The 2020 Presidential Candidates: In Their Own Words

The 2020 Presidential Candidates: In Their Own Words

Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

The Democratic and Republican presidential contenders have begun defining their approach to major foreign policy issues as they jockey for position in their parties’ primaries.

Last updated September 10, 2019 8:00 am (EST)

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More than a dozen Democrats have entered the 2020 field to oppose President Donald J. Trump, who will also face at least one Republican primary challenger. Many hopefuls have already taken aim at Trump’s America First approach to international relations, though there are disagreements within the parties over U.S. foreign policy. With party debates set to begin this summer and the first primary contests in early 2020, candidates have begun to hone—or define for the first time—their policy positions on a range of global issues, from climate policy to trade to military intervention.

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This regularly updated guide curates noteworthy statements that the candidates have made, drawing from their speeches, op-eds, interviews, and websites.

Michael Bennet (D)

Michael Bennet
Zach Gibson/Getty Images

Michael Bennet has served as a senator from Colorado since 2009, when he was appointed to fill an empty seat. He was elected to the office in 2010 and again in 2016. He is a member of the Select Committee on Intelligence and was part of the 2013 Gang of Eight, which passed omnibus immigration reform in the Senate. From 2005 to 2009, he served as superintendent of Denver’s public school system. After earning his law degree from Yale in 1993, he clerked for a federal judge and served as a special assistant U.S. attorney before moving to Colorado in 1997 and entering the business world. The son of a diplomat, he was born in New Delhi, India, and grew up in Washington, DC.

Website: https://michaelbennet.com/
Twitter handle: @MichaelBennet
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

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Resources:
Campaign announcement (May 2019)
Trump Has Been Bad for Farmers” (op-ed, March 2019)
On the declaration of a border emergency (speech, March 2019)
On holding China accountable in trade talks (letter, February 2019)
On family separation at the border (speech, June 2018)
On the border wall (interview, January 2018)
On climate policy (op-ed, November 2017)
On U.S. alliances and the Paris climate agreement (speech, June 2017)
On climate change (speech, February 2017)

Joe Biden (D)

Biden E2020 photo
Andreas Gebert/Reuters

Joe Biden was most recently a two-term vice president of the United States, elected in 2008 and 2012 alongside President Barack Obama. As vice president, he played a leading role in managing diplomacy on Afghanistan, Iraq, Ukraine, and other conflict areas. As a senator from Delaware from 1973 to 2009, he was a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and served as the committee chair several times between 2001 and 2009. Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, he earned his law degree from Syracuse University in 1968 and practiced as a public defender and a corporate lawyer before entering politics.

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Website: https://joebiden.com/
Twitter handle: @JoeBiden
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Biden answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On his foreign policy vision (speech, July 2019)
On policy towards Latin America (op-ed, June 2019)
On climate change (policy position)
Campaign announcement (April 2019)
On NATO and U.S. defense (speech, February 2019)
On U.S. leadership in Latin America (op-ed, December 2018)
On foreign money in U.S. elections (op-ed, November 2018)
On Trump’s approach to dictators (interview, October 2018)
On U.S. policy in Central America (op-ed, June 2018)
How to Stand Up to the Kremlin” (Foreign Affairs essay, January 2018)
On foreign election interference and Russia policy (CFR event, January 2018)
On U.S. alliances and global challenges to democracy (speech, November 2017)
Reclaiming America’s Values”(op-ed, September 2017)
On defending the liberal international order (speech, January 2017)
On sustaining U.S. global leadership (speech, June 2016)

Cory Booker (D)

Cory Booker
Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Cory Booker is a senator from New Jersey, a position he has held since he first won the seat in a special election in 2013. He was elected to a full term in 2014, and since 2017 has served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was previously the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, from 2006 to 2013, where he made criminal justice and drug sentencing reform his signature issue. He graduated from Yale Law School in 1997.

