primaries and republican debates. i don't think it's restricted by the way to mr. trump. i find it interesting that everybody's focused on trump because he says in more interesting ways what the other candidates are saying as well. he may up the ante in anti-muslim sentiment, but if you look at what the other republican candidates have said, that's pretty troubling too. he may express strong anti-immigration sentiment, but you've heard that from the other candidates as well. i'll leave it to you to speculate on how this race will go. i continue to believe mr. trump will not be president. the reason is because i have a lot of faith in the american people. i think they recognize that being president is a serious job. it's not hosting talk show or a reality show. it's not promotion. it's not marketing. it's hard. a lot of people count on us getting it right. the american person are pretty sensible. i think they'll make a sensible choice in the end. all right. thanks, everybody. thank you. >> president obama at a press co

kenny on the republican line. caller: i was trying to figure said- when reagan consensus doesn't matter, how can he be a conservative when that is your belief? republicans are fine with that. i don't understand how you can be a conservative and run in a deficit. guest: i will have to google that one. ronald reagan -- nobody is perfect. ronald reagan had a democrat controlled house and senate. the congress holds the purse string. solely blameo president reagan for the spending then went up during his era when congress has a large role in appropriate expending. -- appropriating spending. he won the cold war. when you have a nexus sent a threat like the soviet union -- it is easy for us to sit here today and forget what it was like to have nuclear bombs pointed at us. there were drills for little kids to get under their desks. the guy won the cold war and restored optimism and they believe in america. -- a belief in america. host: you mentioned in the excerpt we just showed them his 30 minute speech in 1964 as a defi

on the republican side, republicans rely less on younger voters. younger voters make up a smaller portion of the republican primary and caucus electorates. re talking about iowa and new hampshire, you' re seeing some candidates say, hey, it' s time for new leadership. marco rubio, for example, is one of the candidates in the republican -- fernando: well, i want to ask you about that, because he' s made that argument in a very clear way. yet, he has, at least seemingly, very little traction in the polling. what do you think is the disconnect there? steve: well, look, i think that because younger voters make up a very small portion of the republican primary electorate, that' s not an argument right now that' s well-served for him, when it comes to taking down ted cruz but once they move to a general election, and it comes to facing the democratic nominee, cutting into the advantage that barack obama has had in the past two elections among younger voters is going to be essential for the re going to compete in the general election. fernando: what would

national republican consultant and former south carolina republican party chairman kate dawson and dana bash. the gloves are off when it comes to trump but avoiding his name is interesting. >> he didn't have to say his name. everybody knew who he was talking about, what he was talking about. he has kind of made it his life's work post-white house to not delve into politics. even going where he went tonight was way further than he has for years n years and years. in some ways it was more powerful and dare we say presidential for him to do it the way he did by talking about his traits without saying his name and comparing and contrasting the donald trump that we've all come to know with the jeb bush that we hear jeb bush explain. the fact he's a quiet leader and so on and so forth. the way he compared and contrasted that was pretty powerful. >> you know south carolina better than anyone. i heard some say it was interesting to hear jeb bush and his brother side by side. their styles are obviously very different. i wonder how you think this played in south carolina? >> i think it will play

the republicans similarly, do about the same as registered republicans. those people who could truly pick up a ballot from either party makeup a very small percentage of the overall electorate, somewhere in the 3%-7% range. it varies from election to election. it is nowhere near as large as the 44% that is thrown around as the big block of independents that will sway the election. host: andy smith has been the director of the university of new hampshire survey center since 1999. he also teaches political science at that university. the first call for him comes from kerry in simi valley, california. go ahead. caller: hello, and thank you for taking my call. i would like to ask you to what do you attribute the bernie sanders-trump phenomenon? i was raised to believe that we elect our officials if you are qualified for a job because of recommendations, experience, your proven records. yet in both of these men there is not much of that. my husband is a purple heart recipient from the korean war, and bernie sanders was on the committee for veterans administrat

it would divide republicans. but what would it do to the democratic base given he is a moderate republican and not a progressive? i just talked to republican senators and they are not willing to consider him. deb fischer of nebraska told me it is a not about the person it's about the president and the voters having a choice this november. >> a few things i find interesting about this pick if this is indeed the pick. we certainly don't know, and let's remember josh earnest said this week there is no short list. they are just going through them. but this is someone who was unanimously confirmed by the senate after being brought up by former president george bush 2005, unanimously confirmed by the senate for a district court judgeship, which shows you sort of a support on both sides. this is also someone, right, who is pro choice but not -- but opposed to late term abortion manu, one of the biggest cases that is about to be heard in front of the high court. >> that's what's going to be challenging for him going forw

that will motivate republicans. in fact, you saw mitch mcdonnell take the lead saying there won't be any hearings. there's not going to be a vote. and rob portman, kelly ayotte, ron johnson, pat toomey confirmed they will not confirm the nominee. he could nominate my friend john eastman -- >> you want the next president to get that, is that what you're saying? >> that's it. i want the election to focus on the court. the court deciding this. i think it's a great opportunity for americans to have a discussion about what the court means in their life. >> okay. yeah. let's do this. let's play this. >> i'm going to bring a lawsuit because in my opinion, based on what i have learned over the last two or threes days from top lawyers he doesn't have the right to serve as president or run as president. he was born in canada. i will bring that lawsuit if he doesn't apologize. >> that's not what i want to talk about. but let's do talk about that. trump is hitting cruz now. he's saying i think they should intervene. the republi

not the case on the republican side. there are far fewer contestants in this one as the voting as begun. >> all right. thank you, rich. >>> another bidder throwing his hat into the democratic race. michael bloomberg announcing he's considering running as an independent. he calls the current democrat race an outrage for voters. he's keeping an eye on today's primary and will start putting his name on ballots in march. >>> all right. it's been said new hampshire is the state that picks presidents, so how will today's results impact the rest of the election. let's ask lisa booth who is the president of high noon strategies. thank you so much for getting up so early. we appreciate it. a big day today in new hampshire. talk to us how new hampshire is different than iowa. you look at how this shakes out. 44% independent voters coming out of new hampshire that looks awfully different than iowa. >> you are right. typically what you'll find in iowa, not only is it a caucus, it's a different process than a primary state. you also

>> we are the republican establishment in the sense we haven't usually gotten our way with the republican party. it isn't as conservative as we would like it to be. the republican party has been too eager to cut a deal on immigration in particular and we have been urging republicans to be more responsive. >> you reject me calling you the establishment. >> editors of two leading conservative magazines, i am proud of that from buckley, my father, ronald reagan, rudy giuliani, making new york liveable again in the '90s. donald trump isn't a conservative. we oppose donald trump, not because he is making republicans uncomfortable, because we have no assurance he would be a conservative president and tempermentally in terms of character shouldn't be president. >> do you think if he wins the nomination, he can win? >> he has been underestimated so far. i think it is a risky proposition for republicans. a lot of conservatives and republicans would not vote for donald trump. we have already heard senator sasse make his point that he is not voting for him. >> what do you say, too, when you hear rep

if republicans block a moderate, democrats will call them obstructionists. they could go outside of the judiciary or pick someone with a more liberal record, knowing that republicans would block it. camelia harris is california's attorney general, and considered both a rising star and a white house favorite. she's currently running for the senate seat vacked by barbara boxer, and most daring should the president choose her, sitting attorney general, loretta lynch, who lasted six months ago as republicans fought her for backing president obama's immigration policies. justice scalia, republicans are not likely to to lament his passion. >> his heart, he loved to laugh, to bring people together, he loved to argue, but at the end, he was living a life as big as anybody could have. because he was dedicated to improving the entire united states of america by taking care of things one little step at a time. >> mike viqueira, al aljazeera, washington. >> some of the gop leaders who said absolutely not on saturday may be softening their approach a few days later. majo

the judges are the appointees of the republicans. and the judges are delivering for the corporations. it is being done in plain view. many chamber victories were significant, making employment discrimination harder to prove, letting manufacturers and distributors fix minimum prices for retail goods, letting mutual funds advisors include misstatements made by others in the documents they prepare for investors, and even hobby lobby, where the court put the religious rights of corporate entities over the rights of employees. big corporations hate being hauled into court and having to face juries, and the five republican appointees protected them, raising pleading standards for victims, letting companies push disputes into corporate corporate-favored arbitration, restricting americans' ability to press cases of large-scale wrongdoing in class actions, making it more difficult for workers to hold employers accountable for workplace harassment, and making it harder for consumers with serious side effects to sue the drug companies. right no

