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New CNN New Hampshire Poll: Biden, Warren In Clear Second Tier; Frontrunners Sanders, Buttigieg Trade Barbs In New Hampshire; Trump Airs Grievances, Lashes Out After Impeachment Acquittal; Trump's 2020 Strategy. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired February 09, 2020 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:17]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN KING, CNN HOST (voice-over): New Hampshire is next.
PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am the candidate best prepared to beat Donald Trump.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CNADIDATE: The establishment is beginning to get nervous.
KING: Plus, can Joe Biden survive another weak showing?
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I took a hit in Iowa and I'll broke take a hit here.
KING: And the president is in the mood for impeachment payback.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This was cracked politics. Adam Schiff is a vicious person. Nancy Pelosi is a horrible person. They're vicious as hell.
KING: INSIDE POLITICS, the biggest stories sourced by the best reporters, now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KING: Welcome to INSIDE POLITICS. I'm John King. To our viewers in the United States and around the world, thank you for sharing your Sunday.
New Hampshire holds the first in the nation presidential primary on Tuesday. And it is a critical test for the 2020 Democratic field. Their first contest, Monday's caucuses in Iowa, well, it was messy, to say the least, but it did prove the appeal of a newcomer Pete Buttigieg and the resilience of Bernie Sanders.
Iowa also revealed the weaknesses of two more familiar candidates, the former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Elizabeth Warren. They will face very real viability questions if New Hampshire Democrats agree with Iowa's stacking of the candidates. We have a brand new look at the race, our latest CNN/University of New
Hampshire tracking poll is releasing right now. Let's look at the numbers.
If you look right now, we're in the final week, and New Hampshire votes Tuesday, Senator Bernie Sanders is on top with 28 percent support, Mayor Buttigieg at 21. The former vice president struggling again at 12 percent, Senator Warren struggling at 9 percent, Amy Klobuchar and Tulsi Gabbard rounding out the top six. Sanders and Buttigieg clearly at the top of the pack here.
Let's just take a look. We took a poll in the middle of January you see this. Sanders up a bit. Buttigieg up even more. Vice President Biden slipping, Senator Warren slipping. We saw that play out in Iowa, and now, it seems to be playing out in New Hampshire, Klobuchar and Gabbard, static as we come through.
Here's a big look at the race, what's important. Turnout is going to matter here. Look at the big Sanders lead, 46 percent of the voters under the age of 45. That is his strength.
Older voters once a Biden strength, those 45, Mayor Buttigieg now leads there. Klobuchar up a bit at 9 percent, but this is a big deal. Pete Buttigieg now increasing his appeal among older voters who tend to turn out.
Also fascinating to watch this. Remember, Elizabeth Warren had a great summer, but the trend among the New Hampshire Democrats who describe themselves as liberals, Bernie Sanders on the rise, from 26 percent in October, to 46 percent now, liberals, 28 percent for Warren back in October, look at that slide down to 13 percent now. One of the reasons that Sanders is up is because Warren is done among progressive voters.
You see a similar trend among New Hampshire Democrats who described themselves as moderate to conservative. You see Mayor Buttigieg 10 percent in October. Up to 23 percent now among New Hampshire Democrats who say they're moderate to conservative.
Look at Vice President Biden, static in the fall and into the winter. Now heading down from 20 percent to 16 percent.
Klobuchar coming up among the groups as well as the former vice president struggles and the mayor is enjoying a bit of a surge. Friday night's contentious debate underscored the New Hampshire stakes and included some sparring between the two candidates atop the poll.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDERS: I don't have 40 billionaires, Pete, contributing to my campaign, coming from the pharmaceutical industry, coming from Wall Street and all the big money interests.
BUTTIGIEG: We need a politics that is defined by not who we reject but how we bring everybody into the fold. I will not pursue politics by telling people they can't beat our side if they're not with us 100 percent of the time. This is a time for addition not rejection. (END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: With us this Sunday to share their reporting and their insights, Catherine Lucey of "The Wall Street Journal", Michael Shear of "The New York Times," Toluse Olurunnipa of "The Washington Post", and Jackie Kucinich of "The Daily Beast", and CNN's Jeff Zeleny joins us live from Manchester, New Hampshire, this morning.
Jeff, let me start with you. The campaign was chippy and the candidates on the trail yesterday seem a little chippy. They understand the stakes of New Hampshire.
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: No question, John. Joe Biden, let's start with him, is not operating out of a position of strength. I was with him yesterday. I was so struck by the fact he clearly knows he needs to "A," reset his campaign, shake up his campaign, do a variety of things different. He's getting so much advice here from donors, from supporters, saying, you know, what do you got, you have this fight, you have it in you.
