The 2020 candidates on the stage in Miami for the first debate to kick off the race for the 2020 presidential election Wednesday night struck an overwhelmingly populist tone, proposing unprecedented policies in direct conflict with those of President Donald Trump, portending Democratic support for bringing sweeping change to the U.S. economy.
At times, the Democratic rhetoric appeared to focus on redistribution, to the point of being potentially confiscatory.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., for example, spoke of returning "government to the people and that means calling out the names of the monopolists and saying I have the courage to go after them."
Not to be outdone, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared: "There is plenty of money in this country. It's just in the wrong hands. Democrats have to fix that."
Former HUD Secretary Julian Castro declared America's current immigration policies "should piss us all off." There were several references to the horrific images on a father and child who apparently drowned trying to cross the Rio Grand river into America.
Several candidates voiced support for ending private health insurance, in favor of a single-payer, government-controlled system.
The fiery rhetoric – and the dubious feasibility of fundamentally transforming aspects of the U.S. economy – went largely unchallenged by the NBC moderators, who found themselves busy just trying to keep the 10 candidates from evading questions while throwing populist firebombs. Remarks that vilified Trump and his policies consistently drew the loudest applause from the audience.
"Tonight, 2020 Democrats argued over fringe ideas that are completely out of touch with our values and would have a negative impact on Americans’ everyday lives," said Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.
"Voters recognize the success of President Trump’s pro-growth policies, in contrast to the Democrats’ radical proposals like a government takeover of health care, open borders, no protections for human life, and massive tax hikes. We stand with President Trump as he continues to fight for Americans and deliver a historic comeback for our country."
Former George W. Bush adviser Bradley A. Blakeman reacted strongly, telling Newsmax: "The Democrats appear desperate to out-Socialist each other. If it's free – it ain't worth a nickel. A duty owed to all is a duty owed to none. America is not about free, it's about earning."
The director of communications for the Trump campaign, Tim Murtaugh, singled out Sen. Warren for taking extreme positions.
"Just remarkable that Warren proudly raised her hand to say she would eliminate private health insurance," he tweeted. "Almost 200 million Americans would kiss their current plans goodbye. At the same time Warren's plan provides taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants. Astounding."
The sniping at Warren likely reflects GOP concern over her rapid ascent in the polls. Increasingly, she been discussed in the media as a more electable progressive than Democratic-Socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who will take the debate stage Thursday.
The Trump campaign made an extraordinary ad purchase Wednesday, obviously timed to counter the focus on the Democrats: It bought the extremely costly banner ad position at the top of YouTube.
Trump campaign sources predict their banner ad atop YouTube's homepage will be seen by more viewers than will view the Democratic debate.
If the Democrats' firebrand populists on the left – particularly Warren and de Blasio – drew the loudest applause of the night, one candidate who appeared to suffer a setback Wednesday night was former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas.
O'Rourke began his night by lapsing into Spanish for an extended period. Later, when asked twice by hosts to elaborate on issues such as his stance on a proposal to increase the top marginal tax rate to 70%, he appeared to wander without answering the question.
At one point de Blasio interrupted a Beto response to berate him for "defending private insurance" rather than jumping on the Democratic band wagon for putting private insurance firms out of business.
The populist wave sweeping the 25-candidate Democratic field is likely to continue Thursday. Among the top candidates in the polls who will take the stage: Frontrunnner and former vice president Joe Biden, Sen. Sanders, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y. and South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
Analysts anticipate Sanders will rail against Wall Street and multinational corporations, while challenging Biden's "middle ground" approach to enacting populist reforms.
Biden can also expect an opportunity to explain his recent controversial gaffe that appeared to pine for the "civility" of the U.S. Senate era that included segregationist Democrats.
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