as they go and as high up as they reach, and we save this democracy. and if we've not been able to do that in this year or the year that follows, under my administration, our department of justice will pursue these facts and ensure there are consequences, there is accountability, and there is justice. it's the only way that we save this country. >> thank you, congressman o'rourke. >> congressman delaney, because of the issues just described there and the real political landscape in which nancy pelosi is saying that impeachment will not be pursued in the house, it raises the prospect, and the mueller report raises the prospect that president trump could be prosecuted for some of those potential crimes down the line. no u.s. president has ever been prosecuted for crimes after leaving office. do you believe that president trump could or should be the first? >> i guess there is always a

first. i don't think anyone is above the law. i don't think anyone is above the law, including a president. i support speaker pelosi's decisions that she is making in the house of representatives right now as speaker. i think she knows more about the decision as to whether to impeach the president than any of the 2020 candidates combined. >> conceded. on the issue of prosecution? >> no one's above the law, and this president, who is lawless should not be above the law. but i will tell you, rachel, the one thing when you're out doing as much campaigning as i've done, 400 events, all 99 counties in iowa, this is not the number one issue the american people ask us about. it's not. they want to know what we're going to do for health care, how we're going to lower pharmaceutical prices, how we're going build infrastructure, what we're going to do to create jobs in their communities. you know, last year in our country, 80% of the money for startup businesses went to 50 counties in this country. there is over 3,000 counties in this country. that's what they care about.

they care about what's whaes going on in the public schools. they care about what's going on in their communities with their pay, with their health care, with infrastructure. these are the issues, these kind of kitchen table pocketbook issues are actually what most americans care about. they never ask about the mueller report. they never ask it. they want know how we're going to solve. >> senator -- >> if we let the republicans run our elections, and if we do not do something about russian interference in the election and we let mitch mcconnell stop all the backup paper ballots, then we're not going to get what we want to do. >> i have to sneak? here. we blew through a break, which is good news to give you more time, so i have to sneak one in now. more of this debate, it's picking up here. it continues right after this. h.

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the sleep number 360 smart bed. it senses your movement and automatically adjusts to keep you both comfortable. the queen sleep number 360 c4 smart bed, now $1299. plus, free premium delivery when you add a base. ends sunday. i'm richard lui updating breaking news at this hour. southern california still surveying the damage there from the largest earthquake to hit the region in two decades. the 6.4 magnitude quake was felt as far away as los angeles. that's about 150 miles away. it prompted house fires and prompted an evacuation at a local hospital. in washington, d.c., president trump spoke at his salute to america celebration, even as critics said the event politicized a traditionally nonpartisan holiday. for now, back to the democratic debate.

♪ we are back in miami. and it's time now for closing statements. each candidate has 45 seconds. we want to begin with former congressman delaney. >> closing now? >> closing. 45 seconds. we can go on. >> together we are on a mission. we're on a mission to find the america that's been lost, lost through infighting, lost through inaction. we're so much better than this. we're a country that used to do things. we save the world. we created the american dream for millions of people like myself. the grandson of immigrants, the son of a union electrician, who went on to become a successful business leader and create thousands of jobs. but we did these things with real solutions, not with impossible promises. and those are the roots that we have to get back to.

i'm running for president to solve these problems, to build infrastructure, to fix our broken health care system, to invest in communities that have been left behind, to improve public education. i just dent want to be your president to be your president. >> your 45 seconds is over. >> i want to be your president to do the job. >> thank you. >> this is not about me. this is about getting america working again. >> thank you. u. >> they're de blasio? mayor, your closing statement. >> it matters. it matters in this fight for the heart and soul of our party that we nominate a candidate who has seen the face of poverty and didn't just talk about it, but gave people $15 minimum wage. it matters that we nominate a candidate who saw the destruction wrought by broken health care system and gave people universal health care. it matters that we choose someone who saw the wasted potential of our children denied pre-k and gave it to every single one of them for free.

these things really matter. and these are the things i've done in new york, and i want to do the same for this whole country, because putting working people first, it matters. we need to be that party again. let's work together. with your help, we can put working people first again in america. >> thank you, mayor de blasio. right on time. >> governor inslee, 45 seconds? >> we have three grandchildren. we love them all. when i was thinking about whether to run for president, i made a decision. i decided that on my last day on earth, i wanted to look them in the eye and tell them i did everything humanely possible to protect them from the ravages of the climate crisis. and i know to a moral certainty if we do not have the next president who commits to this as the top priority, it won't get done. and i am the only candidate, frankly, i'm surprised, i'm the only candidate who has made this commitment to make it the top priority.