So he's certainly was showing a new side of him. But it's risky going after Mayor Pete Buttigieg, belittling his experience.
[08:05:00]
But there's no question that Buttigieg is the person everyone is trying to stop. He is on the rise after Iowa. He didn't get a clean win out of Iowa. He and Bernie Sanders split the difference as Iowa still tries and figures out exactly the delegates there. But the reality here is that Joe Biden is trying to slow Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar is trying to get into the mix there. And can anyone slow Bernie Sanders?
So, the dynamic going into this race, if Bernie Sanders wins New Hampshire, as he should, he won it four years ago by 21 points, almost certainly not likely to do that this year, but that will be a story. But, boy, if Pete Buttigieg can surpass Bernie Sanders or even get right with him there that's a huge story coming out of this state.
The question is, can Joe Biden survive another big defeat here? That's why he's trying to mix it up.
KING: And to Jeff's point about Biden trying to block Buttigieg, Jeff asked him a question yesterday, there's been a lot of comparisons, Pete Buttigieg is the new fresh face. Some people compare him to Barack Obama, Joe Biden yesterday, after Jeff Zeleny asked him a question, took offense.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Come on, man. You think -- this guy -- this guy is not a Barack Obama. Barack Obama had been a United States Senate of a really large state. When I spoke, everyone knew I spoke for the president. So, the idea that somehow that there's any such experience, he's not a bad guy, I'm not saying that. What I'm saying is that I'm responding to the assertions that have been made repeatedly. (END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Biden seems on the having a hard time blocking Buttigieg from -- the Democratic Party as a history of the new fresh younger face.
TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes. Look at the polls that you just pointed out and how Biden is slipping. Especially among moderates, among older voters and Buttigieg is taking away he vote. The rise in Buttigieg over the last couple of months has been exclusively taking votes away from Biden, so Biden seems threatened and there's a new young fresh face. And his argument against that is saying this person is inexperienced, they've only run a small city, they don't have the experience to go up against Trump and show they can be commander-in-chief.
I don't know if it works at this point, that the Democratic Party is sort of trying to figure out what path it wants to take. And it looks like it's willing to take a chance on someone who's new to the party, who doesn't have that Washington experience. Washington experience is not in vogue right now among voters, especially, you know, in the age of Trump. So I'm not sure if that strategy is going to work, but it seems like Biden's shot at this point in trying to get a better outcome in New Hampshire.
KING: And we'll see. Buttigieg is being tested now. You start to rise in the race. You take more harpoons, and a lot of the candidates I think are regretting that they didn't get more aggressive earlier, because they've allowed them to get some steam.
One of the smart things he did after Iowa, you know, candidates are exhausted, right? They moved on to New Hampshire, a lot of them done, or had very few events for debate prep, Pete Buttigieg was everywhere. Look at this, he was doing interviews every where he could.
He was on CBS, he was on CNN. He was on CBS. He was on TMZ, you know, a podcast. He was just everywhere. You come out of Iowa with momentum, and you just keep your name out there.
And yesterday he knew what Biden said. Biden put up a new digital ad attacking his experience. Pete Buttigieg, last night, saying exactly.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUTTIGIEG: Now I know some are asking what business does the South Bend mayor have seeking the highest office in the land? You don't have decades of experience in the establishment. The city you're the mayor of isn't even the biggest city in the country. It's more like Manchester, New Hampshire.
(CHEERS)
To which I say that is very much the point.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: They're going to criticize you, hug it, right? Say, yes, I'm not from Washington.
CATHERINE LUCEY, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Well, this is the outsider argument that we have seen as very effective on both sides of the aisle. I mean, look who's president. People don't want traditional Washington experience. And this is an effective response here.
I mean, I think the other thing you have seen with Buttigieg, you're seeing it in New Hampshire, also in Iowa, is he's really trying to show that no one can outwork him. He made effective use of the time when other folks were stuck there in Washington for impeachment. He was all over Iowa. He really worked the small towns, the suburbs and the rural areas, and I think that's part of the reason you saw him sort of have a surprise outcome there.
So, that's -- those are places where this message of being a small town mayor works.
JACKIE KUCINICH, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: This has been his strategy the entire time with the media. Flood the zone with the media. I mean, we saw him on absolutely everything after the beginning of his campaign to get his name out there.
Now, even their pitches, even their stump speeches between Biden and Buttigieg, it's very stark. Biden talks about Trump a lot, on the front end of all the things that are wrong. And Buttigieg, he definitely talks about Trump, but it was more -- it was definitely a more forward looking pitch, at least in Iowa, at least the things I saw.