Campaign website: https://corybooker.com/
Twitter handle: @CoryBooker
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Booker answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
Campaign announcement (February 2019)
A Syria Plan That Breaks the Law” (op-ed, January 2019)
On U.S-Saudi relations and Yemen (campaign event, October 2018)
On border policy and family separations (interview, June 2018)
Foreign Policy and National Security” (Senate policy page)

Steve Bullock (D)

Steve Bullock
Charlie Neibergall/AP

Steve Bullock has since 2013 been the governor of Montana, where a major focus of his tenure has been limiting corporate money in politics. From 2009 to 2013 he served as Montana’s attorney general, and from 2004 to 2008 he ran a private legal practice in Montana. He previously worked as a lawyer in a number of different areas, including a stint at an international law firm in Washington, DC, between 2001 and 2004, and in the office of the Montana attorney general from 1996 to 2001. Born and raised in Montana, he earned his law degree from Columbia University in 1994.

Website: https://stevebullock.com/
Twitter handle: @GovernorBullock
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Bullock answers CFR’s questions (August 2019)
Campaign announcement (May 2019)
On China, trade, Iran, and U.S. alliances (interview, May 2019)
On banning foreign spending in elections (blog post, March 2018)
On trade and tariffs (interview, March 2018)
On Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) [PDF] (letter, September 2017)
On the Paris climate agreement (statement, June 2017)

Pete Buttigieg (D)

Pete Buttigieg
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Born in 1982, Pete Buttigieg is the youngest candidate in the field. He has been mayor of South Bend, Indiana, since 2012, signing on with a group of cities committed to upholding the Paris climate accords after Trump withdrew from the pact. A Harvard graduate and Rhodes scholar, he has been an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve since 2009 and deployed to Afghanistan in 2014.

Website: https://www.peteforamerica.com/
Twitter handle: @PeteButtigieg
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Buttigieg answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On national security (speech, June 2019)
On antitrust policy (podcast, March 2019)
On tech firms and his overseas experience (interview, February 2019)
On tax reform and border policy (interview, February 2019)
On Syria, Afghanistan, and foreign intervention  (press conference, January 2019)
Campaign announcement (January 2019)

Julian Castro (D)

Julian Castro
Ronan Tivony/Sipa USA

Julian Castro, who served as the secretary of housing and urban development from 2014 to 2017, was the youngest member of President Barack Obama’s cabinet. He was mayor of San Antonio, Texas, from 2009 to 2014, where he won support for universal pre-K education. He practiced corporate law after graduating from Harvard Law School in 2000 and started his own law firm in 2005. He was born and raised in San Antonio.

Website: https://www.julianforthefuture.com/
Twitter handle: @JulianCastro
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
On the U.S.-Mexico border (blog post, February 2019)
On immigration, NAFTA, and trade (interview, February 2019)
On American leadership, diplomacy, and alliances (interview, January 2019)
On asylum policy and family separation (interview, January 2019)
Campaign announcement (January 2019)
On military withdrawal from Syria (interview, December 2018)
On the immigration debate (interview, October 2018)

Bill de Blasio (D)—Withdrawn

Bill de Blasio
Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Bill de Blasio is serving his second term as mayor of New York City, elected first in 2013 and again in 2017. His tenure has focused on passing universal preschool, improving traffic safety, and addressing the city’s homelessness crisis. He was the city’s public advocate from 2010 to 2013, and he served on the city council between 2002 and 2009. His previous political experience includes managing U.S. Representative Charles Rangel’s 1994 reelection bid, serving as a regional director of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and running Hillary Clinton’s 2000 Senate campaign. Born in New York City, he received a master’s degree in international affairs from Columbia University in 1987.

Website: https://billdeblasio.com/
Twitter handle: @BilldeBlasio
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Campaign announcement (May 2019)
On the Green New Deal (speech, May 2019)
On cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (interview, May 2019)
On climate-proofing New York City (op-ed, March 2019)
On Amazon and economic concentration (op-ed, February 2019)
On immigrant detention centers (speech, June 2018)
On honoring the Paris climate agreement (statement, June 2017)

John Delaney (D)

John Delaney
William Moree

John Delaney was most recently a three-term congressman from Maryland, first elected in 2012. He chose not to run for a fourth term in 2018 to focus on his presidential campaign, in which he has focused on adapting the U.S. economy to automation and globalization. A 1988 graduate of Georgetown Law, he went on to found and run two publicly traded companies. He was born in Wood-Ridge, New Jersey.

