TIME

What Democrats should do in the first debate

Among the crowded Democratic field are, clockwise from left, Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders

OVER THE PAST 15 YEARS, I HAVE HELPED A NUMBER OF presidential candidates prepare for debates, and I am certain the 2020 contenders are feeling the pressure to have a breakout moment in their upcoming first round. But anyone looking to these events for clarity on the direction this race will take is likely to be disappointed. I know we’re all tired of hearing that it’s early, but the reality is we are just six months into an 18-month process leading to the Democratic nomination.

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from TIME

TIME3 min readGender Studies
Kathleen Hanna
You’ve been in the public eye since you founded your groundbreaking feminist punk band Bikini Kill, over 30 years ago. When did you decide to write your memoir? I started talking about it when I was maybe 40. Then I got sick with Lyme disease, and th
TIME6 min read
Titans
Last May, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory about the profound consequences of loneliness and isolation—a departure from the type of standard medical conditions his predecessors prioritized. While traveling the country, Murthy had
TIME2 min readPolitical Ideologies
The Party Of Mandela Fails To Deliver
The African National Congress has led South Africa’s government since the end of apartheid in 1994. But as voters go to the polls on May 29, there’s good reason to wonder whether the ANC might be in real trouble. During the ANC’s most recent term in

Related Books & Audiobooks