That said, we don't know how Buttigieg is going to handle going into places like Nevada and South Carolina where the voters get less white.
KING: Right, you have --
KUCINICH: That is going to be -- that has been his problem even going into this race and that from what we're seeing in the polls it continues to be.
KING: He's hoping that winning opens doors for him. We'll see in that's the case. It's a very important point as we move on the contest.
[08:10:01]
And we'll come to some of that a bit later. And let's not forget Sanders, underestimated in 2016, a lot of people understated him this time, he comes out of Iowa, essentially a tie in delegates, Buttigieg with a very narrow lead there. He won New Hampshire four years ago. Listen to him campaigning.
Again, you mentioned that Pete Buttigieg is trying to take advantage of the outsider thing, Bernie Sanders have been around a long time. But he's still talking revolution and says it makes people nervous.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SANDERS: The establishment is beginning to get nervous. How do we stop Bernie Sanders and his movement? Oh, my god, the people are standing up, fighting for justice, how do we stop that? Working people want decent wages, decent trade agreements. People want health care for all. How do we stop it? Well, they ain't going to stop it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: A very confident candidate. Biden and Klobuchar in a debate in the other night realizing we better try to stop him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Bernie says that you have to bring people together. And we have to have Medicare for All. What Bernie says and he says he wrote the damn thing, but he's unwilling to show us what the damn thing is going to cost.
KLOBUCHAR: Bernie and I work together all the time but we are not going to be able to out-divide the divider in chief. And I think w need someone to head up this ticket that actually brings people with her instead of shutting them out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: You look at Iowa, you look at a lead in New Hampshire. You look at $25 million raised just in the month of January. Bernie Sanders is in this to say and if he can get a New Hampshire win he would be in a powerful position out of the box.
MICHAEL SHEAR, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, I mean, you know, one of the challenges for Sanders has always been that there were two candidates that essentially were espousing the same very liberal progressive ideas, him and Elizabeth Warren.
That also though is the opportunity because taken together they had virtually half of the primary vote locked up and he knew that if Elizabeth Warren started to fade, he stood to capture much of that vote and while the other side of the party was split up between Biden and Klobuchar and Buttigieg. And that looks like that's what's happened and what is happening and that puts him in a very strong place.
KING: They're heading into the final week, and if you look at those poll numbers, you just see among the voters who describe themselves as liberals Sanders is doing this and Warren is doing.
SHEAR: Right.
KING: More on the race just ahead, including Joe Biden shakes up his campaign team and takes a much more personal tone after a fourth place gut punch in Iowa.
And speaking of Iowa, politicians say the darnedest things, math edition.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDERS: It is really sad that the Democratic party of Iowa if I may say so screwed up the counting process quite so badly.
KLOBUCHAR: New Hampshire has a huge role. You're the first primary. You're going to be able to count the votes.
ANDREW YANG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: One reason I'm pumped to be here in New Hampshire is you are all going to vote February 11th and when do you know when we'll find out the results? February 11th.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:17:18]
KING: It tells you something when a candidate changes his stump speech and tune. After months of bragging that he leads national polling matchup against President Trump, Joe Biden's New Hampshire close is much more emotional and more personal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I've lost a lot in my lifetime like a lot of you have. I lost my wife and daughter in an automobile accident. I lost my son to the long bout with brain cancer when he came home from Iraq, but I'll be damned if I'll stand by and lose this election to this man.
We cannot let it happen. We cannot let it happen. The character of this country is on the ballot. We must defeat Donald Trump. There is no choice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: A fourth place Iowa finish brought a Biden campaign team shakeup and the candidate seems to be bracing for another bad night Tuesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: This is a long race, I took a hit in Iowa. I'll probably take a hit here. Traditionally, Bernie won by 20 points last time. And usually, it's neighboring senators that do well. But I'm -- no matter what, I'm in this for the same reason. I'm going to -- we have to restore the soul of this country and bring back the middle class and make sure to bring people together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: All right. Jeff Zeleny is still with us live in New Hampshire. Jeff, Biden has lost what I would call his calling card. He's been saying from the beginning and national polls backed him up at the beginning, that he was the strongest candidate against President Trump, and that's what Democrats want most. But look at our new New Hampshire poll, who's the best -- who has the best chance to win in November? New Hampshire Democrats now say Bernie does. Joe Biden dropping to 23 percent after being at 41 percent just a month, an 18-point drop, how does he fix that? Can he fix that?
ZELENY: That is the big questions here. And, look, Joe Biden cannot wait to get out of New Hampshire. The question is what shape will he be in after the New Hampshire primary? And it's very much an open question. He has been making that electability argument again and again and again. And that really hasn't changed.