Website: https://www.johndelaney.com/
Twitter handle: @JohnDelaney
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
A CFR conversation with John Delaney (September 2019)
Delaney answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On trade, the Middle East, and Russia (interview, June 2019)
Climate change plan (policy position)
Immigration plan (policy position)
National service plan (policy position)
On the future of U.S. foreign policy (speech, May 2019)
On trade, tax reform, and debt (interview, March 2019)
On China and trade policy (interview, August 2018)
On a national artificial intelligence strategy (op-ed, May 2018)
On automation, jobs, and infrastructure (op-ed, July 2017)
Campaign announcement (July 2017)

Tulsi Gabbard (D)

Tulsi Gabbard
Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Tulsi Gabbard is a four-term member of the House of Representatives from Hawaii. First elected in 2012, she serves on the Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees. As a congresswoman she has championed legislation to rapidly reduce U.S. fossil fuel dependency and opposed foreign interventions from Syria to Venezuela. A major in the Hawaii National Guard, she deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005. She was born in American Samoa and raised in Hawaii.

Website: https://www.tulsi2020.com/
Twitter handle: @TulsiGabbard
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
On Yemen and Saudi Arabia (House floor speech, March 2019)
On climate, drug policy, defense spending, war powers (speech, March 2019)
On foreign interventionism, Syria, and Venezuela (interview, February 2019)
Campaign announcement (February 2019)
On the use of military force (Interview, September 2018)
On the Iran nuclear agreement (op-ed, October 2017)

Kirsten Gillibrand (D)—Withdrawn

Kirsten Gillibrand
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call

Kirsten Gillibrand has been a senator from New York since 2009, when she was appointed to fill an empty seat. Elected to the office in a 2010 special election and then reelected in 2012 and 2018, she has focused on universal paid family leave, support for victims of sexual assault, and measures to combat racial and gender inequality. She serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee. Born in Albany, New York, she received her law degree from University of California, Los Angeles, and began her career as a corporate attorney.

Website: https://kirstengillibrand.com/
Twitter handle: @SenGillibrand
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Gillibrand answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On American foreign policy (speech, July 2019)
Keeping America Safe” (policy position)
On border security and asylum policy (town hall, March 2019)
On jobs, tariffs, and trade (town hall, March 2019)
On climate change and the Green New Deal (interview, February 2019)
On immigration and North Korea (interview, January 2019)
On carbon taxes, immigration, and military readiness (interview, January 2019)
Campaign announcement (January 2019)
On immigration enforcement (interview, June 2018)

Mike Gravel (D)—Withdrawn

Mike Gravel E2020
Allstar Picture Library/Alamy Stock Photo

Mike Gravel, a senator from Alaska from 1969 to 1981, is best known for his opposition to the Vietnam War and his role in publicizing the Pentagon Papers. He ran for president unsuccessfully as a Democrat in 2008 on an anti-war and civil libertarian platform, and has said his 2020 run is a bid to push the party to the left. Born and raised in Massachusetts, he served in the U.S. Army for three years. After graduating from Columbia University in 1956, he moved to Alaska, beginning a career in real estate development that he continued, among other business ventures, after leaving the Senate.

Website: https://www.mikegravel.org
Twitter handle: @MikeGravel

Resources:
Campaign announcement (April 2019)
On re-engaging with multilateral institutions (policy position)
On joining the international rules-based order (policy position)
On policy toward the Korean Peninsula (policy position)
On immigration, border security, and refugees (policy position)
On military intervention (policy position)
On the Green New Deal (policy position)

Kamala Harris (D)

Kamala Harris
Noah Berger/AFP

Kamala Harris, a first-term senator from California, was elected in 2016 and serves on the Homeland Security Committee and the Select Committee on Intelligence. A longtime prosecutor, she has said her experience as district attorney of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011 and then California’s attorney general from 2011 to 2017 positions her to be a champion of criminal justice reform. A native of Oakland, she received her law degree from the University of California, Hastings, in 1989.