even a republican governor who president obama floated this name of, a moderate republican governor in nevada, governor brian sandoval. that being said, everyone' s playing politics because look what is up for grabs in this confirmation battle. the white house, potentially the ideological swing in the supreme court, the senate. if things go either party' s way with this, you could end up having a trifecta of control of all three of those essentially, those chambers of government. so i think right now everyone is testing the other side to see how they' re going to respond and therefore how their bases respond, because when it comes down to voting in november it' s all about the bases. conflict and there' s this impasse, and this log jam again in washington, do you think that could actually help trump? in other words, by showing dysfunction in washington and disgust with both parties, could that motivate people for him? amber: yeah, i think you' re absolutely right. quite frankly, anything that happens in washington, politicians on the campaign trail, especially outside of washington

the republican nominee. the republican nominee, no matter who sit on the stage lrks be a better choice than bernie sanders or hillary clinton. >> thank you for joining us. >> thanks, george. >>> governor john kasich joins us now. thank you for joining us. quite a night last night. it doesn't sound like anybody will take your suggestion to bring down the negative ads. >> you know what, george. it was like a demolition derby. the good news is my car is still going around the circuit. i tell you what i found, george. i had a rally at a barbecue joint. about 500 people there. it was stunning. people were just -- coming up, taking pictures, grabbing on to me, wanting me to sign things. they said, please stay positive. please stay positive. i kind of get my fuel from ideas. i don't get my fuel from the negative side. i don't disagree with rubio. if you're going to be attacked, you have to defend yourself. but i want to climb o of that as quickly as i can and tell people what i'm for, rather than spend my time prol

but this is really a pivotal moment for the republican party and this republican senate. the republican party of abraham lincoln and theodore roosevelt is transforming before our eyes, abandoning its last vestiges of decency and unconditionally surrendering its moral compass to donald trump and ted cruz. gone are the days of levelheaded ness and compromise. the republican party turned bipartisan into a dirty word. behind closed doors my republican colleagues like to express disappointment at the direction the party has taken but never, ever would they say anything publicly because these extreme elements in their party who seem to be running the party would criticize them. republicans should think long and hard about this simple fact. if they follow the course set by the republican leader, every one of them will be responsible as trump and cruz for the debasement of the republican party. he will join them in what they've done to the party. it will be a new and a much worse republican party. clearly senator mcconnell's absolutely falling that lead of extremists trump and cr

>> i am a republican, want to vote for the republican nominee. i expect it to be marco rubio. i would be happy and proud to vote for him. >> what if it is hillary clinton and mierkal bloomberg. >> he was an outstanding mayor. see what happens. >> you could see yourself not going with the republican, going with a third party candidate? >> right now, i am supporting marco rubio. i am saying i am supporting marco rubio. he is going to win, be the nominee. inaugurate rated as president next january. >> what would happen if trump is the leader of the republican party? >> at best, short term victory, bring in new people to the party, old reagan democrats. it is a terrible loss, puts a scar on the party that we won't recover from. >> you feel he would hurt republicans running for re-election like you and others? >> it definitely would. if we are branded as party of the klan, anti-disabled people or thinks john mccain is not a hero, go through the list, yeah, it would make us into some sort of party out of touch with the american people. >> say your candidate marco rubio doesn't win a

you don't have one republican -- you don't have one republican senator, and you work with them every day of your life come although use get a lot of time. these are minor details. you don't have one republican senator backing you. not one. you don't have the endorsement of one republican senator and you work with these people. you should be ashamed of yourself. amy: that is donald trump responding to texas senator ted cruz, in an exchange moderated by cnn's wolf blitzer at last night's debate, which was hosted by cnn, telemundo, and the salem media group. book with the new york times" shows how donald trump's club in palm beach florida has hired hundreds of foreign workers re us-bornn hig workers. since 2010, nearly 300 is residents have applied for jobs at trump's exclusive club but instead, the club has sought more than 500 visas for foreign workers. to talk more about immigration and how the candidates addressed it last night in the oral issue in this country, we are joined by jose antonio vargas, pulitzer prize-winning journalist and filmmaker. he's the founder and editor of #eme

well it's politically very messy for the republicans. starting so categorical was probably not the best idea. it-it could wind up looking pretty stupid and they just created an amazing campaign issue for the fall that could galvanize support. i mean if it's an issue over this one vacant supreme court seat they simply allow it to be filled by someone not quite as conservative because that's far better than the damage that they could suffer this fall and how this could play out with the voters. that aside, i think heller immediately after the notion of raising sandoval's name did indicate that he thought that was something that he would support. i think then the republican machine kicked in and it was probably back to wait but-but for the most part a lot of people looked at the idea and thought this is not a bad idea. it's the push back from that very adamant and just wrong in terms of factually wrong to ' no president's ever done this' and they had to keep walking back from well there's never been one in an election year. well, we forget