So, we asked him yesterday when he -- you know, you know, I was taking questions at 20 minutes or so what is your different about your message now, and he really believes or he says he believes that voters still want a more realistic plan. He said that, you know, they really will settle in on the fact that the Bernie Sanders' Medicare-for-All plan doesn't work, and they will find someone with the most experience.
But it's clear that voters are looking for his argument. It's unclear that his experience is something that equals electability in people's minds. So, you're right, John, that is something that the Biden campaign has held their hand on to this entire campaign. He's framed his entire candidacy around the premise that he's the strongest Democrat to take on President Trump.
It's unclear if that's true. These polls do not show that's true. Voters in Iowa certainly didn't think it's true. Voters in New Hampshire likely won't think it's true.
[08:20:02]
So, what does Joe Biden go to after that? That's why it's so eerily reminiscent here, making the experience argument. It sounded so much to me like what Bill and Hillary Clinton were doing 12 years ago against Barack Obama.
But w should point out that Hillary Clinton won the New Hampshire primary that year, she beat Barack Obama, stunned the Obama campaign. They thought that they were, you know, off the races here.
So, let's keep in mind, anything can happen in New Hampshire. We have people firing at each other from all different directions here. We don't know how all of that works.
But we do know that the Biden campaign is in the fight of their lives. They can't wait to leave here to get on to Nevada and South Carolina, hoping that southern firewall holds. But again, it depends on what shape he's in when he leaves here, John.
KING: New Hampshire primary 2008 was a long, fun night for me, from perspective. Candidates don't view it that way. But counting votes is always fun.
Another candidate, another candidate that faces a huge test in New Hampshire is the senator from neighboring Massachusetts, Elizabeth Warren was the Democratic star of the summer. She has been struggling in the winter, third in Iowa. That's OK if you do very well in New Hampshire but she's third in New Hampshire as well.
She says not to worry.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WARREN: I've been winning unwinnable fights pretty much all of my life. There are a lot of people who talk about what races aren't winnable or what kind of people can't win. The way I see it, they're going to keep saying that right up until we get in the fight, we persist and we win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Fourth in New Hampshire I should have said in our poll behind the former vice president and Sanders and Buttigieg.
Can she run third or fourth again and stay in the race? Does she have a Nevada/South Carolina firewall? She's well-organized in places but that has to translate into victories at some point, doesn't it?
OLORUNNIPA: Yes, and New Hampshire is in her neighborhood. If she's not competing successfully against Bernie Sanders in New Hampshire, what's the argument for other states where she's going to be able to get that liberal vote and it showed in a poll that just was released a few minutes ago that the liberal vote, the progressive voters, self- described, are going for Bernie Sanders, they're casting their lot with Bernie Sanders. They're leaving Elizabeth Warren behind and if she can't make that argument in New Hampshire, it's a difficult map for her just statistically, even with all the rhetoric to be able to prove that for others.
KING: And a difficult map for everybody financially. I just want to go through the map very quickly. If you look by the end of November only 4 percent of the delegates will be chosen by the end of November. Four states, right, Nevada and South Carolina follow Iowa and New Hampshire.
But then you move on here, you get -- by Super Tuesday, early march, then up to 40 percent of the delegates. Look at the states involved California, Texas, New York, some other big -- yes, some other big ones, Michael Bloomberg is waiting with a checkbook. He's already on TV on all these places.
And then you get to the end of March, and you're at 60 percent of the delegates by then. Again, you're competing in a lot of places by once. You can't be in all of the places at once.
So if you have money, unlimited money like a Bloomberg who is starting to inch up in the polls, then you're a threat.
KUCINICH: I'm sure someone like Elizabeth Warren would rather run at a Michael Bloomberg because her message is the polar opposite. But, you're right, in that Elizabeth Warren is well-organized. Her Iowa operation was massive. "Politico" wrote in October that her Nevada operation was a monster.
But the fact that it's not translating into votes is a problem, and financially, and from a momentum perspective, because, you know, you can organize, you can knock on doors, but if you can't win where does that leave?
LUCEY: I think some of what Elizabeth Warren and certainly say, Amy Klobuchar, are hanging onto is that it's still fluid, there's a lot more movement before we get to closer to the candidate -- and some things can happen. Someone exits the race. Does Pete Buttigieg, the attacks affect him? I think there's -- that is hope. But I think the other thing too is that typically, if you're not in top two in New Hampshire, there isn't a really a path forward. And so, it gets harder and harder as the time goes on.
KING: The money starts to dry up too.
All right. I'm going to keep you all hostage a bit longer.
