A surging President Donald Trump, a debacle of a caucus in Iowa and once-seen Democratic frontrunners now desperate for a victory have made the stakes that much higher in Friday night’s New Hampshire Democratic debate.
Seven Democrats will take the stage at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, ahead of Tuesday’s nationally watched New Hampshire primary. The debate will be broadcast live and free of charge on ABC, from 8 to 11 p.m. EST.
»How to watch, what to watch for, in New Hampshire Democratic debate
The debate comes at the end of what has arguably been one of the worst weeks in memory for Democrats.
First, the important Iowa Democratic caucus was plagued by delays thanks to a new app designed to make it easier and faster for delegates to choose their favorite candidate. Instead, technical difficulties caused delays of more than 48 hours in reporting full results, fueling GOP claims Democrats can't even run a single state caucus, much less the entire federal government.
Even Democratic National Committee chairman Tom Perez is calling for a recanvassing of the vote.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump delivered a State of the Union address that roused congressional Republicans but soured Democrats, as evidenced when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ripped her copy of Trump’s speech in half.
Less than 24 hours later, Trump was acquitted in his historic presidential impeachment trial. Democrats failed in their months-long effort to remove Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Former Vice President Joe Biden; former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg; U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren; billionaire executive Tom Steyer; and entrepreneur Andrew Yang will be in Friday’s debate.
Buttigieg and Sanders finished in a first-place tie in Iowa, a race so close the Associated Press said it was unable to declare a winner.
»MORE: Democrats descend on New Hampshire after Iowa debacle
Now, on the eve of the Grantite State primary, Biden, Warren and Klobuchar have an urgent need to demonstrate strength.
“This is the time when voters are eager for candidates to show they can compare and contrast, but also show they’re in it to win it,” said Democratic strategist Lily Adams, who worked on California Sen. Kamala Harris’ unsuccessful 2020 presidential campaign. “Expect it to get more feisty.”
The stakes are particularly high this week for Biden, who has played front-runner in virtually every one of the previous seven debates but left Iowa in distant fourth place. While reporting irregularities have blunted the impact of the Iowa contest, Biden’s weakness rattled supporters who encouraged him to take an aggressive tack Friday night.
On Sanders, Biden is seizing on the Vermont senator’s status as a self-described democratic socialist. And on Buttigieg, he knocked the 38-year-old former mayor’s inexperience.
Biden also conceded the obvious — that his Iowa finish was underwhelming at best. He called it a “gut punch” before embracing the underdog role: “This isn’t the first time in my life I’ve been knocked down.”
The debate is the first since a progressive feud erupted on national television between Sanders and Warren. The Massachusetts senator refused to shake her New England neighbor’s hand and accused him of calling her a liar moments after the Jan. 14 meeting in Iowa.
The pointed exchange threatened to cause a permanent fissure in the Democratic Party’s far-left flank. Warren has embraced her gender as a political strength in the weeks since, highlighting the successes of female candidates in the Trump era and her own record of defeating a male Republican to earn a seat in the Senate.
Buttigieg should expect to be under attack Friday night, said Joel Benenson, a debate adviser to Buttigieg last year and a prominent Democratic pollster.
“He’s got to be prepared for incoming from the people behind him, who are going to be punching up and trying to take votes away,” Benenson said.
“He’s got to be prepared to counterpunch, as well, and push back strenuously, but drive his message even when he’s responding,” he added. “If they draw sharp contrasts, he has to, as well.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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