Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Elizabeth Warren clashed in a heated exchange over campaign financing at the Democratic debate on Thursday night, with Warren rebuking the mayor for hosting big-dollar fundraisers and Buttigieg shooting back that he's the only candidate on stage whose net worth isn't in the millions.
Why it matters: It was a dramatic manifestation of a fight that has been brewing online and on the campaign trail for weeks. Warren argued that decisions shouldn't be made in "smoke-filled rooms" where politicians can be corrupted by money, while Buttigieg countered that candidates shouldn't be relying on "purity tests" and turning down donations when they're in "the fight of our lives" against President Trump.