Mr. Zeleny in New Hampshire, you can get a cup of coffee, I appreciate you getting up early for us on a Sunday.
Up next, the president's post-impeachment mood and moves. Two witnesses critical to the Democrats' case get fired.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:28:07]
KING: For the few Republicans foolish enough to believe President Trump would somehow adopt restraint as a lesson of the impeachment saga, the giant clue to the contrary came Thursday. The president staged an event in the East Room at the White House calling it a post- trial celebration. But most of all, it was an airing of grievances.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We went through hell, unfairly, did nothing wrong. Did nothing wrong.
We were treated unbelievably unfairly. Little did we know we were running against some very, very bad and evil people.
Lieutenant colonel Vindman and his twin brother, right? We had some people that really -- amazing.
Adam Schiff is a vicious, horrible person. Nancy Pelosi is a horrible person. It's been very unfair for my family. It's been very unfair to the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: From vindictive words to actions on Friday, the firing of two key impeachment inquiry witnesses, the National Security Council aide, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, we heard the president mentioned there, and the ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland. Add in a weekend of tweets and retweets attacking others who supported
impeachment, Democrats warned of a chilling effect on speaking out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI (D-IL): I thought it was disgraceful. It was clearly retribution for them telling the truth and a signal to others to discourage or deter or prevent them from doing the same.
REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D-IL): You know, I hope that the senators who said that this was a minor matter or that the president has learned his lesson, no, he hasn't.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: CNN has learned that several Republican senators urged the president not to fire Sondland. But a Trump aide defended the firing, saying, quote, necessary, describing them as, quote, flushing out the pipes.
Anyone who thought the president was going to show restraint after this was foolish. That's a kind word. Will there be more? Will we expect more?
[08:29:52]
MICHAEL SHEAR, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": I mean I think -- I think there very well might be. I mean, you know, not only did the President, you know, deliver that kind of grievance- filled rant in the White House, not only did he take action, but the White House more broadly has signaled, his press secretary said, people are going to pay for waging this impeachment campaign against him.
And I think, you know, any restraint that you would normally think a politician, a president would have, certainly Bill Clinton when he was in essentially the same position after his acquittal in the impeachment trial went the other direction. And you know, tried to offer some contrition and apologies and that isn't this president. And I think as you've said, John, like anybody that expected that from him is ridiculous.
KING: And in this case, it sent a pretty clear signal. Vindman had given word -- he was supposed, he'd transfer back to the Pentagon at some point, he had given world that he would probably leave at end of the month.
Sondland, according to some sources, had indicated he understood he was not going to be the President's favorite guy anymore and that he was going to look to move on. So they did this before those guys could do it on their own terms.
They did it on purpose. They marched Vindman out of the White House. They marched his twin brother out of the White House.
You write, Toluse -- in a piece in "The Post", "The pugilistic response to impeachment has been endorsed by some of Trump's closest allies, indicating that vengeance will likely be a key theme of the President's reelection effort."
So we're in February now, we're going to have a year of this?
OLORUNNIPA: Yes. If we go through the President's realities, this is a theme of his rallies. He's the most powerful man in the world, but he paints himself as this big victim of the deep state of the government bureaucracy.
And he thinks that works for him. He believes that by attacking other people, by showing that he's fighting against the government, he can connect with every man and every woman in small town America and you see that at his rallies. I think you would expect that. We reported that he's looking at other people he may want to fire.
You have to remember that he was impeached and acquitted and now he feels unrestrained. He feels like, what are they going to do, impeach me again? And --
KUCINICH: I mean --
OLORUNNIPA: It's possible but I think he does believe that at this point he's gone through the worst and now he can do basically whatever he wants.
KING: Right. And if you look -- if you just look at the list -- forgive me for interrupting.
If you look -- Vindman ousted, Sondland recalled, Yovanovitch even before this recalled. Bill Taylor resigned early. Mike Pompeo was going over there and apparently didn't want to take a photo with Ambassador Taylor so he left. Jennifer Williams left her job with the Vice President's early. Fiona Hill resigned earlier. Tim Morrison resigned from the White House. Kurt Volker resigned.
You do have the State Department officials and this is Laura Cooper said, the Defense Department, the inspector general of the intelligence community there. Some other people who Mr. Trump has vented at a little bit are still around.
LUCEY: There is a handful still, a lot of them have moved on already. Certainly we're watching to see if anything else happens. But the sources told CNN that this is necessary. A number of the people I have spoken to, you know, close to this White House, really did describe this as something they thought would happen long ago. They said these are people who defy the President. Described Sondland as disloyal, for example
And so the people close to him are really defending this as a necessary move meaning that you're not really going to see a shift in this kind of behavior or tone.