in part because he's not really a republican or at least he shouldn't be seen as a republican in good standing. how is that direct effort working out? joining us now is somebody who is effectively part of that effort, conservative talk show host, contributor to the "national review's" "against trump" special issue, michael medved. it's really nice to have you ç here. thank you so much for being on the show tonight. >> thank you. great to talk to you again, rachel. let me just say, i was anti-trump before it was cool. i mean, very early after his announcement speech. i don't believe that our party, which after all, is the party of lincoln and reagan should be welcoming someone who spews the kind of hatred that donald trump does. i am concerned about the message for the future because one of the things i'v been talking about for 20 years in republican circles is we have no future as an all-white party. it cannot continue that way. mitt romney won 60% of the white vote in 2012 and lost the election because he did so poorly among latinos and asians because of his position on immigration

there has been this enthusiasm gap between democrats and republicans and what republicans have done is handed democrats a gift of enthusiasm at a time when i think the democrats could very seriously use it. >> could they take the risk of one of the wobbly gop senators crossing over and giving said nominee an up or down vote that might go away that republican leadership didn't want? >> i think bill's overplaying the enthusiasm advantage for the democrats, because there's an enthusiasm for republicans, as well. republicans really have to win the senate. they have an uphill bat toll do so. the base is not so enthusiastic about some of these senators in tough races. now that the supreme court is on the line, there's going to be a real push in the gop base to solidify the base behind some of these moderate senators. the other thing is, i think barack obama is going to have a hard time finding someone to take this job. the republicans have said he's dead on arrival. no hearing, no vote, no chance that he's going to get it. who's going to be barack obama's kamikaze pilot in this mission that

we're watching a republican caucus. they are tallying up these paper ballots that were cast by every participant at this particular republican caucus site in des moines. on the democrat side, you don't count folded pieces of paper. you count heads. you count human beings that move themselves to a specific part of the room. >> in herds. >> in herds to indicate who they -- we won't need to understand it unless we get really, really arcane in the closeness of this race. steve is looking at this particular caucus site in des moines. we're just getting a snapshot of how the race is going. vote by vote here. how important is this? what do we know about this caucus site? >> something very interesting. you're look at that vote counting. that's the test. that is the key to whether this is going to be a good night or not for marco rubio. marco rubio concentrated his efforts in this campaign heavily on the des moines area. po the biggest county in the state is where des moines is. right to the west is dallas county. that's suburba

republicans vowing not to consider any candidate, even if it is a republican. joining me is alan dershowitz. i'm so interested to talk to but this. i wanted to ask you about the presidential race and your former student ted cruz. do you think he or others have any shot at wrestling this nomination away from donald trump? >> it's very difficult. it's getting harder and harder. i do think rubio has a better shot. if hypothetically cruz were to drop out and it would be a one against one, rubio against trump, i think it would be a very close race and rubio might win. i'm not sure that cruz can do that. he's a strong candidate but he's very extreme and might very well do to the republicans what barry goldwater did to them back many, many years ago, give them a devastating loss as a liberal democrat that would please me butch as but as a loyal american, i want to see very strong candidates run. i want to see when the two candidates run against each other that i would be satisfied if either of them one, even though i prefer one candidate over the other. it just doesn'

now it's time for the republicans. i'm joined by the nevada communications director for the republican national commit eechlt thanks for being with us. >> thanks for having me. >>ow do you preparations are going? do you feel the party is ready for all the mashinations of the caucus? >> yes. the campaigns and parties have been doing caucus training and getting voters registered. i think we've seen thousands registered in the past few days here. now they're out there telling people where to go i think they feel really ready for it. there's a lot of excitement on the ground, a lot of people really wanting to get involved where they never have before. i think we expect to have a really good caucus on tuesday. >> there was a report of long lines and computers crashing and all those things. those are probably the normal pains ever doing something like this. do you anticipate having some of those same problems the democrats had? >> i think we anticipate to have it run as smoothly as possible, get everyone through as long as t

are republicans. what you're seeing here, wolf, is the independents are infiltrating, if you will, choosing to play in a greater degree in the democratic primary than they are in the republican primary. if i was sitting in bernie sanders' headquarters tonight, i would look at that and say, wow, 4 out of 10 are independents. they're fueling bernie sanders' candidacy so far. i would think that would be a really good number for me tonight. >> all right. let's go to anderson. this is a moment that a lot of people have been waiting for right now. >> yeah. incredibly exciting to actually have a night to get the votes from the first primary state. i want to go to our reporters, and our analysts' table here. gloria borger, and senior political reporter, david axelrod, and obviously michael smir connish. you have been looking very closely at these exit polls. what stands out to you? >> well, you want to start with the -- >> democrats. >> we'll start with the democrats. what stands out to me is the independent

