Democratic hopefuls in last night’s fifth presidential debate wasted no time blasting President Trump as impeachment hearings continue. Senator Amy Klobuchar said the president “every step of the way” puts his own interest before that of the country. She added, “I have made it very clear that this is impeachable conduct and I’ve called for an impeachment proceeding. I just believe our job as jurors is to look at each count and make a decision.” Rival Elizabeth Warren took a stronger stance, saying “of course” she’ll try to convince her Republican colleagues to vote to remove President Trump from office. “We have to establish the principle [that] no one is above the law. We have a constitutional responsibility and we need to meet it,” Warren says.
Klobuchar in last night’s debate stood by her earlier statement that the female senators running for president would not be on the stage if they had the experience of current Iowa caucus frontrunner Pete Buttigieg. Klobuchar says the South Bend, Indiana mayor “is qualified to be up on this stage, but what I said was true: Women are held to a higher standard, otherwise we could play a game called, Name Your Favorite Woman President — which we can’t do because it has all been men.”
But Klobuchar took Buttigieg to task in the debate, after he said federal leadership is needed to ensure every American has equal access to the ballot box. Klobuchar responded, “This is a good example where he has said the right words, but I actually have the experience and am leading 11 of the bills.” Buttigieg drew spirited applause when he fired back, “Washington experience is not the only experience that matters. There’s more than a hundred years of Washington experience on this stage, and where are we right now as a country?”