KING: And there was one Republican, Mitt Romney, who voted to convict the President on one of the counts. He went to the Senate floor and he said I know what's about to happen to me. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SENATOR MITT ROMNEY (R), UTAH: Corrupting an election to keep oneself in office is perhaps the most abusive and destructive violation of one's oath of office that I can imagine. I'm sure to hear abuse from the President and his supporters.
Does anyone seriously believe that I would consent to these consequences other than from an unescapable conviction that my oath before God demanded of me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: So Romney would be a target for the President. He was in a Twitter fight over the weekend with Joe Manchin, Democratic senator from West Virginia that the President though would vote to acquit him, he did not. And so the President was attacking Joe Manchin. Joe Manchin was actually firing back which I found strange in the sense that Trump did win that state by 42 points. But Manchin is fighting back.
And then, of course, we had the ultimate symbol of Washington's dysfunction. The President walked in to the State of the Union address. Nancy Pelosi tries to shake his hand. He turns his back. At the end of the speech, she rips it up. The two of them not friends.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nancy Pelosi is a horrible person. And she wanted to impeach a long time ago. When she said I pray for the President, I pray for the President -- you know, she may pray, but she prays for the opposite. But I doubt she prays at all.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: He's talking about things that he knows little about -- faith and prayer. I don't need any lessons from anybody, especially the President of the United States, about dignity.
I feel very liberated. I feel very liberated.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: The two most powerful people in American politics, essentially polar opposites in a very high stakes campaign year.
[08:34:55]
OLORUNNIPA: Yes, the President feels vengeful at this point. And he is on a trail of trying to take out revenge on his enemies, whether it's Mitt Romney, whether it's House Speaker Pelosi.
This is a president that attacked John McCain even after he died and he believed that anyone who shows disloyalty or votes against him is in for attacks, relentless attacks, personal attacks. And I think that's what we can expect for the next -- (CROSSTALKING)
LUCEY: Sorry -- before the President made those remarks at the White House, there was an -- even by today's Washington -- amazing scene at the National Prayer Breakfast.
OLORUNNIPA: Right.
KING: Right.
LUCEY: Which is typically, you know, a nonpartisan event. Lawmakers, officials from both parties from, you know, multiple faiths. And the President was there with Nancy Pelosi seated just a few seats away.
As he railed against, you know, Democrats, complained about impeachment without naming her but clearly referencing her comments about her praying for him. So this was sort of a particularly searing moment I think in this --
KUCINICH: The President will weaponize anything that he thinks someone else is using against him which is why you heard him attacking Mitt Romney and Nancy Pelosi's faith as, you know, false because he -- that's what he does. If he thinks something is being used against him he'll do -- try to do the exact same thing.
KING: There we go.
Up next, the early 2020 map and a jobs report that gives the President plenty of reasons to smile.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KING: As Democrats take the next step this week in picking their 2020 nominee there's one undeniable shift in the campaign terrain. President Trump, never to be underestimated anyway, is enjoying a significant uptick in his political standing.
[08:39:58]
KING: Let's take a look at some of the symbols (ph). First -- we'll get to the map in just a minute -- but as we enter the campaign early on, right now you would say the President starts at about 204 electoral votes; a Democratic candidate, whoever it is, 200 based on these strong states.
But let's take a look at some of they dynamics under way right now. Here's the President's greatest gift. The January jobs report came out this week -- 225,000 new jobs created just last month.
The jobs growth of the American economy continues. The expansion continues -- 3.6 percent unemployment rate. Wage growth also starting to head up some. The President can talk about that on the campaign trail and you see the effect on his numbers.
This president has struggled, his personal -- his job approval rating sometimes under 40 percent. Not at the moment. The President in the Gallup poll, his presidential approval rating up to 49 percent.
And when you ask people just about the economy how is the president of the United States handling the economy? Look at that number and look at the trajectory. 63 percent give the President a good grade on the economy. Half of Americans give him a good grade overall. And the lines are moving this way as we head into the campaign year. Good news for a president seeking reelection.
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, if you break down some of the numbers here, yes, nationally some of the Democrats still lead the President in the national polls. But that's not how we pick presidents -- remember 2016.
In the Trump states, the President strong. In the Clinton states, the Democratic candidates are even stronger. But this will come down to the swing states. Former vice president, Biden relatively strong against the President. Bernie Sanders strong against the President. The other candidates in play -- Warren and Buttigieg -- that's close, one point there.
So let's take a quick look at the map. If you start here, and the President has 204 electoral votes of the red Trump states not that hard to get there because North Carolina is viewed as a swing state.