Website: https://kamalaharris.org/
Twitter handle: @KamalaHarris
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Harris answers CFR’s questions (August 2019)
On immigration and refugee policy (interview, March 2019)
On the Green New Deal (blog post, February 2019)
On withdrawal from Afghanistan (interview, January 2019)
Campaign announcement (January 2019)
On the Paris climate agreement (blog post, June 2017)

John Hickenlooper (D)—Withdrawn

John Hickenlooper
Michael Brochstrein/Sipa USA

John Hickenlooper was most recently a two-term governor of Colorado, elected in 2010 and 2014. A self-proclaimed extreme moderate, he supports free trade and a strong North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and implemented the country’s first regulations on methane emissions. He was mayor of Denver from 2003 to 2011. Trained as a geologist, he became an entrepreneur in 1988, when he opened his own restaurant. He was born and raised in the town of Narberth, Pennsylvania.

Website: http://hickenlooper.com/
Twitter handle: @Hickenlooper
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
On national security (speech, May 2019)
On jobs and automation (op-ed, March 2019)
On tech and jobs (interview, March 2019)
On growth and innovation (blog post, March 2019)
Campaign announcement (March 2019)
On trade and immigration (interview, June 2018)

Jay Inslee (D)—Withdrawn

Jay Inslee
Mary Schwalm/AP

Jay Inslee, who is serving his second term as governor of Washington State, was first elected in 2012 and reelected in 2016. He has made combating climate change the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, and as governor he pushed unsuccessfully for a state carbon tax. He previously served two stints in the House of Representatives, first from 1993 to 1995 and again from 1999 to 2012. Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, he received his law degree from Willamette University in 1976 and was a prosecutor before entering politics.

Website: https://jayinslee.com/
Twitter handle: @JayInslee
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
The U.S. Role in Global Climate Action” (CFR Event, June 2019)
America’s Climate Mission” (policy position)
On why climate should be America’s priority (interview, March 2019)
On the border wall and executive power (interview, March 2019)
Campaign announcement (speech, March 2019)
On clean energy (op-ed, January 2019)
On Trump’s trade war (op-ed, July 2018)
On the Paris climate agreement (op-ed, June 2018)
On refugees and asylum seekers [PDF] (letter, April 2018)

Amy Klobuchar (D)

Amy Klobuchar
Glen Stubbe

Amy Klobuchar is serving her third term as a senator from Minnesota, having been elected in 2006, 2012, and 2018. She has been a leading proponent of more vigorous oversight of technology firms. Previously a criminal prosecutor, she served as the lead attorney for Hennepin County, Minnesota’s most populous, from 1998 to 2006. Born in Plymouth, Minnesota, she earned her law degree from the University of Chicago in 1985.

Website: https://www.amyklobuchar.com/
Twitter handle: @amyklobuchar
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
On climate, border policy, and cybersecurity (policy positions, June 2019)
On energy, climate, and the environment (Senate position page)
On national security (Senate position page)
On veterans (Senate position page)
On the Green New Deal (interview, February 2019)
Campaign announcement (speech, February 2019)
On tech oversight, privacy, and antitrust (speech, March 2017)

Wayne Messam (D)

Wayne Messam
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Wayne Messam is serving his second term as mayor of Miramar, Florida, a position he has held since 2015. His tenure has focused on promoting gun control, passing a living-wage law, opposing oil drilling in the nearby Everglades, and criticizing aspects of federal immigration enforcement. A central pledge of his presidential campaign is to cancel the more than $1.5 trillion in U.S. student debt. He was elected Miramar’s city commissioner in 2011 and before that ran his own construction business. The son of Jamaican immigrants, he earned a bachelor's degree from Florida State University in 1997.

Website: https://wayneforusa.com/
Twitter handle: @WayneMessam

Resources:
On the Green New Deal and environmental regulation (interview, April 2019)
Campaign announcement (March 2019)
On deportation policy (op-ed, March 2019)
On immigration (policy position)
On climate change (policy position)
On foreign policy (policy position)

Seth Moulton (D)—Withdrawn

Seth Moulton
Cheryl Senter/AP

Seth Moulton has served as a congressman from Massachusetts since he was first elected in 2014. A veteran and a member of the Armed Services Committee, he served four tours in Iraq as a Marine Corps officer between 2003 and 2008 and hopes to campaign on his qualifications to be commander in chief. Born and raised in Salem, Massachusetts, he earned a bachelor’s degree in physics in 2001 and dual master’s degrees in business and public policy in 2011, all from Harvard University.

