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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Politics
Joe Sommerlad, Clark Mindock, Chris Riotta

Democratic debate - LIVE: Trump loses yet another Republican congressman as Biden and other candidates prepare for 2020 showdown

Donald Trump is attacking a CNN anchor of colour for bringing up tweets the president launched against minority politicians and civil rights leader that were largely viewed as racist.

He referred to journalist Don Lemon as “the dumbest man on television” for discussing the tweets at Tuesday night’s Democratic debates, adding, “I am ‘the least racist person in the world,’" appearing to quote his own previous claims about himself.

The president found himself under siege in the latest round of Democratic 2020 primary debates on Tuesday evening, with Pete Buttigieg accusing him of pretending to be disabled to avoid service in the Vietnam War, and Elizabeth Warren saying he “disgraces the office of president every single day”. In further bad news for the president, California governor Gavin Newsom has signed a new bill into law that would make it mandatory for every presidential candidate to release five years of their tax returns or face being left off ballot papers in the state in November next year.

Please allow a moment for our liveblog to load

Just up on the debate stage in Michigan: The Flint city wide choir.
 
It was delightful.
 
A quick reminder: Flint is the city that became well known for its water crisis, after city residents began complaining the water was toxic. The crisis drew national attention at the time, with some big calls for reforms to change the water source. The water is still, however, toxic.
 
We'll see if that issue comes up tonight, after not getting any play last night.
After last night's debate — in which Elizabeth Warren said that US policy should be to never strike first with a nuclear weapon — the issue of American nuclear weapons policy appears to be up for debate (at least on Twitter).

Here's congersswoman Liz Cheney challenging Ms Warren, following the exchange.
 


 
Here's the full line-up of candidates ahead of tonight's event:
  • Colorado senator Michael Bennet
  • New York senator Kirsten Gillibrand
  • former Housing and Urban Development secretary Julián Castro
  • New Jersey senator Cory Booker
  • former vice president Joe Biden
  • California senator Kamala Harris
  • tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang
  • Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard
  • Washington governor Jay Inslee
  • New York City mayor Bill de Blasio
We are just under two hours from the start of tonight's debate.
 
The headliners of tonight's debate include Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, who had quite the dust-up over race issues and the former vice president's past positions on bussing (a policy put in place to help de-segregate public schools).
 
Mr Biden has been attacked frequently for his previous civil rights positions, even as he has largely stood by his record. You can expect some of that to come up once again this evening, as Ms Harris makes yet another attempt to stand out in a crowded Democratic primary field — and one that Ms Harris still has a lot of ground to cover if she hopes to win the party's nomination.
The Independent's Clark Mindock will be taking over this live blog for the night to get you through another Democratic showdown between the leading contenders for president. Here he is with a feature interview on Steve Bullock, an underdog candidate who found his way to the stage last night, for a worthy pre-debate read:
 
As the second night of debates gear up, here's the winners and losers from last night's showdown -
 

Donald Trump has demanded the US Navy secretary “immediately withdraw” awards presented to prosecutors who litigated the case of Navy SEAL Chief Eddie Gallagher.

The awards commend the prosecution team for their “exceptional witness preparation,' 'expert litigation on constitutional issues,' and 'superb results.’”

The Russian government has called on Donald Trump to help recover a suspended Twitter account belonging to its Syrian embassy -

It seems Donald Trump's team of opposition researchers are trying to turn the president's seemingly racist comments on their head - and back towards the senior Democratic congressman of colour who he attacked on Twitter -
 

The president of Mongolia has gifted Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron, a horse. The president announced the horse’s name would be “Victory” -

The White House is touting apparent wage growth amid the Federal Reserve's latest announcement - 
 
Here's my story on the newly-announced Federal Interest rates cuts -
 

The US Federal Reserve has cut interest rates for the first time in more than a decade in an effort to extend the country’s historic economic expansion beginning under former President Barack Obama. 

The Federal Reserve announced the changes on Wednesday, saying it would lower targets for key federal funds by .25 per cent. The board was previously considering raising rates in 2019.

Story to come...

Here's my story on the reported death of Hamza bin Laden -
 

Hamza bin Laden, the son and potential heir to deceased al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is dead, according to intelligence reportedly obtained by the United States. 

The news was first reported on Wednesday morning, though officials would not immediately confirm the details or whether the US had any role in his death. 

Hamza bin Laden called on the people of the Arabian peninsula to revolt in his last public statements released by the terror group’s media arm last year, which also included threats to Saudi Arabia.  

Story to come...

Donald Trump is currently meeting with the president of Mongolia in the White House South Portico. They will then join an expanded bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room, though the meeting is closed to the press. We will bring you any footage or photos as they come in.
As we approach tonight's debates, here's my story on last night's winners and losers -
 

Donald Trump has been condemned for sending the US special presidential envoy for hostage affairs to Sweden for A$AP Rocky‘s trial.

The Harlem rapper, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, is accused of beating a 19-year-old man in Stockholm on 30 June.

Mr Mayers is accused of assault, alongside two others and the street-fight has become a point of contention in US-Swedish diplomacy.

On Tuesday the 30-year-old pleaded not guilty to the charge as his trial opened. He claimed to have acted in self-defense.

The US has separated nearly 1,000 migrant children arriving at the nation’s southern border from their families despite a federal judge demanding Donald Trump’s administration curtail the practice last year, a new report said Tuesday. 

At least 911 children were separated from their families between 28 June of 2018 — when US District Judge Dana Sabraw ordered an end to the practice, barring limited circumstances — and 29 June of this year, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said in its report published Tuesday. 

The report said one out of every five of the migrant children separated from their families were under the age of five.

In case you missed it, here's more from last night's debates -
 
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