North Carolina tends to lean red in presidential politics. Florida in recent elections, leans red in presidential politics. Arizona -- Democrats think they can win it this year, let's see. Its history is it leans red in presidential politics. Just those three states get the President to 259 -- 259
Look at the map. Look at the map. He could get there easily just by winning Pennsylvania again. That would get him over the top. Let's say that one goes blue.
The President could get here by winning Michigan again. That would get him over the top.
He could do it with a combination of New Hampshire and Wisconsin. So when you look at the map now, the President has a viable path even if he loses the popular vote again -- a very viable path or paths to reelection.
One of his calling cards from the State of the Union address -- the economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Jobs are booming. Incomes are soaring. Poverty is plummeting. Crime is falling. Confidence is surging. And our country is thriving and highly respected again.
I say to the people of our great country and to the members of Congress, the state of our union is stronger than ever before.
(END VIDEO CLIP) KING: Whatever you think of the President, especially those of you watching at home or around the world, you have to look at these numbers. And if you're a Democrat you should be nervous. If you're a Trump supporter, you should be encouraged -- a long way to November -- but you should be encouraged.
I showed you the basic approval, the job approval number and the economical approval number.
Here is another factor if you're an incumbent president. This is from the Gallup poll. Are you satisfied with your personal life? 90 percent of Americans say they're satisfied with the way their lives are right now. 62 percent, economic conditions are good or excellent. If you feel good about your life you're not inclined to change things -- right?
OLORUNNIPA: Yes. Every incumbent president would die for numbers like this on the economy, on personal satisfaction. President Trump is a unique president and he has not ever had an approval rating above 50 percent and he's been divisive so he has some unique challenges. But the numbers in terms of the economy are the wind at his back when it comes to reelection.
And the fact that Democrats are struggling to find a standard-bearer makes him a presumptive front-runner.
KUCINICH: Right.
SHEAR: And one of things -- look we have a story in the paper today -- one of the things that the President's successful fund-raising and the building of a massive campaign operation is going to let him do, that the sort of chaotic Trump campaign of 2016 wasn't as able to do is a lot of the sort of targeting the message.
KING: Right.
SHEAR: So that, you know, in those swing states you manage to sort of target your red meat to your base to keep that with you. But then, you know, if you're the Trump campaign you talk to some of those suburban voters, some of the voters of color that maybe have been less happy with your behavior, with some of the kind of, you know, grievance, you know, that the President always offers and you sort of tailor a different message, a message built around the economy, built around the feeling that people have that things are pretty good.
KING: Even -- you may not like me but I'm good for you.
SHEAR: Exactly.
And so you won't -- with that much money -- all the voters don't necessarily see the same image. They all live in different --
(CROSSTALKING)
KING: They can afford to make mistakes too because they can test things now. SHEAR: Right.
LUCEY: You really saw the scale of that operation too this week in Iowa as the Democrats were sort of struggling, trying to fight it out, the results weren't clear. The President's campaign sent in 80 surrogates. They went all -- I mean in a race -- it was -- they wanted to show strength. They wanted to, I think, you know, sort of create some, you know, drama on their own side.
[08:45:02]
LUCEY: But they sent in 80 people including the President's sons, you know top cabinet officials, lawmakers, they went all over the state. They put on a huge show.
KING: A lot of people don't like each other on that plan.
(CROSSTALKING)
KING: Look, the President's gloating right now. He's actually poking at the Democrats. I just want to show something he tweeted. He's tweeted this before. But this image of Trump 2020. Trump 2024, Trump 2028, Trump 2032 -- it just goes on and on and on -- a president forever.
(CROSSTALKING)
KING: He enjoys trolling the other guys.
KUCINICH: He certainly does. And I think for Democrats -- I mean we do not know who we are going to be talking about next month, next week, frankly. Maybe New Hampshire. But I think that's what Democrats are banking on that maybe we won't be talking about the economy come November.
It's always a possibility but there's a long time between now and the election. And we'll see -- who the Democrats put up against him.
KING: Let me let you say that one more time. We don't know what we'll be talking about next week --
KUCINICH: In an hour.
KING: -- next month, in an hour.
KUCINICH: Tomorrow.
KING: But if you're an incumbent early in the election, you're feeling pretty good about where you are right now.
Our reporters share from their notebooks next including an inside look at the government's scramble now to deal with the coronavirus.
[08:46:08]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KING: Let's head one last time around the INSIDE POLITICS table. Ask our great reporters to share a little something from their notebooks to help get you out ahead on the big political news just around the corner.
Catherine.