Website: https://sethmoulton.com/
Twitter handle: @sethmoulton

Resources:
Moulton answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
Campaign announcement (April 2019)
On restoring the United States’ strength (interview, April 2019)
On veterans and green jobs (interview, April 2019)
On terrorism and homeland security (interview, April 2019)
On the Green New Deal (op-ed, March 2019)
On the future of U.S. naval power (speech, February 2019)
On arms control and national security [PDF] (speech, February 2019)
On Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan policy (interview, April 2017)
On the United States’ role in the world (speech, February 2016)

Beto O’Rourke (D)—Withdrawn

Beto O'Rourke
Lucas Jackson/Reuters

Beto O’Rourke was as a member of the House of Representatives from Texas from 2012 to 2018. Representing a border district, he has been an outspoken supporter of legal status for undocumented immigrants and opponent of Trump’s proposed border wall expansions. In the 2018 midterm election, he unsuccessfully challenged Ted Cruz for his Senate seat. From 2005 to 2011, O’Rourke served on the city council in El Paso, where he was born and raised.

Website: https://betoorourke.com/
Twitter handle: @BetoORourke
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
O’Rourke answers CFR’s questions (August 2019)
On taking on climate change (policy position)
On the Green New Deal (campaign event, March 2019)
Campaign announcement (March 2019)
On the border wall and presidential authority (interview, February 2019)
On asylum policy (blog post, November 2018)
On the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (town hall, June 2018)
The Border Makes America Great” (TEDx Talk, October 2016)

Tim Ryan (D)—Withdrawn

Tim Ryan
Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call

Tim Ryan is an eight-term congressman from Ohio. First elected in 2002, he unsuccessfully challenged Nancy Pelosi for the House Democratic leadership in 2016. His campaign message centers on appealing to a midwestern working class wracked by manufacturing decline, which he says calls for investment in new technologies. He earned his law degree from the University of New Hampshire in 2000, before which he worked as a congressional aide. He was born in Niles, Ohio.

Website: https://timryanforamerica.com/
Twitter handle: @TimRyan
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Ryan answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
Campaign announcement (April 2019)
On trade, tariffs, and border security (interview, April 2019)
On clean energy jobs and China (interview, April 2019)
On immigration and climate policy (interview, February 2019)

Bernie Sanders (D)

Bernie Sanders
Ronan Tivony/Sipa USA

Bernie Sanders, an independent who ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, has been a senator from Vermont since 2007. Reelected in 2012 and 2018, he has been an unstinting critic of economic inequality and military intervention in Yemen and elsewhere. He served in the House of Representatives from 1990 to 2006 and was previously the mayor of Burlington, Vermont. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, he graduated from the University of Chicago in 1964.

Website: https://berniesanders.com/
Twitter handle: @BernieSanders
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Sanders answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On voting to end the war in Yemen (speech, March 2019)
Campaign announcement (February 2019)
We Must Stop Helping Saudi Arabia in Yemen” (op-ed, October 2018)
On breaking up too-big-to-fail banks (interview, October 2018)
On building a global democratic movement (speech, October 2018)
On the new global authoritarian axis (op-ed, September 2018)
On the Iran nuclear agreement (town hall, May 2018)
On Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Senate floor speech, February 2018)
On his foreign policy vision (speech, September 2017)

Mark Sanford (R)—Withdrawn

Mark Sanford
NBC NewsWire

Mark Sanford served two stints as a member of Congress from South Carolina, from 1995 to 2001 and from 2013 to 2018. He also served as the state’s governor from 2003 until 2011. In the House of Representatives he served on the budget and homeland security committees, and both as a legislator and presidential candidate he has focused on the need to rein in government spending. Sanford earned a bachelor’s degree in business from Furman University in 1983 and a master’s of business administration from the University of Virginia in 1988. He was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 

Website: https://www.marksanford.com/
Twitter handle: @MarkSanford

Resources:
On U.S. debt and deficits (policy position)
On the environment and oil drilling (op-ed, November 2018)
On trade, tariffs, and jobs (op-ed, June 2018)
On non-interventionism in foreign policy (speech, April 2018)
On steel and aluminum tariffs (interview, March 2018)

Joe Sestak (D)

Joe Sestak
Matt Rourke/AP

Joe Sestak served as a member of Congress from Pennsylvania from 2007 to 2011. He ran for the U.S. Senate in 2010, defeating the incumbent, Arlen Specter, in the Democratic primary but losing the general election. He served in the Navy from 1974 to 2005, achieving the rank of vice admiral and joining the National Security Council staff as director for defense policy under President Bill Clinton. In his 2020 campaign, Sestak stresses his national security background and his dedication to health-care reform. Born and raised in Pennsylvania, he holds degrees from the U.S. Naval Academy and Harvard University.    

