Article snippet: It was the debate that almost didn’t happen, the debate that almost didn’t have a single person of color on the stage, the debate that could have been overshadowed by the impeachment of the president of the United States just a day earlier. But in the end, the debate did happen. Andrew Yang, the son of Taiwanese immigrants, made the stage with six others, and it was a lively, feisty 2 1/2-hour forum — perhaps the most consequential 2020 debate yet. Sponsored by PBS and Politico in Los Angeles, it took place at a moment when the presidential race has never been so unsettled. In the early states there is a new frontrunner, South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Nationally, former vice president Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders regained their top spots from a slipping Senator Elizabeth Warren, who led everywhere in October. Meanwhile, former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is polling fifth, wasn’t on the debate stage because he is self funding his campaign, so he didn’t meet donor thresholds set by the DNC for a spot on the stage. (As it turned out, he wouldn’t have met the polling standard either by last week’s deadline.) And the debate took place as the Democratic-controlled House and Republican-controlled Senate are wrangling over when President Trump’s impeachment trial will take place — drama that could upend candidates’ schedules ahead of the Feb. 3 Iowa caucuses. These grades are based on how each candidate did, including the substance and re... Link to the full article to read more