Thread by @KVUE

U.S. Senate Democratic Debate | Find out where the U.S. Senate #Democratic candidates stand on the issues you care about before you hit the polls. They're facing incumbent #Republican Sen. @JohnCornyn in the March 3 primary. #texas #politics #VoteTexas #El pscp.tv/w/cRx37DI0Njc0…

@JohnCornyn First question of the night: Name one action or policy President Donald Trump has put into place that you support.

@JohnCornyn Chris Bell: "Donald Trump is the dark underbelly of America and John Cornyn is his No. 1 waterboy ... We need to take them down." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Amanda Edwards says we need to work on criminal justice reform. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Jack Daniel Foster, Jr. says he likes the fact that President Trump is tough on Iran. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn MJ Hegar says she agrees with President Trump about enacting universal background checks for gun owners but says the president can flip on that issue at times and she wants to help him "keep his spine." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn State Sen. Royce West emphasized that there is "still more to do" about criminal justice reform. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn The next round of questions will be directed at individual candidates. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Hegar: What is your response to criticism of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee endorsement? Hegar says it's an endorsement her campaign is very proud of. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Annie "Mama" Garcia says she respects Hegar's resume but that Hegar didn't beat John Carter and that no one can beat John Cornyn with "politics as usual." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Candidate Annie Garcia comments on President Trump. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Royce West: "In a time when the Democratic Party is interested in fresh faces, why should voters elect you?" West says some may call him a "career politician" but he's an "experienced politician" and that's what the Democratic Party needs. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia jumps back in, says they're all running for one seat and none of them can do what they all want to do alone. "We need to come up with a system where we can ... change government altogether." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Michael Cooper disagrees with Royce, says the Democratic Party is looking for fresh faces – and that he's the fresh face people are looking for. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Jack Daniel Foster, Jr. says he's a "rural county guy" and that he understands rural counties. Says Democratic Party has mostly urban candidates who don't understand those counties. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Tzintzun Ramirez: "How will you balance conservative Texas values with your progressive views?" She says Texas voters want someone who is honest with them. "With me, you may not agree with every single issue, but you will know where I stand." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Chris Bell says being progressive is fine, but "we need to steep [that] in common sense." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "No Democrat can win by being far left," West says. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Amanda Edwards says she has experience building coalitions across a broad spectrum of people and says that skill is necessary to "deliver real change for all Texans." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hegar says she doesn't think it's about progressive vs. moderate but instead about "bold ideas." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "To defeat John Cornyn, we need to drive up voter turn-out and no one knows how to do that better than me," Tzintzun Ramirez says. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Edwards: "What is one policy issue that you would break away from the Democratic mainstream on in favor of business growth?" She says she advocates for collaboration with the private sector. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West agrees that public-private partnerships are important. "We must bring business to the table, as well as government." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Adrian Ocegueda says regulation is also important, not just funding. "There is a role for government to play." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@mjhegar on Sen. @JohnCornyn: "I would argue that the Texans that I meet across the state don't feel like he's done anything for them."

#VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says Texas needs to get the companies coming to Texas involved, that some of the tax breaks they're getting should be invested back into education. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Edwards says more people are afraid of automation than they are of foreign competition, says Texas needs policies that reflect automation and finding a place for everyone in light of that. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Bell: "If voters are looking for experience, why should they select you over someone like West?" Says that while he has failed campaigns, he's also won. Says he is the only one on stage with congressional experience and that will be "invaluable." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West says he's the person with "real experience" who will get things done in Washington. Bell says he respects that experience but that Texas government is not the U.S. Senate. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Next question, for all candidates: Tell us the quality you have that makes you the most qualified person on stage to take on Sen. Cornyn.

@JohnCornyn Do you want to hear a question on health care, guns, immigration, marijuana or race relations? Vote on KVUE.com or on the KVUE app! #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Cooper: "Explain how your proposal to expand background checks to include high school conduct and suspensions for people under 25, in order to reduce gun violence, is feasible." Cooper says he wants to do all that he can to save lives. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia wants to know "where is the outrage" about gun violence. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Col. Victor Hugo Harris says mental health support from grade school through high school is a better solution to preventing some of these issues related to gun violence. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Sema Hernandez says one of the most basic things we can do to prevent gun violence is register guns. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper: "Anger unmanaged is a very mentally ill situation." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Hernandez: "In a state like Texas that relies so heavily on the oil and gas industry, what sacrifices do you believe people should be prepared to make in their daily lives to address the climate crisis?"

@JohnCornyn @mjhegar When given only one word on why he is the best candidate, @RoyceWestTX chose "experience." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez and Tzintzun Ramirez both say they believe in the "Green New Deal." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West agrees that we need to transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy while balancing that with the Texas economy. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says that nothing upsets him more than that "we have a climate denier as the senator from Texas." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hegar says Texans, especially in the Permian Basin, are used to the boom-and-bust of the oil industry and that we need to let go of old technology. "Go the way of Netflix, not the way of Blockbuster." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez says she is the one best equipped to take on Cornyn and the fossil fuel industry. "I don't just sign pledges. I take action." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Harris: "Name one policy that could be put into place today to make an impact on immigration reform." Says remove the cages and put more judges on the border to process people and bring them into the system sooner so they can start being effective in our economy. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Tzintzun Ramirez says "on this issue, we've let the GOP control the narrative." Says we need to "protect immigrant and American workers and keep families together." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez notes that she is a daughter of immigrants herself. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@cristinafortx says she supports the #GreenNewDeal and Texas should transition away from fossil fuels. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West says he wants to make sure there is a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers and ensure that the privacy rights of people on the border are being acknowledged. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia says her husband is a naturalized citizen. Says if she is elected, she will move to the border the next day. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "I completely disagree with sanctuary cities – we should be a sanctuary country," Harris says. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Garcia: "How would you reclaim 'family values' and national security as a Democrat, if elected?" Says Democrats "need to be the party of moral clarity and political bravery." Says Democrats are more "family values" than the GOP. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says Democrats have lost their "voice of moral authority." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says "if people really look closely, they'll see the Democratic Party is the party of family values." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "Life should not be this hard in the richest country in the history of the world and we are running out of time to right the ship," Garcia said. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn On immigration, Col. Victor Hugo Harris says Texas does not need open or closed borders, but it does need controlled borders. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Ocegueda: "What is one reform to our political system that you believe will transform the system?" #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Tzintzun Ramirez and Harris both say Election Day should be a national federal holiday to increase voter turn-out. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Amanda K. Edwards on the #border: "What's happening at our border is an atrocity."

#VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Ocegueda says local media "tends to cover the horse races," not the issues. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For Foster: "You tout that you're the only candidate with a transformation economic plan but suggest the country should go further into debt to fund it. How is increasing the deficit economically sound?" #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez says there is no debt, that it's a facade. Says "there's plenty of money to go around" to fund Medicare for all. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn The viewer question will be on marijuana. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For all candidates: Do you support full marijuana legalization or any change to current federal law? #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says "follow what California does" to see what the rest of the country will do – including marijuana legalization. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia says the legalization of marijuana will "abate human suffering" in multiple ways. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West agrees with Garcia about marijuana legalization, agrees with Cooper that some of the taxes on marijuana should be invested back into education. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "Marijuana should, in fact, be legalized across this country," West says. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says that America needs to admit it lost the "war on drugs." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Harris also supports the legalization of marijuana, especially medicinal but also recreational. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Ocegueda says marijuana legalization is not a high priority on his agenda. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Foster says, "First of all, you should be high on life," but that he does support marijuana legalization. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hegar rejects Cooper's statement that Texas should follow California but agrees that marijuana should be legalized and says it would be beneficial for veterans. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn @mjhegar @RoyceWestTX On the economic deficit, @_SemaHernandez_ says: "There is no debt. That's the reality, it's a façade." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Tzintzun Ramirez and Edwards both say they also support the legalization of marijuana. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez says she supports the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana. "Let's free the weed." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For all candidates: What is the best pathway to expand access to health care? #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hegar says she wants to see access to Medicare for all Texas families, says access to quality health care is a "human right" but that she also supports a public option. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Tzintzun Ramirez supports Medicare for all, as does Bell. Bell says if people want to hold onto the insurance they have, that's fine but Medicare for all needs to be an option. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says the "attacks against Planned Parenthood" need to be turned back as well. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West says it's important to look at how America is going to afford to pay for expanded health care access. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Like most of his counterparts, @BellForSenate says he believes #marijuana should be legalized in Texas. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia says she wants universal health care that looks like what they have in Spain. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez has worked in the insurance industry, says supporting Medicare for all will affect the maternal mortality rate. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says Medicaid needs to be expanded immediately and then America can work toward Medicare for all. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Harris, a cancer survivor, says he supports universal health care. Says people need to be able to not worry about getting sick and being in the hospital. Says he has a specific plan for how to get there, starting with technology and mobile clinics. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For all the candidates: Do you support Sen. Bernie Sanders’s Medicare-for-all bill as it is currently filed in the U.S. Senate? #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West, Bell, Ocegueda, Hegar, Foster, Edwards and Harris say no. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn For all the candidates: In a gun-friendly state like Texas how will you persuade people to get on board with progressive gun policy ideas? #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says we need a mandatory ban and buy-back program, as well as universal background checks and red flag laws. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West agrees but says we also need to deal with issues concerning mental health. Says the red flag laws are very important and that we need to ban assault weapons. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Michael @Cooper4Texas on healthcare: "We have to fix Medicaid, expand that immediately, then work on Medicare."

#VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia says we've been having the same gun control conversations for decades. Says we can have conversations about guns but don't have to "water down our values." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says we need to deal with mental health issues, first and foremost. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn It is now time for closing statements. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn West says he has the experience and has addressed these issues in the past. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Tzintzun Ramirez says she can drive up voter turn-out and appeal to working moms. "As Texans, we can dream big because we are big." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Ocegueda says candidates need to deal with concrete solutions, not advocacy. Says he can shift the conversation to solutions people can "stick their teeth into." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Hernandez says she never thought she would be running for U.S. Senate twice in her life but that she "knows the systems of oppression must come down" and that she's willing to fight. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn "Pack it up, buttercup," Hegar says to Cornyn. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@BellForSenate says Congress and the NRA are to blame for the lack of action on gun control #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Harris says he has the most qualified resume, the best ideas and the ability to beat John Cornyn. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Garcia says she is running because life is too hard and "we are running out of time." Says Democrats need to be different and inspire people. Says she's not going to tell you how she's different, she's going to show it. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Foster says he wants to "create a new life for everyone." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Edwards says "we need effective servant leaders in office who know who the bosses are – which are the people." Says she can unseat Cornyn because she can call upon broad coalitions. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@mjhegar is very confident she will unseat Sen. @JohnCornyn in the upcoming election. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Cooper says our society should provide a chance, a choice to make a difference and he is the "difference-maker." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Bell says he will be Cornyn and President Trump's "worst nightmare." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Thank you for tuning in! If you missed any part of this debate, it will be available to view in full on our KVUE YouTube channel. #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn Watch the whole thing here:

#VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@JackDanielFost1 on the primary: "We must make a difference in people's lives. We must go all out. We must incentivize tax payers." #VoteTexas

@JohnCornyn .@TxReason at the Democratic U.S. #Senate debate: "I'm waiting to talk about ideas ... when that part of the program starts, let me know. I might just take a nap over here."

#VoteTexas