DNC chairman: ‘There will be nobody talking about hand size’ at debates

MIAMI — Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez said Wednesday he’s not worried that the debate between the 2020 contenders will get nasty.

“We’re going to talk about the issues,” Perez told reporters just hours before the first of this week’s two debates was set to kick off. “There will be nobody talking about hand size. There will be nobody talking about silly nicknames for their opponents. We’ll leave that to the Republicans.”

{mosads}During a 2016 Republican primary debate, President Trump mocked Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), saying “Little Marco” has small hands. 

The 2016 Republican debates were also marked by frequent tussles between Trump and the rest of the GOP contenders.

Perez said he believes the 2020 Democrats are largely on the same page but will litigate their differences over policy proposals without getting personal or nasty.

“I think people want to know, what do you stand for, what are you going to fight for, and will you fight for the issues that matter to me, and can you defeat Donald Trump?” Perez said.

“Those are the basic issues that voters are going to analyze, that alignment of values and how they square up,” he added. “People will look for their values and look for evidence of who can take the fight to Donald Trump.”

Ten Democrats will debate Wednesday night, led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.).

The debate Thursday night will feature more top contenders, with former Vice President Joe Biden, Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Kamala Harris (Calif.), and South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg all sharing the stage.

The debate stage was set at random, and Perez pushed back on the idea that one night has more star wattage than the other.

“Not in the least,” Perez said, saying Democrats have “a great field of candidates.”

“We have a deep bench of candidates, and this is the sixth mile of the marathon, and who is going to win the marathon? I have no idea,” he said. “I do know that we have a deep bench of candidates and what we’ll see tonight, tomorrow and next month is the opportunity for everybody around the country to see this deep bench and kick the tires and make the judgment for who they want to support.”