The first Democratic debate, night 2

NBC's Chuck Todd asked the candidates what would be the first issue they'd tackle if elected president.

Here's what they said:

In arguing for a candidate from a new generation to be the Democratic nominee, California Rep. Eric Swalwell quoted Joe Biden in 1987 at the California Democratic convention. 

Facts First: Biden did say this February 3, 1987, at the California Democratic convention and it was a part of his stump speech during his 1988 presidential campaign and in appearances during the previous year. He was quoting John F. Kennedy and talking about how it made him feel at the time. 

“Remember how you felt when you heard let the word go forth, from this time and place, that the torch has been passed. Passed to a new generation of Americans,” Biden said, quoting President John F. Kennedy’s first inaugural address.

Later, Biden concluded by saying, “it's time to be on the march again. It's time to get America moving again and as the man who will speak to you later today will tell you quite simply, our time has come.” 

Watch that speech here.

Former Vice President Joe Biden quickly responded to Sen. Kamala Harris' callout regarding his comments on working with segregationist senators, saying he's been mischaracterized.

"It's a mischaracterization of my position across the board. I do not praise racists. That is not true," Biden said.

He went on to say that he's worked as a public defender "when, in fact, my city was in flame because of the assassination of Dr. King," and with President Obama, "who in fact we worked very hard to see to it we dealt with the issues in a major, major way."

Biden continued: "The bottom line here is, look. Everything I have done in my career, I ran because of civil rights and continue to think we have to make fundamental changes and those civil rights, by the way, include not just African-Americans, but the LGBT community."

Harris pressed Biden on where he stood on key issues when he was US senator, specifically if he opposed bussing at the time.

"I did not oppose bussing in America. What I opposed is bussing ordered by the Department of Education." Biden told Harris.

Joe Biden said: "[Undocumented immigrants] in fact contribute to the well-being of the country but they also for example increase the lifespan of social security. Because they have a job, they’re paying a social security tax. That's what they're doing. It’s increased the lifespan." 

Facts First: This is true.   

Undocumented immigrants often pay into the Social Security system through payroll taxes, but typically do not receive benefits. According to a 2013 report by the Office of the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, in 2010, undocumented immigrants paid about $12 billion more into the system than they received.  

That could extend the period of solvency for the Social Security trust funds, which are currently projected to be depleted in 2035.

It’s rare for Joe Biden to stop talking, but twice tonight on the debate stage he uttered words seldom – if ever – heard from his mouth: “My time is up, I’m sorry.”

The former vice president often seemed eager for the conversation to move on without him. In the second hour of the debate, when he was at the center of a series of fiery exchanges aimed at his long record, Biden twice came to a stop -- without being silenced by moderators.

Biden has more debate experience under his belt than any other presidential candidate, so perhaps he knew when it was time to stop. He was struggling to make his points in a crisp manner, and Sen. Kamala Harris scored far more points on their fiery and memorable exchange on race.

It’s been seven years since Biden’s been on the debate stage. The crowded and chaotic setting was nothing like the genteel affair with Paul Ryan during the 2012 vice presidential debate.

Perhaps Biden was just rusty, like when he suggested Democrats won the Senate last fall, when he surely meant the House. Or perhaps he has lost his step. Only future debates – and campaign stops – will show whether he is a strong front-runner or merely a placeholder. 

But tonight, the former vice president surrendering his microphone – without being asked by the moderators – was remarkable for a man known for a half-century of stem-winders.

Andrew Yang claimed that Amazon pays “literally zero in taxes.” "Oh, so, it's difficult to do if you have companies like Amazon, trillion-dollar tech companies paying literally zero in taxes while they're closing 30% of our stores." 

Facts First: When it comes to taxes the picture is more complicated than Yang claims. Amazon pays state taxes and has also paid federal taxes in the past. 

The Wall Street Journal reported recently that Amazon’s overall tax rate from 2012 through 2018 was 8%.  

“From 2012 through 2018, Amazon reported $25.4 billion in pretax US income and current federal tax provisions totaling $1.9 billion,” the Journal reported.

“That is an 8% tax rate — low, but not zero or negative. Looking back further, since 2002, Amazon has earned $27.7 billion in global pretax profits and paid $3.6 billion in global cash income taxes, a 13% tax rate.”

Amazon’s SEC filings in 2017 showed it did not expect to owe any federal tax, and in fact expected to get a $137 million refund from the federal government.

It did, however, say it expected to pay $211 million to states. 

More recently, in February, an analysis of Amazon corporate filings by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that the company got a rebate of $129 million for tax year 2018.

Analysts say Amazon was able to whittle down its tax liability by taking advantage of tax credits and deductions.

California Sen. Kamala Harris claimed that the tax bill signed by President Donald Trump benefits major corporations and will contribute at least $1 trillion to the US debt. 

Facts First: This is true. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the 2017 Republican tax act would add some $1.9 trillion to the federal deficit over the next decade. 

CNN has previously reported that the Republican tax reform bill passed in 2017 included tax cuts for corporations as well as individuals -- but while the benefits for business were permanent, the individual taxpayer cuts will expire by 2027. If Congress does nothing to extend them, the top 1% will at that point receive roughly 83% of the tax cut benefits, according to estimates from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. 

Last year, the Congressional Budget Office projected that the Republican tax bill would add $1.9. trillion over the course of 10 years.

Sen. Kamala Harris confronted former Vice President Joe Biden on his recent remarks, in which he recalled working with two segregationist senators.

He used the senators as examples of colleagues he could work with during an era where "at least there was some civility" in the Senate.

Here's what Harris had to say about Biden's remarks:

She went on to talk about her experience as young girl.

"It was not only that, but you also worked with them to oppose there was a little girl in California who was part of the second class to integrate her public schools and she was bussed to school every day. That little girl was me. So I will tell you that on this subject, it cannot be an intellectual debate among Democrats. We have to take it seriously. We have to act swiftly," Harris said.

Harris raised the issue while talking about race and recalling her own childhood.

"There is not a black man I know, be he a relative, a friend or a coworker who has not been the subject of profiling or discrimination. My sister and I had to deal with the neighbor who told us her parents couldn't play with us because we were black," she said.

Her account tweeted this moments ago: