Warren and Sanders give rivals Bonnie and Clyde treatment during fiery debate

Analysis: pair were dominant at event showcasing Democratic party’s split personality, pitting progressives against moderates

Bonnie and Clyde. Mulder and Scully. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. On Tuesday night it was Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders who, defying predictions that they would turn on each other, instead formed a leftwing tag team against the forces of moderation at the latest Democratic primary debate on Tuesday.

Warren and Sanders stood centre stage in the ornate Fox Theatre in Detroit, had the most speaking time – more than 35 minutes between them – produced the best lines of the night (with the possible exception of self-help guru and long-shot candidate Marianne Williamson) and had all the appearance of incumbents fending off pesky challengers. Barack Obama’s party this isn’t.

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Democratic debates: Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren among 10 candidates set to face off – live

Ten of the 20 candidates participating in the debates, which are hosted by CNN, will appear on the debate stage tonight in Detroit

The main attraction tonight is the duel on the left between septuagenarian senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. In football or soccer terms, it’s like a local derby. Could it turn nasty?

Aaron Kall, director of debate at the University of Michigan, said: “The key $10,000 question is whether the friendship lasts for the two hours of the debate because they’re colleagues and they have not gone negative with each other on the campaign trail. When you get on the stage under the bright lights, it could certainly change.

“I think Sanders has the incentive to do that, frankly, because he fared much better in the last cycle. He’s slipping to almost single digits now. If anyone needs to make a move and have the focus on the campaign it’s Sanders and, by going negative against Warren, that could be the way.”

Kall, editor of the book Debating the Donald, added: “I think she would be hesitant to respond and we saw in the first debate there were many instances where she could have interjected herself forcefully into the debate but she kind of disappeared for an hour. So if she doesn’t respond, it could be successful for him and put some more spotlight on him, which has been lacking in the last several weeks or months of this campaign.”

The debate’s proximity to Flint, Michigan, has thrown a spotlight on the need for candidates to better flesh out their plans to ensure safe drinking water and fight environmental racism.

The facts are clear: climate change and pollution disproportionately harm low-income communities and communities of color — and are major contributors to ongoing economic and racial inequality.

Today, I’m releasing my plan to build a just and inclusive clean energy economy. pic.twitter.com/qfb7xznEJd

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Is a new generation taking over the Democratic party? – podcast

Kamala Harris was the big winner of the first round of Democratic party debates in the US. This week, her poll numbers surged and so did donations to her campaign. But as Lauren Gambino in Washington notes, it was bad news for the frontrunners as Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders faltered. Also today: Daniel Boffey on the new cast of characters taking over the EU’s top jobs

The race for the Democratic party’s presidential nomination is intensifying after two rounds of televised debates in which the candidates squared up to each other on major issues and their past records. The big winner was the California senator Kamala Harris, who denounced the record of the frontrunner, Joe Biden, on race.

The Guardian’s Lauren Gambino joins Anushka Asthana to look across the diverse field of potential presidential nominees and the debates that highlighted the generational and ideological divides in the party.

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US election 2020: highlights from second night of Democratic debates – video

Ten more candidates battle it out in the contest to become the Democratic nominee for president. It was a strong night for Kamala Harris, who criticised the former vice-president Joe Biden’s record on race. Biden also took a blow from Eric Swalwell, who suggested the former should live by what he said 32 years ago and ‘pass the torch to a new generation’

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Harris attacks Biden’s record on race in Democratic debate’s key moment

California senator’s experience of school integration overshadows expected face-off between ex-vice-president and Bernie Sanders

Ten more Democratic presidential candidates clashed in Miami on Thursday night over the best approach to remove Donald Trump from office in 2020, in a contentious debate featuring an explosive challenge from senator Kamala Harris on race that left former vice president Joe Biden rattled.

On a stage divided along generational and ideological lines, the debate – the second over two days to accommodate the huge field of candidates vying for the Democratic nomination – saw Biden, who has dominated the early stages of the race, face off against Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.

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The planet’s heating up but candidates’ climate crisis response remains tepid

The 10 candidates on stage in Miami accurately conveyed the urgency of global heating but missed chances to show how it underlies all key political issues

Thursday’s Democratic debate demonstrated just how far the the US is from contemplating the climate crisis as a threat that will touch almost all areas of American life and policymaking.

