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Hello from the Omsted Center at Drake University in Des Moines, where Cory Booker, John Hickenlooper, Amy Klobuchar, and Joe Biden will participate in Day 1 of the 6-day Des Moines Register/AARP Presidential Candidate Forum taking place over 6 days in 5 cities with 20 candidates. 
A lot of the candidates participating in today’s AARP/Des Moines Register Candidate Forum at Drake University have tables, but Cory Booker’s campaign is the only one that brought speakers and is bumping Destiny’s Child’s “Survivor,” which feels appropriate.
Cory Booker, who backs Medicare for All reacts to Biden's health care plan:"I don’t think the VP and I are going to quibble over what we’re using as labels. If I am your president, on Day 1 I am going to start doing things to repair the damage done to the ACA from this president"
At today's AARP/DSMR Forum, Cory Booker talks universal broadband access, telling Kathie Obradovich and Kay Henderson "I am going to be the infrastructure president, and I know that’s not sexy, but it is critical for us to lead on the planet Earth, and that’s what I intend to do"
John Hickenlooper talks partnering with Ohio Governor John Kasich to protect the Affordable Care Act at today's DSMR/AARP forum, says, "One thing that we share was the enormous challenge of rural, maintaining quality and cost in rural parts of America, it has to be a priority."
.@okayhenderson asks John Hickenlooper if he believes, as he's said before, that Medicare for All is socialism-- he says, "I think socialism, the labels shouldn’t get in our way, I do think that Democrats should be very careful, and draw a clear line that we’re not socialist."
On progressive proposals like Medicare for All & the Green New Deal, John Hickenlooper says, "I’m not sure they’re socialism per se, but I do believe these massive expansions of gov are not the best way to create the progress that most Americans expect"
Asked to respond to Trump’s tweet about freshman members of Congress, John Hickenlooper tells reporters “that he would make statements like that shocked me...I can't believe I haven't seen it, more Republican Senators, and governors, senior elected officials speaking out.”
At today's AARP/DSMR forum, moderator Kathie Obradovich brings up VP Joe Biden's healthcare proposal released today, tells Senator Amy Klobuchar, "this probably sounds like a familiar proposal to you."
Klobuchar deadpans, "You mean, because it's mine?"
Klobuchar deadpans, "You mean, because it's mine?"
At the AARP/DSMR Forum, Amy Klobuchar says,
"I think we’re always going to have some private insurance as part of the American healthcare system, but...I think one way that you bring those costs down is with this idea of having a public option."
"I think we’re always going to have some private insurance as part of the American healthcare system, but...I think one way that you bring those costs down is with this idea of having a public option."
I asked Senator Amy Kloubuchar to react to President Donald Trump's tweet yesterday attacking freshman members of Congress-- Klobuchar told me, "I thought that that tweet was clearly racist," adding, "that's exactly the kind of rhetoric that we've never had in America."
Anyway in addition to four candidates for president, I also got to see @DrakeUGriff today, which was pretty great.
