The Democratic Showdown in Iowa

[0] From the New York Times, I'm Michael Babaro.

[1] This is The Daily.

[2] Today.

[3] In exactly three months, the first election of the Democratic presidential primary will be held in Iowa, marking the official start of the race.

[4] Over the weekend, the party held its most important political event yet in the run -up to that election.

[5] A fabled annual dinner attended by almost every remaining candidate in the election.

[6] the campaign.

[7] It's a closely watched test of who exactly has the political support, financial might, and organizational prowess to become the nominee.

[8] Daily producers Claire Tennisgetter and Monica Eustadtieva traveled to Des Moines to meet up with political correspondent Reed Epstein, who was covering the event.

[9] It's Monday, November 4th.

[10] So Monica and I fly to Des Moines, not really knowing what to expect.

[11] This liberty and justice celebration wasn't supposed to start until 6 .30.

[12] Test in, I don't even have headphones on yet.

[13] But we headed over to the venue at about 10 in the morning.

[14] It is 9 .42 a .m. on a Friday morning in Des Moines, Iowa.

[15] It's a bit chilly.

[16] It's 37.

[17] Morning.

[18] Got our winter jackets on.

[19] And already when we got to the main street, there's this massive crowd of people.

[20] It's not like any political event I've ever been to.

[21] So the main event is at a big sports stadium.

[22] And it's really fitting because the whole thing feels like a college football game.

[23] But instead of two teams, there are 14.

[24] 14 Democratic presidential candidates.

[25] So each candidate, each team, has staked out their own area.

[26] and they each have Every candidate has a color, right?

[27] Yeah, he's black and white.

[28] I've got my bed of sweatshirt on underneath.

[29] Their own color.

[30] Federal O 'Rourke is black and white.

[31] Coy Booker is red.

[32] Elizabeth Warren is a sort of seafone green that her team branded as Liberty Green.

[33] And some of her supporters are dressed up like the Statue of Liberty.

[34] They also have their own music.

[35] There are competing marching bands, some better than others.

[36] And at one point, some of Pete supporters are doing this choreographed dance in the street.

[37] The whole thing just has this vibe of a big tailgate.

[38] Snacks, people sharing hand warmers.

[39] And Monica and I go around and start talking to people at these various camps.

[40] Hi.

[41] Hi.

[42] How are you doing?

[43] Good.

[44] Why are you here?

[45] I am here to follow Andrew around the country like I've been doing since March.

[46] So what's the excitement about?

[47] Pete.

[48] He is the most inspiring candidate, the smartest, the most everything candidate I have ever seen.

[49] I've not been this inspired in my entire life.

[50] And I would go anywhere and do anything for Pete and Chaston.

[51] Why I'm here?

[52] Well, I'm here to support Joel because I think that he's the best chance for the Democrats to beat President Trump.

[53] I'm here to support Beto O 'Rour.

[54] We've got lots of giant banners and lots of big signs and all kinds of exciting things that we plan to do inside.

[55] So it's going to be crazy, yeah.

[56] I am campaign for Elizabeth Warren.

[57] She's been my favorite forever.

[58] Bernie is our man. He was my man in 2016.

[59] He's still my man. We dispel the myth of the Bernie Bros. I say we are the Silver Sanders sisters.

[60] So technically, this is a fundraiser for the Democratic Party in Iowa.

[61] And there are two ways that people can go.

[62] big donors can pay for dinner and have special reserve seats on the floor at the event and then candidates also buy groups of tickets that they give to their supporters for free.

[63] Those people don't get the fancy dinner, but they do get to go sit in the stadium and cheer for their candidate because the way this works, every candidate goes up on the stage in the middle of the dinner floor, their faces on the jumbotron, and they give a 12 -minute speech, one after another.

[64] And all these supporters are like, they're giant.

[65] cheering squads.

[66] So, it's a fundraiser.

[67] But because it's the last time all the candidates will be at the same event ahead of the Iowa caucus, it's become something bigger than that.

