The First 2020 Democratic Primary Debates

The debates sure proved to be interesting. I stand by my original post saying that they could’ve easily narrowed it down by half, but I’ll concede that doing it over two nights gave more of the serious contenders more chances to speak. The ten I would’ve cut before the debate are, for the most part, the same ten I’d cut after watching them, though I’m ready to make even more cuts now. Two days ago I’d have said they should’ve gone ahead and gotten rid of Delaney, Ryan, Inslee, Swalwell, Williamson, Bennett, Hickenlooper, Castro, Gillibrand, and Klobuchar. My post-debate thoughts on each candidate are as follows.
 

First up, the Nobodies:

Delaney: Sir, this is a Wendy’s. For real though, he seems like a lunatic, who even invited him?

Ryan: This dumbass is really arguing FOR endless war. Bye.

Inslee: You’re here for your grandkids? Cool. You’re too old.

Swalwell: I have nothing to say other than he was extraordinarily unmemorable.

Williamson: The closing remarks about love were interesting but she also seemed a little out of it.

Bennet: Again, very unmemorable.

Hickenlooper: Funny name.
 

Next, the Maybe Potential Contenders who should’ve just quit while they were ahead:

O’Rourke: The Spanish thing was cringeworthy, but he managed to dodge questions in two languages, so I guess that’s cool. Why were we considering him in the first place, given that he couldn’t even beat one of the most despised senators in the country?

Booker: The Spanish thing was even more cringeworthy this time, and somehow the whitest thing I’ve ever seen (which is notable, given that Cory Booker is a black man who was speaking Spanish). He somehow had the most speaking time yet said nothing of substance.

Yang: If people take him seriously, it’s only because he offered them $1k a month for free (and apparently thinks that’s gonna solve climate change or anything else).

Castro: People are giving him more credit than I think he deserves. He did well coming out against Beto, but aside from that and his “Adios Trump” line, he just seemed to be taking angry swipes for no reason.

Biden: Crazy Uncle Joe has GOT to go. He went toe to toe with Kamala Harris to defend an inarguably racist position.

Sanders: I believe Bernie is turning 143 this year, and he is happy to croak to you about how he’s held the exact same political beliefs for 141 of those years.

Better than expected: 

Gillibrand: She really went all in with a passion a lot of other candidates simply lacked, especially in regards to reproductive health.

De Blasio: He wasn’t terribly exciting, but he did have a few answers that impressed me.

Klobuchar: Also had some solid answers, and seemed more genuine than a lot of the others. Her debate performance definitely made her seem like more of a contender than her cringy Twitter videos.

Gabbard: I was originally rooting for Tulsi, but my interest in her had waned a bit. The debate revived that interest; I thought she seemed dedicated and presidential, and she really held Tim Ryan to task on the endless war-front.

Top 3:

Warren: I think Elizabeth Warren conducted herself well. She wasn’t too ambitious and she’s a little older than I’d prefer, but her policy positions are very thorough. Her debate performance wasn’t out of this world, but it was enough to cement her place as a top contender.

Harris: I was mildly interested in Kamala a few months ago, but the debate showed that she’s ready to play hard ball.

Buttigieg: Mayor Pete is my favorite, and he has been since I learned who he was a few months ago. He is calm, but confident. He takes responsibility for his mistakes and shows that he can learn from them. He calls out hypocrisy, and he talks to the people. I believe he is the best candidate for 2020, and I would encourage you to donate to his campaign.