Ten Democratic presidential hopefuls debated in Atlanta Wednesday night—and compared to earlier debates, there was a distinct lack of fireworks, with candidates largely opting to focus on President Trump and other issues instead of attacking each other. Many had expected candidates to train their fire on Pete Buttigieg after his rise in the Iowa polls, but he did not face heavy criticism until near the end of the debate, when Amy Klobuchar said the 37-year-old South Bend mayor lacked experience and Tulsi Gabbard targeted him on foreign policy, the New York Times reports. Kamala Harris declined to attack him directly, though she made an apparent reference to his lack of support among black voters. More takeaways:
- Another bad night for Biden. After a "shaky" performance and some awkward answers, the former vice president tops the list of debate losers at the Washington Post. On the issue of violence against women, he chose his words very poorly, promising he would "keep punching at it and punching at it and punching." He also said he had been endorsed by the "only" black woman ever elected to the Senate, apparently forgetting the existence of Harris, who was a few feet away from him. "No, that’s not true. The other one is here," she said, laughing.