[68] It's a test of who has momentum.

[69] And it's gotten even more significant since 2007.

[70] And why Iowa?

[71] What's important about this state?

[72] Well, I mean, obviously, it's pretty important in terms of the election and the primary, and I think we're trying to duplicate the excitement that the Obama campaign had.

[73] Lots of people I Talked to, mention what happened.

[74] Barack Obama won the presidency in 2007 because...

[75] With Obama.

[76] Getting together, this is actually important because Barack Obama got his big start in Iowa at this dinner.

[77] He was lagging behind Hillary Clinton, and then he gave this rousing speech at this dinner.

[78] Back then, it was called the Jefferson Jackson dinner.

[79] And it gave his campaign this huge surge.

[80] And he went on to win Iowa, and then, of course, the Democratic nomination.

[81] So that's the dream of how this goes.

[82] And one candidate in particular seems to be hoping to recreate that moment.

[83] Pete Buttigieg.

[84] He's been focusing a ton of his campaign's energy and resources on Iowa in recent weeks.

[85] And on Friday morning, the Times actually released a poll showing that he was pulling third in Iowa and actually pulling above Joe Biden.

[86] And so you can feel this particular energy with his campaign and his supporters.

[87] The biggest turnout seems to be for him and for Elizabeth Warren.

[88] Bernie is not taking part in the DNC's fundraiser, and we came from Michigan to support Bernie.

[89] The Bernie Sanders supporters are kind of complicated, because they're not actually going into the event.

[90] He's uncorrupted.

[91] All the others take corporate money.

[92] They say because of its connection to corporate sponsors and their complicated relationship with the DNC.

[93] And then there's Beto O 'Rourke.

[94] What just happened?

[95] I got a news alert, and it says U .S. Democratic presidential hopeful better work announces he's ending his campaign.

[96] While we're out in the crowds that afternoon, interacting with Beto supporters, he announces that he's dropping out of the race and won't be speaking at the dinner.

[97] So just like that, 14 teams becomes 13.

[98] And we go to meet up with Reid outside the arena.

[99] Hey, hi.

[100] I feel like we should hug.

[101] I know, but it's hard with the mic.

[102] So welcome to Iowa.

[103] Right now we're watching a parade of Pete Buttigieg supporters dressed in yellow and blue.

[104] There's about 2 ,000 of them.

[105] And they are marching up 3rd Street here in Des Moines.

[106] They have bells.

[107] They're generally making a lot of noise.

[108] Let's go see what happens.

[109] All right.

[110] We'll be right back.

[111] Reed, what happens when this dinner actually starts?

[112] So you walk in?

[113] The arena that it was in is the minor league basketball and hockey arena here in Des Moines.

[114] So it seats about 16 ,000 people.

[115] Each campaign's supporters had decorated their sections.

[116] So there were rings of signs around the different levels with the candidates' names on them.

[117] We were sitting about four stories above the floor.

[118] And on the floor of the arena were several dozen.

[119] tables arranged almost like a very large wedding party.

[120] What are you looking at?

[121] I see like Cory Booker is mingling on the floor, and I can't tell who he's with.

[122] It looks like it might be Chris Dodd, who ran for president here in 2008, but it's kind of far away, so it's hard to tell.

[123] With black -clad busboys running around, and people in suits sort of sitting around at the table.

[124] These were the fat cats, the big donors.

[125] And in the seats above that, were people in T -shirts, the supporters of the candidates who had gotten free tickets from the campaigns, and it was a real difference between the different groups of people.

[126] Ladies, gentlemen, please find your seats on program will be beginning shortly.

[127] There's an elevated stage in the middle of the floor with four smoke machines on each corner, a long walkway that the candidates used to come in and out to get to the stage, and above it is the giant video board Jumbotron.

[128] And where Mayor Pete is about to come up, And see, on the video board are pictures of him and his husband, along with a photo of him from when he was in the military.

[129] And then we got to what people were waiting for, which was the candidates.

[130] And the first one up was Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

[131] This is High Hopes by Panic at the Disco.

