Nov. 15 Democratic debate transcript

Blitzer: All right. Well, let's throw the question to the birthday boy. Go.

Malveaux: OK. I guess he gets the gift here. And obviously we're talking about private contractors.

Governor Richardson, you know that Senator Obama has said he would pull out all of the private contractors if, in fact, that he was president. But in light of how stretched our military is, do you think that's a practical solution?

Richardson: Yes. I would pull out all the contractors. I would get them all out.  Just like I would get all our troops out, all residual forces, and I would do it within a year.

Here's my answer. What I believe we need to do is we need to reform our military. This is what I would do. This war in Iraq has bled us enormously, has bled our military enormously.

I would find ways to keep the all-volunteer force. Now, I would say to you that I would have two more divisions in the Army, two more in the Marines.

I would increase military pay and educational benefits, a new G.I. Bill for our military.

But what I would also do is, with our veterans -- you know, in military families, I would have a hero's health card for every military person in this country...

... which would mean that they could get health care, not just at the V.A. system, but anywhere they want.

I would fully guarantee funding at the V.A. And most importantly, the big, big challenge is mental health. We don't treat mental health with the parity that this country deserves.

And our kids coming back from Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam, there's a huge burden -- mental trauma, traumatic brain injury, PTSD. We have a V.A. system and we have a mental health system in this country this is not given the parity, the coverage that it deserves.

Blitzer: Thank you, Governor. Thank you.

Suzanne?

Malveaux: Our next questions is -- Khalid Khan, if you would please stand for a moment. You and I spoke very briefly, and you said you have some concerns about racial profiling.

Khalid Khan: Yes, I do. I am an American citizen and have been profiled all the time at the airport. Since 9/11, hundreds of thousands of Americans have been profiled. And, you know, it is like a harassment.

My question is that -- our civil liberties have been taken away from us. What are you going to do to protect Americans from this kind of harassment?

Malveaux: Senator Edwards, we'd like you to take that. You obviously voted for the Patriot Act, which gives the government extended powers of surveillance. What do you say to people like Mr. Khan who say he's been abused by that power?

Edwards: I say he's right. He's right. This administration has done more than abuse the Patriot Act, and the Patriot Act needs to be dramatically changed, by the way.

But in addition to that, the racial profiling that you are describing has to be stopped, and it will be stopped when I am president of the United States. We're going to take the steps that need to be taken to restore America's moral leadership in the world, and that means a whole group of things: stopping the profiling, stopping the illegal -- and I use that term intentionally -- the illegal spying on the American people that this president has been engaged in.

Closing Guantanamo, which I think is a national embarrassment.

No more secret prisons, no more rendition.

And it's just absolutely amazing to me that there's actually an open discussion in the United States of America about what kind of torture will be tolerated. I'll tell you what kind of torture will be tolerated when I'm president of the United States -- no torture will be tolerated when I'm president of the United States.

Blitzer: Thank you. Thank you, Senator.

Edwards: We're going to restore our respect in the world.

Blitzer: Congressman Kucinich, I believe you're the only person on this stage who had a chance to vote on the Patriot Act right after 9/11 who voted against it right away.

Kucinich: That's because I read it.