LUCEY: Yes -- John. Well, one of the things I'm looking at this week is going into New Hampshire. Obviously the big question is does it clarify this very messy Democratic race? But another thing to think about is what the Democratic turnout looks like.
Ahead of the Iowa caucuses there was a lot of expectation that there would be record high numbers and we didn't see that. In fact, the numbers were a little above what they were in 2016 but they didn't come close to the 2008 numbers when nearly 240,000 people came out in the race that obviously put Barack Obama on his path to the White House.
So this has some Democrats worried. Out of the midterms in 2018 they saw record turnout. They think that this is what they need going into the fall to take on President Trump.
And so there's a couple of reasons that could be contributing to this. You know, Iowa, for example, has been trending more Republican. There's a lot of undecided voters and that might be playing a role. But certainly we're hearing from candidates and we're hearing from the top folks in the party that this is a worry.
And so this will be another chance for us to kind of see if this is a trend that continues.
KING: Count the votes. Enthusiasm gap, as we say. We shall see.
Michael.
SHEAR: So in between all of the impeachment and 2020 news another big story is the emergence of coronavirus in China. It's obviously mostly a political health problem but it also provides some political challenges for this President.
The first Americans who have died of the virus emerged over this weekend. That's going to put pressure on the President to act more aggressively. But the President's instinct based on his sort of border management -- usual border security approach -- has been to initially block travel of foreigners who have been to China but not limit American travel.
Public health experts say that's unlikely to have much of an effect on the spread of the virus. What you need to do as a president when you're dealing with something like a virus is to listen to those public health experts, the members of the bureaucracy who actually have experience in this. But the President's well-known disdain for what he calls the deep state is unlikely to really help that issue.
The other issue is distraction. Will the President focus on this in 2014? When President Obama was dealing with the ebola situation, he really made it a central focus of his administration for a time. So far this president seems more focused on retribution for impeachment than on focusing on playing a central role in this issue.
KING: That one is scary.
Toluse.
OLORUNNIPA: President Trump was in Iowa just a few days before the Iowa caucuses. Tomorrow he's going to New Hampshire right before the New Hampshire primary. Vice President Pence will be in Nevada before the Democrats have their Nevada caucuses in a couple of weeks.
What is this all about? The President, the Republicans want to meddle in the Democratic primary. There is a Republican primary in these places as well, but they want to soak up some of the media attention from these various but also sow dissension within the Democratic Party. Try to have the Democratic primary go on as long as possible while, you know, having it as nasty as possible by saying it was rigged against Bernie.
So I would expect more of that as we see these primaries continue.
KING: Mischievous president.
Jackie.
KUCINICH: You know, as I was traveling around Iowa last week, talking to voters about why they were supporting different candidates -- one of the things I began hearing was that voters weren't -- some voters weren't going to support vice president Joe Biden because of the -- of President Trump's smear campaign against Biden and his son Hunter.
Now they weren't mad at Joe Biden. They actually like Joe Biden, but they were worried about that issue muddying the waters much like other issues did for Hillary Clinton in 2016.
His rivals, Biden's rivals have mostly stayed away from that issue. In fact, Pete Buttigieg the other night defended him, but there isn't a whole lot of polling on this, but I can tell you some voters are taking this into consideration as they're weighing who to ultimately support in these early states.
KING: 2016 memories.
Four years after it gave him his first win as a presidential candidate, New Hampshire this week looks ready to make a very powerful statement about President Trump's grip on the Republican Party.
A cult, is what former Congressman Joe Walsh calls today's GOP. He said that as he dropped his 2020 challenge this past week after getting just 1 percent support in Iowa. That leaves the former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld as the last best hope of the never- Trumpers. It's worth a quick peek Tuesday night to see if Weld can fare any better than low single digits. The last two times America had a one-term president that incumbent was wounded in the New Hampshire primary.
[08:54:51]
KING: Ted Kennedy got 37 percent against Jimmy Carter back in 1980. Pat Buchanan also received 37 percent of the vote and bruising President George H.W. Bush in 1992. Those troubles were a harbinger of general election weakness for Carter and Bush.
President Trump has plenty of obstacles to winning reelection, but he is counting on the states that began his 2016 win streak to make very, very clear his grip on the GOP is beyond rock solid.
That's it for INSIDE POLITICS. Hope you can catch us week days as well, noon Eastern -- a very busy week ahead. Please join us.
Up next -- don't go anywhere -- "STATE OF THE UNION" with Jake Tapper. His guests this Sunday include the New Hampshire front-runner Senator Bernie Sanders, former Mayor Pete Buttigieg, plus the Democratic National Committee chairman, Tom Perez.
Thanks again for sharing your Sunday. Have a great day.
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