Democrats waged a largely civil debate with moments of modest policy clashes and few instances of the type of bitter confrontation that has dominated politics in the Trump era.

It was a good night for Cory Booker, Julián Castro and Elizabeth Warren. But Beto O’Rourke and others missed their chance to break through

Warren was convincing on healthcare and other key issues; Booker’s answers stood out on immigration; and Castro had a good nightSign up for the US briefing and get a new perspective

MIAMI (Reuters) - Democratic presidential contenders battled over healthcare coverage and border policy on Wednesday during a surprisingly heated first debate that laid bare the party's divisions on whether to abolish private insurance and shift to a Medicare-for-All system.

The first Democratic president debate exposed ideological fissures within the party over how to remake the economy, fix immigration and confront big companies -- and whether the path to defeating President Donald Trump veers toward liberal solutions or hews to the middle.

Health care sparked some of the most intense exchanges in the first debate among Democratic presidential candidates, who agreed that Americans must have universal insurance coverage but differed about whether that means the demise of private plans.