we'll start talking about republicans -- >> why would you start with republicans? it's so less interesting. >> then we'll talk about the democrats. >> all right. >> christie todd whitman said she would rather vote for hillary clinton than donald trump. would you vote for donald trump in a general election? >> i'm not voting for donald trump, in the primary or general. i'm confident marco rubio will be the nominee. if he's not the nominee, i think there will be another republican in the general election, even if they're not the nominee of the party. >> running as an independent. >> correct. >> i'm going to throw out names. i'm focused on rubio. i'm not voting for donald trump. >> answer me this question. i asked this question to governor barbour and governor whitman. is this right now an existential crisis for the republican party? is that what this moment represents? >> look, you have a guy who is leading the polls right now against a fragmented field who just -- look at the things he's said in the last couple of weeks. he said last night that the chinese governmen

this is where if you're in new hampshire and go to a republican event, you find the republican candidates if places like amhurst, places like bedford, places like merrimack and places all along the massachusetts border down here where you have nashua city here, hudson over here where chris christie spent a lot of time, the other republican candidates as well. as these fill in down here, wolf, i want to go back to time to mitt romney country, right? the coral color is ron paul. this is mitt romney country, establishment republican votes. donald trump is winning those places because of the splintering of the race. third and fourth could be hugely significant. one of the debates in the establishment is going to be if you're under ted cruz, how much strength do you have going forward? now, rubio if he stays he'll make the case i came in third in iowa, that makes me viable. that will be the conversation. this is not ted cruz's best state. he won iowa. if you're below him in new hampshire, you're going to face some pressure. >> we know trump is the winner but why is second place in new hampshir

when that becomes the standard bearer of the republican party, what is the republican party do with that? do they coalesce around that and say yes, that's what we believe. do they own it? how do you not own it if you're running for president? >> and he tweeted that just as father paul scalia was delivering an emotional and deeply affecting homily. you look at the time of that tweet. he is watching this. or someone is tweeting for him. i don't understand the personality that is involved in that. that tweet hits at barack obama on his religion, his christian faith. and goes in so many multiple ways against muslims, against obama. i think what the republican base is looking for is anyone who will absolutely be crude and rude and take on barack obama. >> and will swear. >> see, that's part of the strong medicine they stomach to get someone who is a truth teller. they didn't like the performance on saturday night. you saw it in the cnn town hall. the woman stood up and said, i'm worried about your impulse control problem. i think those are the things, i don't think the republican voters want

>> why are democrats begging the republicans to come to the table? using twitter. >> i would never characterize us as being in the lead in countering this. trump challenge the status quo. rep. ryan: the way we hold the obama administration accountable is controlling their budget. fernando: house speaker paul ryan has an uphill battle on his hands. and it's not just a fight with the white house. it's a fight with fellow republicans who say the president's four trillion dollar budget is dead on arrival. congressman chris van hollen of maryland is the ranking democratic member of the house budget committee. congressman, welcome to the program rep. van hollen: it's great to be with you, thanks. fernando: thank you so much. the president has presented his budget. the majority in the house is saying they will not even have a hearing on it. does this play into the concept of dysfunction and immobility in our congress? rep. van hollen: this is a really sad episode here. we had hoped with the new year, who expressed an interest in more openness and debate, th

if the republicans had been cageyer. if they had played their cards closer to their vest about what they're going to do, the incentive to president obama would be to try to find someone he liked but that was also acceptable to the republicans. a kind of democratic david souter. to get -- slip somebody by the republicans and hope that maybe it would work. the republicans would know it was doomed. they're going to run out the clock. but the president might not know that. now look at the incentives facing the president. knowing that he does not have to worry about what kind of justice this person will be. that he can treat this nomination as a pure gimme, a chance to rally his base. he should from his point of view nominate loretta lynch because what an image of the republicans refusing to have a vote on a black woman with all of her qualifications. that would be very powerful for a democratic party that is worried about voter turnout and voter mobilization. and the result is we're going to have a much more ugly and content