[132] All the candidates pick Walk On Songs, and Buttigieg's is High Hopes from Panic at the Disco, which is a very catchy.

[133] It's like, bum, bum, bum, bum, blah.

[134] That song came on, the 2 ,000 or so people who came from Buttigieg, starts screaming.

[135] His supporters are in some choreographed light dancing thing.

[136] All blinking at once.

[137] Thank you, Iowa.

[138] Thank you, Iowa Democratic Party.

[139] It's also a rare event where Buttigieg is wearing a suit jacket.

[140] Usually he comes out in just a blue shirt.

[141] tie in a white shirt.

[142] So you know it's a serious event for him that he's put a coat on.

[143] So that leads right into his speech.

[144] The first time I came to this state was as a volunteer to knock on doors for a presidential candidate, a young man with a funny name.

[145] And we knew the stakes were high then.

[146] The stakes are colossal now.

[147] He talks about looking at the window of his office in South.

[148] and seeing kind of the decaying Midwest making a comeback.

[149] My office is about six hours that way down I -80.

[150] And out the window of that office, I see the outlines of our ethanol plant, which is why I understand the measure of this president's betrayal of American farmers, and I know how to talk about it.

[151] He contrasts himself with President Trump.

[152] And I don't have to throw myself a military parade to see what a convoy looks like.

[153] Because I was driving one around Afghanistan right about the time this president was taping season seven of the celebrity apprentice.

[154] So that tough talk's not going to work against me. And he speaks about going hunting with his husband's father in Michigan over Thanksgiving weekend.

[155] In rural Michigan, you cannot stop a man from going deer hunting with his husband's father.

[156] And only at the end in the last couple of minutes does he get to sort of the real meat and potatoes of what he's talking about.

[157] But I also will not tire from the effort to include everyone in this future we are trying to build.

[158] Progressives, moderates, and Republicans of conscience who are ready for a change.

[159] The time has come.

[160] Which is the contrast with those with Warren.

[161] We will fight when we must fight.

[162] So Warren's big theme in this race is that she is a fighter and she is going to fight for the big progressive causes.

[163] But I will never allow us to get so.

[164] wrapped up in the fighting that we start to think fighting is the point.

[165] The point is what lies on the other side of the fight.

[166] He is saying she alienates other people.

[167] So Iowa, are you ready to bring this country together?

[168] Then let us make history together.

[169] And we will have a lot to celebrate in November of next year and we will know where to go from there.

[170] Thank you, Iowa.

[171] Democrats.

[172] Thank you so much.

[173] Buttigieg just finished.

[174] For people in this room who have been paying attention to these caucus and the campaign, that's about Elizabeth Warren, whose campaign is to have the fight and take the fight to the people who she believes have caused the problems in the country.

[175] Buttigieg is telling a different story, talking about bringing people together from outside the core elements of the party.

[176] And Anthem from 2012.

[177] Okay, now we have Joe Biden.

[178] What's that?

[179] So Biden walks out, and he's immediately at a disadvantage because some of the sections at his campaign in reserve are mostly empty.

[180] Hello, Iowa Democrats.

[181] Let me get right to it.

[182] There's a couple of things I've learned the last couple weeks.

[183] Number one is that Vladimir Putin doesn't want me to be president.

[184] And number two, Donald Trump doesn't want me to be the nominee.

[185] He launches into the big theme of his campaign, which is he is the most electable.

[186] And we must beat him.

[187] And I will beat him like a drum if I'm your nominee.

[188] And he knows it.

[189] He knows it.

[190] Folks, look.

[191] And then he pivots almost immediately into an attack on Elizabeth Warren.

[192] We can do this.

[193] We can do it quickly without taxing the middle class.

[194] We can make sure that the 160 million people who have health insurance they like can keep it if they want.

[195] And if not, they can buy in to a Medicare like proposal.

[196] Ladies and gentlemen, that will not take four years or five years or ten years to happen.

[197] It will happened immediately.