if you join me in that recognition of how important this is, we can have a unified national mission. we can save ourselves. we can save our children. we can save our grandchildren, and we can save literally the life on this planet. this is our moment. >> governor, thank you. congressman ryan, your 45 seconds. >> there's nothing worse than not being heard. nothing worse than not being seen, and i know that because i've represented for 17 years in congress a forgotten community. they've tried to divide us, who's white, who's black, who's gay, who's straight, who's a man, who's a woman, and they ran away with all the gold, because they divided the working class. it's time for us to come together. i don't know how you feel, but i'm ready to play some offense. i come from the middle of industrial america, but these problems are all over our country. there is a tent city in l.a. there is homeless people, and people around our country who

can't afford a home. it's time for us to get become on track. the teacher in texas, the nurse in new hampshire, the waitress in wisconsin, all of us coming together, playing offense with an agenda agenda that lifts everybody up. i will only promise you thing. when i walk into that oval office every morning, you will not be forgotten. your voice will be heard. thank you. >> congresswoman gabbard. 45 seconds for closing. >> our nation was founded on the principles of service above self. people who fled kings, who literally prospered on the backs and the sacrifices of people. coming here to this country instead putting in place a government that is of, by, and for the people. but that's not what we have. instead we have a government that is of, by, and for the rich and powerful. this must end. as president, our white house,

our white house will be a beacon of light, providing hope and opportunity, ushering in a new century where every person will be able to get the health care they need and we will have plane air to breathe and water to drink and good paying jobs in a new green economy. join me in ushering in peace, prosperity, opportunity and justice for all. >> thank you. >> secretary castro, you have 45 seconds. [speaking foreign language] the very fact that i can say that tonight shows the progress that we have made in this country. like many of you, i know the promise of america. my grandmother came here at 7 years old as an immigrant from mexico and two generations later, one of her grandsons is serving in the united states congress and the other is running for president of the united states. if i'm elected president, i will work hard every day so you and your family can get good health

care and your child can get a good education and you can have a good job opportunity whether you live in a big city or small town. on january 20th, 2021, we will say adios to donald trump. >> senator klobuchar. >> three things to know about me. first, i listen to people and that's how i get things done. s that my focus. i have a track record of passing over 100 bills where i am the lead democrat because i listened and acted. i think that's important in a president. everything else just melts the way. secondly, i'm someone that can win and beat donald trump. i have won every place, every race, and every time. i have won in the reddest of districts. once donald trump won by over 20 points. i can win in states like wisconsin and iowa and in michigan and finally, yeah, i am not the establishment party candidate. i've got respect, but i'm not that person.

i am the one that doesn't have a political machine and doesn't come from money. i don't make the promises that everybody up here makes, but i will govern with integrity and i will have your back and i will govern for you. >> thank you, senator. >> 50 years ago this month, my family moved into the town i grew up in because after being denied a house because of the color of their skin, white activists haven't fought for them. when i got out of law school, i fought as a tenant lawyer for other people's rights. i have taken on bullies and beat them. i took on tough fights and we won. we win those fights not by showing the worst of who we are, but to rising who is best. donald trump wants to fight on his turf and his terms. we will beat him. i will beat him by calling this country to a sense of common purpose again. this is a referendum on him and

getting rid of him and also a referendum on us and who we are and who we must be to each other. it's time we win this election and the way i will govern is by showing the best of who we are because that's what this country needs and deserves. >> congressman o'rourke? >> our daughter molly turned 11 this week. i'm on this stage for her, for children across this country, including some her same age who have been separated from their parents and sleeping on concrete floors under alum numb blankets tonight. iffy woor going to be there for them and confront the challenges we face, we can't return to the same old approach. we are going to need a new kind of politics. one directed by the urgency of the next generation. those climate activists fighting f their future and for everyone's. the students marching not for their lives, but for all of ours. we need a movement that renewed

democracy by bringing everyone in and writing nobody off. that's how we beat donald trump and bring this great country together again. join us. this is our moment. and the generations that follow are counting on us to meet it. >> thank you, congressman. >> senator warren, you have 45 seconds for the final statement of the evening. >> thank you. it's a great honor to be here. never in a million years did i think i would stand on a stage like this. i was born and raised in oklahoma. i have three older brothers. they all joined the military. i had a dream growing up. my dream was to be a public school teacher. by the time i graduated from high school, my family didn't have the money for a college application, much less a chance for me to go to college, but i got my chance. a $50 a semester commuter college. that was a little slice of government that created some opportunity for a girl. and it opened my life. i am in this fight because i

believe that we can make our government. we can make our economy, we can make our country work. not just for those at the top. we can make it work for everyone and i promise you this. i will fight for you as hard as i fight for my own family. >> we would like to thank all of the candidate who is participated with us tonight. that it will do it for night one of the two-night event. we have 10 more candidates tomorrow night. >> we hope you will join us then, but that concludes our coverage of this first democratic debate from miami. for savannah, josé, chuck and rachel, i'm lester holt. good night, everyone. olt. good night, everyone

>> good evening. i'm lester holt and welcome to night two of the first democratic debate in the 2020 race for president. >> i'm savannah guthrie. we heard from 10 last night and 10 more take the stage tonight. >> we will be joined by our colleagues, josé diaz, chuck todd and rachel maddow. >> the candidates are in position so let's get started. >> tonight, round two, senator michael bennet. former vice president, joe biden. south bend indiana mayor, pete buttigieg. new york senator kirstin jill brandt. senator kamala harris, former colorado governor, john hickenlooper.