Once again, debate moderators waited until nearly 80 minutes into the debate to pose questions on the climate emergency.

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Democratic debates 2019: everything you need to know

20 presidential hopefuls go head-to-head in Miami on 26-27 June – but what will they discuss, and who needs it the most?

The Republican primary debates in 2015 featured 17 candidates – a number interpreted as unwieldy at best and, at worst, a bit ridiculous.

Well step aside, Republicans, because this year Democrats have gone one better. Or three better: over the evenings of 26th and 27th June, 20 presidential hopefuls will have it out on stage, as they attempt to sell themselves as the one Democratic candidate to take on Donald Trump in the 2020 US presidential election.

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Biden, Sanders and Harris to face off as Democratic debate lineups set – live

Trio drawn together for split NBC debate on 26-27 June, while Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren and Beto O’Rourke to meet in other group

The Wall Street Journal has an interesting read about how after launching an atypical presidential election bid, Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign team is taking a more traditional path:

The campaign aims to build a political infrastructure that can operate regardless of what Mr. Trump says on stage or on social media. Mr. Trump’s Twitter feed is spoken of as his own brand, separate from the campaign.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders has only a few weeks left of her tenure as White House press secretary and the rumor mill is churning with possible replacements.

Four possible replacements, according to Reuters, are: Stephanie Grisham, Melania Trump’s communications director; Heather Nauert, the former State Department spokeswoman; Tony Sayegh, the outgoing Treasury department spokesman and Hogan Gidley, deputy White House secretary.

Once, after watching Gidley on his screen in the residence, the President walked over to the communications office to tell the staff he thought they were handling the shutdown well.

In the days afterward, Trump confused several officials when he directed them to, “Get me Tidley.”

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‘Leader of the resistance’: Democratic 2020 candidates converge on California

Fourteen hopefuls flock to party convention in anti-Trump state with newly pivotal role in primaries

On a recent visit to California, Joe Biden polished off a plate of tacos with the Los Angeles mayor, Eric Garcetti. Pete Buttigieg was feted by Gwyneth Paltrow at a star-studded fundraising event in Los Angeles. Beto O’Rourke trekked to Yosemite national park to unveil his $5tn plan to combat climate change. And Kamala Harris, California’s native daughter, has flexed her home state credentials with a long list of local endorsements.

Competition is already well under way in California, but the race for the Golden State’s more than 400 delegates will heat up this weekend as more than half of the two dozen candidates auditioning for the chance to unseat Donald Trump arrive in San Francisco for the state party’s annual convention.

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Mueller: if Trump clearly had not committed a crime ‘we would have said so’ – live

Special counsel gave public statement for first time about the investigation, prompting a response from Donald Trump: ‘The case is closed’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tiptoed around calls for impeachment in a new statement responding to Mueller’s remarks. In her comments, she praised Mueller for his work and vowed to continue investigating the Trump administration.

“The Congress holds sacred its constitutional responsibility to investigate and hold the President accountable for his abuse of power,” she said. “The Congress will continue to investigate and legislate to protect our elections and secure our democracy. The American people must have the truth.”

Former South Carolina Democratic party chair Jamie Harrison on Wednesday launched his campaign for the Senate seat held by Lindsey Graham.

Here’s his launch video:

I may not be a superhero, but I am a proud South Carolinian, and I'm ready to fight for a better future for our state and our country. I hope you are, too. Find out how you can #JoinJaime and get involved: https://t.co/2jIqtqbKAB pic.twitter.com/zTjktJ1RpA

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Joe Biden to announce presidential bid on Thursday – live news

Former vice-president to officially launch bid for president, while Jared Kushner says Mueller investigation ‘just a big distraction’

Beto O’Rourke, the Texas congressman and presidential candidate, is jumping into the race for big donor $$$ with a New York City fundraiser next month in which hosts are asked to raise $25,000. The New York Times reports:

NEW: Beto O'Rourke will be holding private big $$$ fundraisers (his campaign has not previously held any).

Hosts are asked to raised $25,000 for a New York City event next month on May 13. pic.twitter.com/RbMpNz8DX8

The Guardian can confirm reports that former vice president Joe Biden will launch his 2020 campaign this week.

Sources close to Biden said he will make his announcement in a video to be released on Thursday and plans to hold an event in Pittsburgh on Monday.

