That’s A Wrap!
OK, folks, that’s it. The second debate is over and we’ll see you in September for the third debate, which our friends at ABC News will be hosting.
Tonight we again started with a segment about health care, followed by one about immigration, but we also touched on issues of criminal justice reform along with the gender pay gap and climate change. And through it all, Biden, as the polling front-runner, remained at the center of conversation — both a foil and potential model for candidates, depending on how they’re pitching themselves to voters.
If you missed the debate or want to see how it unfolded from the beginning, start at the bottom of this live blog and keep scrolling up. But if that sounds labor-intensive — each member of the team has tried to distill tonight into a single headline. And do stay tuned as we tackle post-debate polls in the coming week to see how the second debate has changed the field and who makes (or doesn’t make) the stage in September.
Night 2 in headlines:
- Nate: Everyone Attacks Biden And He Mostly Holds Up Well — But Not Great — And Harris Is Low-Energy For Some Reason And Booker And Inslee and Yang Were Good I Guess?
- Sarah: Biden The ComeBack Kid
- Julia: Biden Was the Focal Point Of Attacks In A Wide-Ranging And Sometimes Heated Debate
- Clare: Biden Fights Back; America Asks For Shorter Debates
- Amelia: Democratic Candidates Go After Obama As Well As Trump
- Micah: The Democratic Party Is Sorta At An Interesting Moment Of Transition Maybe
- Geoffrey: Biden-Harris Round 2 Has Some Moments But Largely A Wash
- Chad: These Debates Are Going To Be Really Good Come December
- Julia: i-am-sleepy.com
- Nathaniel: Candidates Punch Up At Biden — And He Remains Standing, For Now
- Galen: The Debates Were Too Long. Few Watched. Little Changed
- Dan: Biden Does His Homework, But Nobody Really Gets Schooled