Website: https://www.JoeSestak.com/
Twitter handle: @JoeSestak

Resources:
Sestak answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On escalating tensions with Iran (op-ed, July 2019)
Campaign announcement (June 2019)
On defense and foreign policy (policy position, June 2019)
On climate change (policy position, June 2019)
On veterans (policy position, June 2019)
On immigration (policy position, June 2019)
On jobs and trade (policy position, June 2019)
On tax and antitrust policy (policy position, June 2019)

Tom Steyer (D)

Tom Steyer, Democratic presidential candidate
Joshua Roberts/Reuters

Tom Steyer is a billionaire investor, political fundraiser, environmental activist, and philanthropist. In 2013 he founded NextGen America, a super PAC that supports candidates who pledge to take action against climate change. In 2010 he campaigned with former Republican Secretary of State George Shultz against a California ballot measure that would have overturned many of the state’s clean energy laws. He began his career in private equity and in 1986 founded his own investment firm. Born in Manhattan, Steyer holds a bachelor’s degree from Yale and a master’s degree in business administration from Stanford. He lives in Northern California.

Website: https://www.tomsteyer.com/
Twitter handle: @TomSteyer
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Campaign announcement (July 2019)
On tariffs and China’s trade practices (interview, April 2018)
On the Paris climate agreement (blog post, September 2016)
On climate change and fossil fuel investments (op-ed, July 2014)

Eric Swalwell (D)—Withdrawn

Eric Swalwell
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Eric Swalwell has served as a congressman from northern California since 2012. Previously, he sat on the Dublin, California, city council from 2010 to 2012 and was a prosecutor in the Alameda County district attorney’s office from 2006 to 2010. A member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, he has focused on foreign interference in the 2016 presidential election and promised further investigations of the Trump White House, in addition to championing stricter nationwide gun control. Born in Iowa and raised in California, he received his law degree from the University of Maryland in 2006.

Website: https://ericswalwell.com/
Twitter handle: @ericswalwell

Resources:
Campaign announcement (April 2019)
On Saudi Arabia (interview, October 2018)
On Russian election interference (op-ed, September 2018)
On preventing foreign influence in the White House (op-ed, July 2018)
On foreign affairs and defense (policy position)

Donald J. Trump (R)

Trump E2020
Carlos Barria/Reuters

President Donald J. Trump filed to run for reelection on the day of his inauguration in January 2017. Born and raised in Queens, New York, he was appointed president of his family’s real estate business in 1971. He ran the company, renamed the Trump Organization, for more than four decades, and hosted the reality television show The Apprentice from 2003 to 2015. He held no public office before his election.

Website: https://www.donaldjtrump.com/
Twitter handle: @realDonaldTrump

Resources:
Trump’s Foreign Policy Moments” (CFR timeline)
National security strategy (White House)
On foreign policy (campaign page)
On national security and defense (campaign page)
On immigration (campaign page)
On energy and the environment (campaign page)
On veterans policy (campaign page)

Joe Walsh (R)

Joe Walsh
Tom Williams/Roll Call

Joe Walsh is a conservative talk radio host who served one term as a member of Congress from Illinois, from 2011 to 2013. He has been outspoken in calling for reducing government debt, cutting taxes, and stricter border security. He previously ran for Congress unsuccessfully in 1996 and 1998 and has worked in a range of positions, including as a teacher and social worker, a fundraiser for school choice campaigns, a libertarian policy analyst, and investment banker. Born and raised near Chicago, he earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa in 1985 and a master’s in public policy at the University of Chicago in 1991. 