the republicans aren't even going to hold hear osgood n it. the more interesting question is donald trump, the winner of the primary down in louisiana went after the republican ohio state and republican senate for having basically capitulated last year and for collaborating with obama and for not fighting, which means he's reaching into the ted cruz wing of the party, which is not necessarily his own. in order to broaden his base for the south carolina primary. loork the real battle here is not tren -- between the president and the republican congress. it's going to be inside the republican party between now and the end of the primaries. john: yell knorr? eleanor: that's right. this is a battle within the republican party about the president's budget. the budget is modeled on the october to atchplaushgs apparently and for all the talk about dead on arrival there are several initiatives if that budget that are likely to pass. one is more money for cyber security. another is more money for the cancer moon shot and also an expanded earned income

every action by president barack for the republican opposition. in an effort to keep a campaign promise, he announced a plan to close the guantanamo bay detention facility. president obama: this is about closing a chapter in our history. fernando: then, he agreed to a temporary truce with his russian counterpart, vladimir putin, to halt all hostilities in syria. >> it could save lives. fernando: the republican leadership in congress and gop presidential candidates were quick to reject the president' s initiatives. senior senator lindsey graham, who until recently was a presidential candidate himself, is a member of the armed services and judiciary committees. he joins me from capitol hill. senator graham, thank you for joining me. sen. graham: thank you. fernando: sir, the president has announced a new plan to close guantanamo. what' s your reaction? sen. graham: it' s not a plan, it doesn' t designate where they would go, what legal status they would have. fernando: and sir, do you have an alternative plan? what' s the vision of your party for gu

the republicans should vote. any names swirling of potential replacements, particularly ones that would be cyntrust. >> the rest of the country was stunned by the death, and so was the white house. it's ready. it's been ready for months. it has files of all sorts of nominees that they've been watching and they've been keeping track of. and so it's really just depends upon how big a fight they want. like you said, one of the nominees who would be maybe easier to get through is sheree voisin. he was you nas mousily confirmed. he is an indian american, he was confirmed by ted cruz. garland, he is about 63 years old. he is considered a moderate. he might be in play. as well as another judge. jane kelly. she is out of iowa and that might have -- senator grassley. it's too early to know the names they're considering. in the next few days, we'll hear a lot more names being floated and leaked. >> no question. so let's imagine a situation where the vacancy is extended, because right now you have 4 and 4, really a divide i

the republican party could split. i got word from a former christie finance co-chair that does not like that he joined up with trump. >> split in the republican party? >> i don't know about that. it's entertaining. but it's not particularly inspirational by any of the candidates. we all probably shoulden laugh and do laugh at the things that are said. you hear the audience laugh. the republican party has to come to terms that they're not inspiring. they're entertaining. >> and trying to come to terms with donald trump, the real possibility he's the nominee. >> absolutely. i'm told two dozen house republicans have told the colleagues they will not support donald trump as the nominee. if he solidifies this on tuesday and goes on to win the nomination, he'll be the leader of a very divide republican party. >> the voters are supporting him. all the candidates can say, all the politicians can say, we won't support him. so far, the voters have. >> meantime, democratic side, donna, the win for hillary clinton. a higher perce

donald trump is not a republican republican. lot of american they want change from president obama but don't want to endorse things like the iraq war, donald trump offers an option. >> dickerson: naps trump does well here is that it, of to the races, it's done you? mentioned once he he gets further how much of a big thing would it be if he won? >> so much depends on how rapidly the rest of the field winnows as region as you have say kick, rubio, bush, competing, continuing to go on the more difficult it becomes for anybody to stop him. but i was talking to terry sullivan who is rubio's campaign manager in the spin room last night, they view, this is a delegate battle as he talked to you in the interview this morning. also basically a matter of survival. that you just keep going and keep going and eventually others will fall away that when you get into the later stages of this campaign when it is winner take all that's the time when the anti-trump faction becomes large enough to carry those states. >> dickerson: based on the stag

i'll unite the republican party. i've proven just in the last week i can bring people together from different parts of this party. i'll grow it. we're going to take the conservative movement. not by watering it down. take it and grow it taking it to people who don't vote for us now. there are millions of people in this country -- >> that is marco rubio speaking live in birmingham, alabama today. he is hitting three states today. making quite a sweep across the south ahead of super tuesday. we're going to take a break. joining me next will be one of rubio's biggest supporters live from texas. i take prilosec otc each morning for my frequent heartburn because you can't beat zero heartburn! ahhh the sweet taste of victory! prilosec otc. one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. >>> welcome back. i'm poppy har low live in columbia, south carolina, the day that voters go to the polls this as the republican race for the white house heats up. you're looking at marco rubio speaking live in birmingham, alabama. as supe

