8th Democratic Primary Debate: on Families & Children


Elizabeth Warren: Real money into schools & housing, to fight child poverty

As the debate wound down, the candidates faced questions on what to do about young children in poverty and what it says about the country.

"Put real money into our schools, put real money into housing," said Warren, who also pushed for more robust funding for education and health care.

Source: Washington Post excerpts of 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate Feb 8, 2020

Joe Biden: Focus on our children, to address child poverty

As the debate wound down, the candidates faced questions on what to do about young children in poverty and what it says about the country. Biden's answer--much like his candidacy--was heavy on biographical details.

"I come from a family where a dad said, 'We've got to move; don't have a job. We've got to move to a different city,' " he said. Biden concluded that "We must focus on our children."

Source: Washington Post excerpts of 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate Feb 8, 2020

Amy Klobuchar: Investment in childcare and pre-school

I've put together a plan to reduce child poverty in half in 10 years and eradicate it in a generation. We can do it with investment in childcare. We can do it with investment in preschool and school and we can do it with tax credits and we can get it done. But to get it done, we have to be able to reach those voters that we lost in this state and across the country.
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH Feb 7, 2020

Andrew Yang: Disentangle economic value and human value

We have allowed the market to tell us what we are l worth. What is the market value my wife, Evelyn had, or stay at home parents around the country? Zero. Caregivers taking care of ailing loved ones? Zero. Volunteers and activists in our communities trying to do something positive? Zero. The mission in this campaign has to be for us to disentangle economic value and human value, say they are not the same things and make this case that we each have intrinsic value as human beings.
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH Feb 7, 2020

Bernie Sanders: My priority is working class families, not the rich

What is unique about our campaign, is we say, unashamedly, we are raising our campaign contributions, not from billionaires but from working class people. That our campaign is about the working families of this country for the working class of this country and that is the administration that we will run. It is time to take on the big money interests. It is time to change our national priorities. Thank you.
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH Feb 7, 2020

Elizabeth Warren: The best investment we can make is in our children

I started my grownup life as a special education teacher. I learned early on about the worth of every single human being, and I believe the best investment we can make as a nation is to invest in our children. I've talked about a two cent wealth tax, but the whole idea behind it is we can do early childhood education and good quality child care, universal pre-K for every three year old and four year old in America.
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH Feb 7, 2020

Joe Biden: Kids are our future and health of US depends on them

These aren't someone else's children. They're all our children. They're the kite strings that lift our national ambitions, they really are. They lift our national ambitions aloft. We have an overwhelming interest, overwhelming interest in seeing to it they do well. You know, 24 out of every 100 students in school today, from grade school to high school, are Latino. What are we going to do? Walk away from that?
Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH Feb 7, 2020

  • The above quotations are from Feb. 7, 2020- Democratic Debate (8th Debate).
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Families & Children.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
  • Click here for more quotes by Mike Bloomberg on Families & Children.
  • Click here for more quotes by Deval Patrick on Families & Children.
2020 Presidential contenders on Families & Children:
  Democrats running for President:
Sen.Michael Bennet (D-CO)
V.P.Joe Biden (D-DE)
Mayor Mike Bloomberg (I-NYC)
Gov.Steve Bullock (D-MT)
Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D-IN)
Sen.Cory Booker (D-NJ)
Secy.Julian Castro (D-TX)
Gov.Lincoln Chafee (L-RI)
Rep.John Delaney (D-MD)
Rep.Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI)
Sen.Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
Gov.Deval Patrick (D-MA)
Sen.Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
CEO Tom Steyer (D-CA)
Sen.Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
Marianne Williamson (D-CA)
CEO Andrew Yang (D-NY)

2020 Third Party Candidates:
Rep.Justin Amash (L-MI)
CEO Don Blankenship (C-WV)
Gov.Lincoln Chafee (L-RI)
Howie Hawkins (G-NY)
Gov.Gary Johnson(L-NM)
Howard Schultz(I-WA)
Gov.Jesse Ventura (I-MN)
Republicans running for President:
Sen.Ted Cruz(R-TX)
Gov.Larry Hogan (R-MD)
Gov.John Kasich(R-OH)
V.P.Mike Pence(R-IN)
Gov.Mark Sanford (R-SC)
Pres.Donald Trump(R-NY)
Rep.Joe Walsh (R-IL)
Gov.Bill Weld(R-MA & L-NY)

2020 Withdrawn Democratic Candidates:
Sen.Stacey Abrams (D-GA)
Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-NYC)
Sen.Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
Sen.Mike Gravel (D-AK)
Sen.Kamala Harris (D-CA)
Gov.John Hickenlooper (D-CO)
Gov.Jay Inslee (D-WA)
Mayor Wayne Messam (D-FL)
Rep.Seth Moulton (D-MA)
Rep.Beto O`Rourke (D-TX)
Rep.Tim Ryan (D-CA)
Adm.Joe Sestak (D-PA)
Rep.Eric Swalwell (D-CA)
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Page last updated: Mar 23, 2020