DES MOINES – Democratic National Committee Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued the following statement on the DNC/Iowa Democratic Party/CBS/KCCI/Des Moines Register Debate held at Drake University tonight:
 
“Democrats, like people the world over, woke up today with a heavy heart but proud to stand with the people of Paris and our allies across the globe in the wake of the horrific violence they experienced last night. Tonight, the American people tuned in to hear directly from three extremely qualified candidates running to be their Commander-in-Chief and build on President Obama’s legacy of bringing terrorists to justice and keeping American civilians safe.
 
“What they heard was a spirited debate, one that showed that our Democratic candidates have a firm grasp on America’s foreign policy challenges, while respecting voters and keeping the discussion at a serious and substantive level. Our candidates also showed that they are the only ones running for president who understand the importance of investing in the middle class and strengthening the economy to keep America moving forward.
 
“Our candidates are the only ones committed to making college affordable, to raising the federal minimum wage, to protecting our seniors, to fixing the broken immigration system, and to addressing climate change.
 
“Tonight provided a stark contrast from what we saw all week from the Republican field, with an embarrassing debate at which they characterized issues like raising the federal minimum wage as a ‘disaster’ and proved they are out of touch, stuck on the failed policies of the past and mired in extremism. On the economy, this week, Republican candidates offered their worn out proposals  to continue pursuing tax cuts for the wealthy, fixating on taking us back to the same kind of policies that were in place when our economy was losing 800,000 jobs a month as the last Republican president left office. And when it comes to national security and tackling terrorism, all Republicans could offer was more of the same reckless foreign policy in the vein of Dick Cheney and George W. Bush. The American people can’t afford to go backwards.
 
“I congratulate all of our candidates tonight on a debate that made me even more proud than ever to be a Democrat. Our 45th president was on stage tonight in Des Moines.”