the republican playbook, not what the country needs, but what the republican playbook says. this is the playbook we should follow. the constitution of the united states. and constitution makes it very clear is a vacancy to the president and nominates somebody, and the senate votes them up or down. that's always been the way. you know, we've only had one time in this country that we've had a vacancy for a year in a supreme court. and that was civil war types and that's an entirely different time. we don't to want use that precedent. heck with the democrats were in charge of the senate, and it was ronald reagan's last year, we put through his nominee to the supreme court. its been done i think seven or eight times since the beginning of the country. it is totally irresponsible to suggest you go -- >> well, let me -- >> 15 oar 16 months. >> you're the ranking democrat of the judiciary committee, if the republicans, one or two or three decide to filibuster, you would need 60 votes, getting from 46 to 60 -- >> if there's a filibuster -- >> that's impossible, right? >> you're righ

would he be willing to appoint a republican? mr. earnest: i think the president laid out in his post on the scotus blog today, some of my colleagues are joking it's the potus blog on the scotus log, but he made clear the qualities he's looking for for a nominee. there's no reference to a nominee's political affiliation or which candidates they have supported in the political process. there's no reference to the political party he or she has joined. the president is focused on criteria that frankly is more important and that is an individual's qualifications and their experience and their view of the law. that will take precedence over any sort of political consideration. reporter: so in theory, yes, he'd consider a republican for the job? mr. earnest: i think the accurate way to say it is, the president is not going to -- when the president gets to a stage where he's interviewing nominees or potential nominees, in a conversation, i'm confident that he's not going to ask them which party primary they vote n. reporter: he'd know befor

have you seen a republican on a republican debate stage defending taking federal tax payer money and giving it to planned parenthood? he thinks they do terrific i don't think conservatives in south carolina think so either. >> i have never seen you unload on donald trump like you have in the last couple of minutes. are you concerned that if he wins south carolina he can't be stopped? >> what i'm concerned about, george, is our country is in balance. i've devoted my entire life to fighting to defend the constitution and the bill of rights. the heller decision, i represented 31 states. representing heller in defending the second amendment. we talked about abortion restrictions. i represented a coalition of states defending the ban of partial-birth abortion. we won that case, 5-4. i don't want to see our liberties taken away. my daughters, caroline and katherine are 7 and 5. i don't want to have to look at my daughters and say, the free comes to that america has had for two centuries, you don't get because we didn't step up and put back. justice scalia's passing changes the entire conto

republican crowds rarely heard anything like what donald trump just said, not from republicans anyway. his primary opponents were not ready to have that conversation. for instance jeb bush. >> i couldn't care less about donald trump's insults. it is blood sport for him. he enjoys it. i am sick and tired of him going after my family. my dad is the greatest man alive in my mind. while donald trump was building a reality tv show my brother was building a security apparatus to keep us safe. i'm proud of what he did >>> for different reasons we got rubio. >> i just want to say at least on bhoof p behalf of me and my family i thank god that it was george w bush in the white house on 9/11 and not al gore >>> the september 11 attacks were more than 14 years ago. the invasion of iraq coming up on this years ago. that so much remained unsaid, than unsayable for so long in republican circle $is striking. the run up to the worst terrorist attack ever on american soil, the months that followed that saw the bush administration create consent for an invasion of iraq and the unquestionable serial dis

regular republicans have abandoned their base. you keep making deals but it's driving the national debt up. they're predicting $30 trillion in the years to come. i mean, i don't see how that's being a conservative. on the cusp of socialism in this country. and giving our country over to terrorism. socialism, terrorism together probably not a good combination to have. i think if sanders or clinton get in, we're in deep trouble. i mean, i got to give sanders credit. at least he admits he's a socialist. hillary still can't come to the facts and say i'm a socialist but she is. >> he does see one candidate that suits his mood. ted cruz. >> so the police officers, the last seven years of having a president that demonizes you, that vilifies you, that sides with the criminals and looters, that will end on january 20th, 2017. >> cruz fights back. the guy did a 21-hour filibuster speech to try to delay voting. reading "green eggs and ham" to his kids. willing to shut government down on principle of not passing these bad bills to put us more

