Article snippet: As the first presidential primary debate of the season got underway Wednesday night, 10 candidates crowded the stage to jostle for a chance to distinguish themselves before a national audience of potential voters. Though the total speaking time for any one candidate barely cracked 10 minutes, there were still some compelling moments during the two-hour forum hosted by NBC. A historic number of candidates for president in this Democratic field are bilingual, and several took advantage of the nationwide television audience to highlight their language skills. “The situation now is unacceptable. The president has attacked, has demonized immigrants. It is unacceptable, and I will change that,” Senator Cory Booker said in Spanish before switching to English as he responded to a question about how he’d address the immigration crisis on day one. Former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke also responded in Spanish to a question asked in Spanish during a discussion on immigration. “We need to include every person in the success of this economy,” O’Rourke said in Spanish. O’Rourke has made a point of speaking Spanish on the campaign trail, and released a Spanish-language ad during his unsuccessful campaign to unseat Senator Ted Cruz. Former HUD secretary Julian Castro used his closing remarks to make his case directly to Spanish speakers, starting out declaring in Spanish, “My name is Julian Castro, and I’m running for president of the Untied States.” “The very fact that I can... Link to the full article to read more