[198] Immediately.

[199] You know, it landed with less enthusiasm than what we saw from Buttigieg, in part because he had far fewer people, but also because Joe Biden isn't somebody who is lighting these big rooms of activists on fire.

[200] The rationale for the Biden campaign is much more about winning over casual voters or people who are not spending six hours on a Friday night at these events, people who are going to go vote.

[201] But, activist.

[202] So ladies and gentlemen, get up.

[203] Remember who we are.

[204] Let's take this country back and begin to lead the world again.

[205] Thank you.

[206] Thank you.

[207] So the next leading candidate to come out was Elizabeth Warren.

[208] Please welcome Senator Elizabeth Warren.

[209] Nine to five is flags.

[210] Her crowd has some sort of green lights and flags they're waving around.

[211] Her people jump up and cheer.

[212] They're waving flags.

[213] There's a lot of waving.

[214] They have a giant Elizabeth Warren banner that comes down through several sections of the arena.

[215] And her people cheered so loudly and for such an extended amount of time that her time to speak started counting down.

[216] And she had to turn to them and sort of with palms down, like, encourage them to kind of cut it out so that she could begin her speech.

[217] And then once she did, it was as if she had planned this all along.

[218] to be a rebuttal to Buttigieg in Biden.

[219] A lot of people are afraid of big structural change.

[220] Afraid because they're already rich and powerful, and they may lose influence.

[221] Afraid because they see an America where they won't be able to make the changes they need.

[222] And she said, well, not me. I believe in change, and I believe in change, I know we can get it done.

[223] I believe in change, and I know we can get it done.

[224] So that was kind of the setup for her speech.

[225] And later there was a section where she really stuck the knife in them.

[226] Who comes on this stage and tells you they can make change without a fight is not going to win that fight.

[227] 2020 is our time in history, our time to dream big, fight hard and win.

[228] Wow, that I have not heard Elizabeth Warren go so hard at Buttigieg and Biden, and there are sort of ideas of kind of almost all the way to there to where she and Bernie Sanders are, as she did tonight.

[229] This was sort of a new, a new frontier for her, actually telling the 12 or 13 ,000 people here that they'll lose if they nominate somebody who is not fully invested in the most progressive ideas.

[230] And later in the night, Bernie Sanders came on stage.

[231] Please welcome Senator Bernie Sanders.

[232] And there's a lectern waiting for him.

[233] Unlike everyone else who paced the stage and pointed and gestured to their supporters, he stood at the lectern with prepared notes on paper that he had had rolled up in his suit jacket and gave his speech.

[234] Part of that was Bernie Sanders did not bring any supporters to this event and instead had a march across town in the rain.

[235] Tonight, all of us, no matter what candidate we are supporting, are in agreement.

[236] that we must defeat the most dangerous president in the history of our country.

[237] And then he gave what anyone in that crowd would have recognized as the condensed version of the standard Bernie Sanders stump speech.

[238] At a time of massive income and wealth inequality, the Democratic Party must become the party of the working class of this country.

[239] It was, you know, the Bernie greatest hits.

[240] condensed into 11 and a half minutes.

[241] So that's four candidates.

[242] What about the other nine?

[243] And the other candidates were still nine months after this race started doing a fair amount of introducing themselves to these activists and to Iowa caucus goers.

[244] And 11 years later, one state passed a dividend where now everyone in that state gets between one and $2 ,000 a year, no questions asked.

[245] And what state is that?

[246] And how does Alaska and how does Alaska pay for it?

[247] And what is the Oil of the 21st century, Iowa.

[248] Technology, software, self -driving cars and trucks.

[249] Andrew Yang talked about his universal basic income proposal.

[250] And I started my career fighting for the people.

[251] In fact, the first day I walked into a courtroom, I spoke five words.

[252] Kamala Harris for the people.

[253] Kamala Harris talked about her career as a prosecutor.

[254] But I come from the grit.

[255] of a February snowstorm in the middle of Minnesota.

[256] Amy Klobuchar said that she would win big in the Midwest.

[257] I have won every race, every place, every time in the reddest of red congressional districts.

[258] Because if I am your nominee, I will inspire, engage, and ignite this nation like no other nominee can.

[259] And Cory Booker talked about not criticizing other Democrats and focusing instead on President Trump.

[260] Iowa.

[261] I see you.

[262] I love you.

[263] I see you.

[264] I love you.

[265] Together, we will rise.

[266] The last two speakers of the night are John Delaney, the former congressman from Maryland, and Steve Bullock, the governor of Montana.

[267] Governor Steve Bullock of Montana is all that there is left.

[268] I think his people is the only section that's still full.

[269] If you stand up, you can see them.

[270] By the end, everyone, including the sort of public address staff of the event, seemed to be exhausted.

[271] Close.

[272] Wait, oh no. But it's not Cory Booker.

[273] It's Steve Bullock.

[274] Dignities for Steve Bullock.

[275] And by the time Steve Bullock came out, Hey, here we go.

[276] Much of his speech was, in fact, making jokes about how no one was still left in the audience.

[277] And by the end, you know, there was no, you didn't have to, like, beat traffic because everyone had already left.

[278] It was like a big blowout game.

[279] Yeah, it was a 30 -point basketball game in February and not the World Series.

[280] That's it.

[281] That's it.

[282] Congratulations.

[283] You've made it through.

[284] And so you told us at the beginning of this event that, one of the reasons that this event was so important is because it turned the tides for Obama in his favor 12 years ago, that it really shifted the momentum and then led him to winning in Iowa, getting the nomination and becoming president.

[285] Do you think anybody had that sort of moment this year in Iowa, or was it too difficult with 13 candidates taking the stage?

[286] Well, I mean, the short answer is we'll see.

[287] Sort of the more complicated answer is when Obama gave that statement, speech 12 years ago, it was a pretty negative speech about Hillary Clinton.

[288] A lot of it was about why Obama was the best candidate, but a lot of it was about why Hillary Clinton was not.

[289] And the only person who sort of came out with that kind of bite tonight was Elizabeth Warren.

[290] And we'll see whether she sustains this sort of argument about Biden and Buttigieg throughout or, you know, whether this is a one -time only event, whether this is kind of a new phase of the campaign for her or whether this was something she rolled out just for tonight.

[291] Reid, thank you.

[292] Thank you.

[293] You know, we've spent 12 hours together today.

[294] I'm sure I'll be back in February, if not sooner.

[295] We'll go back next month.

[296] The poll of Iowa voters likely to participate in February's caucuses, conducted by the Times and Sienna College, released on Friday, shows the top four candidates locked in an extremely tight race, with Joe Biden, the frontrunner nationally, polling fourth in Iowa at 17%, behind Warren, who's polling at 22%, Sanders at 19, and Buttigieg at 18.

[297] In an interview, Buttigieg said that the Iowa caucuses were increasingly becoming a two -way race between him and Warren.

[298] The contrasts are real, he said.

[299] They're substantive, respectful policy contrasts, but they're real.

[300] We'll be right back.

[301] Here's what else you need to know today.

[302] It doesn't get bigger than this.

[303] A public health emergency by a Supreme Court mandated panel.

[304] Officials in India have declared a public health emergency in the country's capital city, New Delhi, after air pollution levels reached 20 times what are considered safe.

[305] The warning came after a toxic cloud of air settled over the city, which officials blame on car emissions, construction dust, and farmers burning their crops.

[306] The fact is, the people of Delhi, NCR, can't do anything about what's happening right now, Polami.

[307] The only way to dodge this is to perhaps leave the city.

[308] Absolutely.

[309] It's turned into a very alarming situation.

[310] In many of India's cities, air pollution has become so dangerous that environmentalists warn that the risk of long -term exposure can be the equivalent of smoking two packs of cigarettes a day.

[311] That's it for the daily.

[312] I'm Michael Babaro.

[313] See you tomorrow.