republican. but code pink territory. i'm not sure how that's going to play. i think we may be hearing a bit about it the next few days. second thing was, i know many people think that jeb bush seem strong in his sparks moments with donald trump. falls back on saying he's a 63-year-old man who is constantly saying, don't pick on my mom, my dad, my father is the best father in the world. there's something odd and unbecoming about it. we know he loves them and why that's wonderful. trump was talking abut serious issues, i think he should have >> dickerson: what is your take? >> i agree with what peggy said. this was debate for the ages, you must have felt the heat standing a few feet away. >> dickerson: i didn't realize i needed sun screen. >> it was remarkable. i think to peggy's point, donald trump is clearly not a pure conservative in any stretch of the imagination. and instead of trying to sugar coat that in some way that politician might, he went in the opposite direction last night. in the sho

vulnerable republicans. watch them. the ones who are up for reelection in key states in cht if they start to buckle and start to demand a vote, that could change the calculus. republicans also believe this works well politically, that it could rally the base and they could tell voters they're the fire wall against a liberal justice. both sides see a political win in the positions they're taking. >> okay. i have in my hand a list of possible replacements for antonin scalia. is there not one name on this list that would be acceptable to both parties? >> well, it's difficult to tell. it's a little bit early. there are lists. but what's interesting about it is while the political branches are debating about the future of the supreme court, the current court still has a ton of work to do. they've got these big cases in front of them, affirmative action, abortion, immigration, and now they've only got eight justices to deal with it, and all this political that could cause delay, that might cause them to either iss

republicans are very animated. i talked about our top three candidates really fulfilling all of the need and desires of the entire republican party. there is a traditional, pure, extremely conservative evangelical still in the race in ted cruz. there is an exciting unpredictable dangerous outsider in the race in donald trump. and there is a completely acceptable sort of mainstream conservative when you get to national security issues and you get to some of the other things facing this congress in 2016 in marco rubio. so i think the republican party is satisfied by this field. but it is still fractured as we keep seeing it. that will not be resolved tonight. >> absolutely. nicole wallace, thank you very much. i know we'll be checking in with you later. nicole joining us from new york tonight. that is becoming sort of the central strategy question among the republican candidates and among observers of the republican process, which is is it just because there's a lot of other people running besides donald trump that n

this is not your father's republican party. the republican party has moved on from these policy debates. >> no, they haven't -- >> they have -- >> every candidate in the race, other than arguably ted cruz -- >> by elevating donald trump above everybody else running, there is a large swath of the republican party that has moved on. donald trump is the national front-runner. [ overlapping speakers ] >> he has a better idea of what's important to republican based voters right now than anybody. than any other candidate. he really does. yeah, you could say that he's -- you could theoretically expect an ad like that to have some effect on the margins. there's no indication it had any effect at all. >> this is a nationalized republican primary. donald trump is way out ahead and he holds positions on abortion, on equality, on gay rights, on health care mandates that are totally at odds with the republican base and they don't care. >> which would be -- you would expect to have the republican -- the rest of the republican field get more

if i was an iowa republican, who would i vote for. i'm not an iowa republican. i'm a new york republican. i think that donald trump could possibly redeem himself in new hampshire. but now it's not a slam-dunk anymore. now we'll go into the polls next tuesday thinking now i wonder. people are going to start thinking about donald trump, see all bluster. like that concession speech he made tonight was so lame. he is going to buy a farm in iowa. he is not going to buy a farm in iowa. he may never go back to iowa. it sounded disingenuous at all. >> i disagree with you. he showed a graciousness. compare to it rubio. that's exactly wrong. >> that was a terrific concession speech. i think that was one of the better speeches that i've heard donald trump give. he was gracious. he was short. he was to the point. he congratulated the other candidates. >> absolutely. >> and he moved on. i thought it was good moment for donald trump, honestly. >> why should they vote for him based on that concession speech? because he loves them? because he has a beautiful family? >> sure, he

those five people have done more for the republican base than all the republicans in congress combined. and so they watch the court turning into something they don't control any longer with a real sense of panic. >> all right. senator sheldon whitehouse. thanks for your time together. appreciate it. >> thank you. >> that is "all in" for this evening.ç tomorrow night we're on earlier, catch us at 7:00 p.m. eastern instead of 8:00. at 8:00, chris matthews, my colleague, will host a special "hardball" college tour with the one and only bernie sanders. tomorrow night, "all in" one hour earlier. set the alarm on your iphone now. "the rachel maddow show" starts now in its regular hour. good evening, rachel. >>> we're trying to keep everybody on their toes this year. skipping around. you might see us at any time. >> you never know. >> at some point we're going to be broadcasting from under people's beds. hey, it's time! thanks, my friend. and thanks to you at home for joining us this particular hour. it's nice to see you. if marco rubio or ted cruz goes all the way this year, either of them