Biden was initially expected to kick off his campaign on Wednesday before delaying his launch. Early polling shows Biden in the top tier of the Democratic field but in close competition with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders for frontrunner status.

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Bernie Sanders draws enthusiastic cheers in surprising Fox News town hall

The setup looked potentially hostile but became a free, hourlong commercial for the Sanders candidacy, broadcast to Fox viewers

At every turn they clapped and cheered, enamored with the candidate’s prescriptions for universal healthcare, a humane attitude toward immigrants and the rejection of climate change denialism.

Bernie Sanders was the candidate, and the people clapping and cheering were audience members who turned out in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, for a televised town hall on Monday night sponsored by none other than Fox News.

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Bernie Sanders and Beto O’Rourke release decade worth of tax returns

Returns shows Sanders’ family made $566,000 in 2018, while O’Rourke paid $81,000 in taxes on $366,00 in 2017

Bernie Sanders, the Democratic socialist senator from Vermont, released a decade of tax returns on Monday, showing his family made $566,000 in 2018.

According to returns provided by his campaign, Sanders reported he paid $137,573 in federal taxes in 2018 and owed $8,267 in taxes for the year. Sanders and his wife, Jane Sanders, reported paying a 26% effective tax rate on his adjusted gross income. The couple reported donating $18,950 to charity, or 3.2%.

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Bernie in the Fox’s den: Sanders takes anti-Trump pitch straight to ‘state TV’

The Democratic frontrunner will speak at a Fox News town hall. He says it’s necessary to speak to Trump voters. Others disagree

Bernie Sanders will finish a four-day tour of Trump Country on Monday, with a town hall on the president’s favorite network: Fox News.

Related: Ilhan Omar has had spike in death threats since Trump attack over 9/11 comment

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How Sanders left political wilderness to become leader of Democratic pack

The senator has effectively not stopped campaigning since 2015 as the political landscape has shifted – but can he grow his 2020 support?

There is an saying in US politics, perhaps truer now than ever: every senator looks in the mirror and sees a president looking back. Before Bernie Sanders ran for the White House, his rumpled appearance and shock of unruly white hair suggested that this US senator gave his reflection no more than a fleeting glance each morning.

And yet, nearly two months into his second presidential run Sanders sits atop an unsettled Democratic field. It is a remarkable transformation for a democratic socialist from Vermont, deep into his 70s, who spent most of his decades-long career in the political wilderness.

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‘I won’t be silent’: Ilhan Omar answers Trump 9/11 attack

Congresswoman says rightwing vitriol cannot threaten her ‘unwavering love for America’ as president pushes video

In the face of attacks from Donald Trump, Republicans and rightwing media outlets, the Minnesota representative Ilhan Omar said on Saturday no one could “threaten” her “unwavering love for America”.

Related: Yemeni bodegas boycott New York Post over attacks on Ilhan Omar

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Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris react to completion of Trump-Russia inquiry – video

Following the submission of special counsel Robert Mueller's Trump-Russia investigation findings to the attorney general, William Barr, high-profile senators including Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris and Chuck Schumer are demanding that the report is made public. Speaking at a rally in San Diego on Friday night, Sanders said: 'Nobody, including the president of the United States, is above the law'

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Bernie Sanders visit shows California could hold key to 2020 victory

Weekend of rallies highlight how state’s diverse electorate and new early spot on primary calendar make it a prize for Democratic candidates

Bernie Sanders brought his anti-establishment message and calls for progressive reform to California, no longer as a long-shot presidential candidate but as a frontrunner with a good chance to win it all.

On Friday evening, Sanders kicked off a rally in sunny San Diego by thanking the thousands of supporters who had gathered, alongside a handful of right-wing protesters, for joining his “political revolution”.

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Joe Biden tops 2020 Iowa Democratic presidential poll ahead of Sanders

Des Moines Register poll puts former vice-president on 27% of likely Democratic caucus-goers, Sanders on 25%

The former US vice-president Joe Biden has topped a poll of Iowa voters on Saturday that also showed Senator Bernie Sanders gaining momentum against him in the number two spot.

Biden, who has not announced whether he is running in the 2020 election, is the first choice for president of likely Iowa Democratic caucus-goers with 27% in the Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Poll. Sanders, 77, got 25%.

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