Website: https://www.joewalsh.org/
Twitter handle: @WalshFreedom

Resources:
Campaign announcement (August 2019)
On debt, trade, and immigration (op-ed, August 2019)
On immigration and climate change (interview, August 2019)

Elizabeth Warren (D)

Elizabeth Warren
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Elizabeth Warren is serving her second term as senator from Massachusetts, to which she was first elected in 2012 and reelected in 2018. A former Harvard Law School professor specializing in bankruptcy and consumer protection, she previously served as an advisor on financial regulation in the administration of President Barack Obama and in 2009 as chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel, which oversaw the federal bailout program. She was born and raised in Oklahoma.

Campaign website: https://elizabethwarren.com/
Twitter handle: @ewarren
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
My Green Manufacturing Plan for America” (blog post, June 2019)
On globalization and foreign investment in agriculture (blog post, March 2019)
On breaking up “Big Tech” (blog post, March 2019)
On antitrust and financial regulation (interview, March 2019)
On trade, China, and climate change (interview, March 2019)
On Syria and military intervention (interview, January 2019)
Wealth tax proposal (policy paper, January 2019)
On her foreign policy vision  (speech, November 2018)
A Foreign Policy For All” (Foreign Affairs essay, November 2018)
End U.S. Complicity in Yemen’s Humanitarian Disaster” (op-ed, October 2018)
On border policy (blog post, July 2018)
On U.S. policy in Asia (op-ed, March 2018)

Bill Weld (R)

Bill Weld
Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe via Getty Images

Bill Weld is a lawyer and politician who last served in public office as the governor of Massachusetts from 1991 to 1997. He ran for vice president on the 2016 Libertarian Party ticket, and he is focused on reducing taxes and government debt, supporting free trade and stronger U.S. leadership abroad, and legalizing drugs. He was U.S. attorney for Massachusetts from 1981 to 1986 and an assistant attorney general from 1986 to 1988. Originally from Long Island, New York, he attended Oxford University and received his law degree from Harvard in 1970.

Website: https://www.weld2020.org/
Twitter handle: @GovBillWeld

Resources:
Weld answers CFR’s questions (October 2019)
On America’s role in the world (speech, April 2019)
On NATO, tax cuts, and foreign interventions (interview, March 2019)
On alliances, climate policy, and immigration (interview, March 2019)
On debt, jobs, automation, and globalization (interview, February 2019)
Campaign announcement (February 2019)

Marianne Williamson (D)

Marianne Williamson
Amy Harris/Invision/AP

Marianne Williamson is an activist and entrepreneur whose writing and public speaking has focused on self-help, spiritual development, and relief for those with HIV/AIDS and other illnesses. She is running to spark a “moral and spiritual awakening” and criticizes an approach to foreign policy that relies on military force. In 2014 she ran unsuccessfully as an independent for a House of Representatives seat from California. She is from Houston.

Website: https://www.marianne2020.com/
Twitter handle: @marwilliamson
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Williamson answers CFR’s questions (July 2019)
On her foreign policy plan (policy position)
On defense spending, the national debt, and border policy (town hall, March 2019)
On climate and energy (policy position)
On immigration (policy position)
On national security (policy position)
On veterans (policy position)
On economic policy and financial regulation (policy position)
Campaign announcement (January 2019)

Andrew Yang (D)

Andrew Yang
Scott Morgan/Reuters

Andrew Yang is a businessman who has launched health-care and test preparation start-ups. The centerpiece of his campaign is a proposal for a $1,000 per month universal basic income, which he says will help the millions of Americans he expects will lose their jobs as a result of automation. In 2011 he founded Venture for America, a nonprofit organization that supports entrepreneurship. Born and raised in Schenectady, New York, he graduated from Columbia Law School in 1999 and briefly practiced as a corporate attorney.

Website: https://www.yang2020.com/
Twitter handle: @AndrewYang
CFR’s James M. Lindsay profiles the candidate

Resources:
Yang answers CFR’s questions (August 2019)
Foreign Policy First Principles” (policy position)
On climate change (policy position)
On border security (policy position)
Modernize Military Spending” (policy position)
Economic Crime” (policy position)
Campaign announcement (February 2018)
On automation and the future of work (podcast, February 2019)
On automation and artificial intelligence (podcast, January 2019)

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