Ten Candidates Qualify for September Debates; Delaney Already Eyeing Fourth Round of Debates
KING: And then there were 10. Julian Castro now qualified for the September Democratic debates. The former housing secretary will join these candidates on stage, that's in Houston for the next round. They have also met both the polling and the donor qualifications. The battle for remaining spots is on particularly for these four candidates who are close, Tulsi Gabbard, Jay Inslee, Tom Steyer, and Marianne Williamson. They have met the fundraising requirement but not the polling threshold and the clock is ticking. Additional candidates have only eight days left to qualify. And that's the issue. If you had met the polling and you are just trying to get donors, maybe you can scramble if you're close to get more donors in eight days. You're reluctant, now you're dependent on me or on organizations, are there going to be enough polls. Will there be polls in Iowa and New Hampshire nationally where you might sneak in? So do we think 10 or do we think it's still possible?</s>OLORUNNIPA: It doesn't look very positive for a lot of these candidates, but they do have a chance because these media organizations are putting out polls almost on a daily basis. So if there is any sign that they're surging or that they can get to that threshold, there will be a couple more opportunities between now and eight days from now. But there is also the October debates and a number of these candidates are thinking about maybe if they don't make September, they can still make it to the stage in October and that would not be the end of their candidacy.</s>KING: John Delaney among those candidates, one of the first candidates in the race, has worked really hard in Iowa in particular, hasn't been able to gain traction. He says probably not round three, but.</s>JOHN DELANEY (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We do think there's a way to get on the debate stage either for the third debate or the fourth debate, and that's what we're focused on.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right, but not necessarily this third debate at this stage. Is that what you're saying that you think it doesn't matter if you don't get qualify in the third stage?</s>DELANEY: Maybe not the third debate, but we feel very confident we'll get on the fourth debate stage.</s>KING: The issue is if you've qualified for the third, you're guaranteed into the fourth, the DNC says. But if you haven't made the third, you can still get in. The question is if you're not in the third, you know, I guess you have to see it in the ground in the individual states because you're not getting national television exposure.</s>BARRON-LOPEZ: Right. And the question for those candidates whose don't make it into the third do you stick around. If you're not seeing any movement in the polls, why are you staying in this race? But, again, people like Delaney may decide, well, I can make it into the fourth debate so I'm going to drag this out. And I think that candidates like Steyer and Gabbard are definitely going to be in the fourth debate so they're likely to stick in it.</s>KING: So the winnowing of the field will come a little bit later not as soon as many people thought. Maybe by the end of October or by the fifth as we head into the Thanksgiving season. When we come back, a healthcare flashpoint between Senator Sanders and Senator Harris.