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Trump and Bush Trade Words; Snow Ahead of Primary; Clinton Rips Sanders Backers. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired February 08, 2016 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:21] BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Here we go. Top of the hour. You're watching CNN on this Monday. I'm Brooke Baldwin, live here in Manchester, New Hampshire, on this primary eve.

And let me tell you, you can't see it right now, it is pouring snow as I speak here in New Hampshire. And might that be a factor in all the voting? We'll wait and see.

By the way, we're just ten hours away from the first votes getting underway here in New Hampshire. Donald Trump still at the top of the pack of Republicans heading into tomorrow's vote.

But the big story here is the battle for number two. It is shaping up to be a battle royale. Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, John Kasich, Jeb Bush, in a four-way fight for second place. And, look at this, the Republican hopefuls swarming the state today in a last-minute push for support and less than a day before this first presidential primary, running war of words between Donald Trump and Jeb Bush, it is getting mighty personal. Both of them talked to CNN within this last hour about this whole back and forth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm a joyful warrior. There's a difference between just sitting back and watching someone try to hijack a party that I believe will allow people to rise up again. We're in the heat of battle right now and we're all big boys. We all can take it. I get a lot of incoming from Donald Trump. I don't know if you've seen it.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, you do.

BUSH: I get more than my fair share. And I'm the only one taking him on. Everybody else runs away from the bully.

BASH: Why do you think that is?

BUSH: Because they don't want to be attacked by the bully. There's no other explanation. If someone is trying to hijack your party, believes, until recently, that higher taxes is better than reforming the tax code, believes a single payer system works well in other countries, believes in, you know, is pro-choice, is anti-Second Amendment, this is not that far in his past, all those things and now he's the - on the vanguard of, you know, conservative cause? As a conservative, I find that offensive.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (via telephone): He's not a guy that can be president. He doesn't have what it takes. And he goes around saying about me, he's a gifted politician, a highly gifted politician, about me, and then he goes, he's a great entertainer, but then he goes really hostile because he sees how well I'm doing. And I hear him lying. He - you know, number one, I'm pro-life. He says I'm not. He says I'm not on the Second Amendment. Nobody's stronger on the Second Amendment. He's a desperate person. He's a sad and, you know, he's a pathetic person. He doesn't even use his last name in his ads. He's a sad person who has gone absolutely crazy. I mean this guy is a - he's a nervous wreck. I've never seen anything like it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So that's just a taste for you. I can tell you right now, Donald Trump is holding a rally in the town of Londonderry, and that is where my colleague Athena Jones is standing by.

And, Athena, when you look specifically at this back and forth between Jeb Bush and Donald Trump, you just heard the words loser, liar, whiner, pathetic, desperate, crazy, nervous wreck, I mean we're talking about men who want to be president of the United States, not third graders.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's really something, Brooke. You're right, it's gotten - the tone of this fight between the two of them has gotten increasingly heated and increasingly personal just in the last few days. We know that Jeb Bush has been a top target of Donald Trump since almost the very beginning of Trump's campaign. That's when he labeled Jeb low energy, said people were falling asleep at his events.

Now as this town hall that just got underway a few minutes ago, not even five minutes into his remarks, Donald Trump took it to Jeb Bush again, saying that he has - he's a stiff who's not going to go anywhere. You've heard what he told Wolf Blitzer. He's also called Bush a spoiled child who is having some sort of breakdown, is an embarrassment to his family and would be an embarrassment to the Republican Party.

Now, of course, Jeb Bush is touting the fact that he says he is the only one taking on Trump, whether it's on the issue of eminent domain in the debate on Saturday night, or on issues of temperament, talking about Trump speaking badly about women and Muslims and people with disabilities.

And so now even on Twitter today, both of them are going back and forth. I believe we have some of the tweets that have been tweeted by each of them. From Donald Trump we have him saying, everyone - "everybody is laughing at Jeb Bush. Spent $100 million and is at bottom of pack. A pathetic figure." Meanwhile, Jeb Bush tweeting, "@realdonaldtrump, you aren't just a loser, you are a lair and a whiner. John McCain is a hero. Over and out."

And that last line is one he mentioned yesterday, Jeb Bush did, at his rally and got a big, big response from the crowd. But I've got to tell you, at this crowd, Donald Trump got a big response when he bashed Bush. So they're both appeal to the folks who are coming out to see them, but it's gotten really ugly, Brooke.

[14:05:02] BALDWIN: It has. Athena Jones, thank you. Ugly, heated, whatever you want to call it, that's what's happening here in a very chilly New Hampshire.

Let me bring in my panel to discuss here. I have Andy Smith, he is a political scientist and pollster at the University of New Hampshire. And Ryan Williams is here, a former spokesman for Governor Mitt Romney.

So great to have both of you here.

I have to begin with you, Ryan. Having been in the trenches with the Romney team, you know, to watch Trump and Jeb Bush, I mean they're equally guilty in using this sort of language. I call it third grade language and I kind of feel like that's what it is. Why, though, to you think Trump is hammering so hard on Jeb Bush?

RYAN WILLIAMS, FORMER SPOKESMAN FOR GOV. MITT ROMNEY: Because Jeb Bush is the only candidate right now taking on Donald Trump. He's the frontrunner but he -

BALDWIN: But others have in the past.

WILLIAMS: But they've not done it strongly enough. They didn't do it on the debate on Saturday night. No one is tough enough right now besides Jeb Bush to stand up to Donald Trump on policy and on the outrageous statements that he's made. He's mocked disabled people. He's insulted war veterans. He's insulted women. He's talked about banning people because of their religion. This is stuff that goes beyond politics. It's outrageous. And Jeb Bush is the only candidate right now who has the courage to stand up and denounce it.

BALDWIN: Do you think there's anything to, Andy, you know, to use analogies that have been made about Donald Trump, about being maybe like this schoolyard bully, and he chooses a target that's like, he's the nice guy. Is there an element of jealousy or anything more to this?

ANDREW SMITH, POLITICAL SCIENTIST, UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE: There possibly could be, but, frankly, he's been quite effective using this type of tactics through the campaign.

BALDWIN: He being Donald Trump.

SMITH: Right.

BALDWIN: Yes.

SMITH: He's - early on, when people came up and attacked him, he hit them back. And they either didn't respond or were hurt in polls after that.

BALDWIN: But -

SMITH: So I think that he's - he's seen that this works for him and he's continuing.

BALDWIN: But why not hit Marco Rubio? Because coming out of Iowa, he was so strong. I mean I don't think he had the best debate performance Saturday night here in Manchester, but why not Donald Trump take on Marco Rubio?

SMITH: I think part of that was that, as you said earlier, Bush has been the only candidate really attacking Trump and he's gone after people who have attacked him first.

WILLIAMS: Trump is very thin skinned. He attacks whatever's in his field of vision. There's no strategy to it. And Jeb's clearly gotten under his skin. He's called out insecurities, mocking disabled people, attacked him for his misuse of eminent domain, and that's really irritated Trump.

BALDWIN: What about, since you're on the ground here in New Hampshire, what about the Chris Christie attacks? I mean relentless on Marco Rubio, including on that debate stage. And maybe that works for him in New Jersey. Does it work in presidential politics? Does it work in New Hampshire?

SMITH: It's always a risky move to attack another candidate in that fashion, particularly if you continue it for a long period of time because sometimes you get the mud that you're throwing comes back on yourself -

BALDWIN: Yes.

SMITH: And the candidate who stays out of it and keeps clean rises up between you. Christie's attack I thought though was a little bit different because it was on character. And, frankly, if you go back to founding fathers, what people should be voting for a president on is based on their honesty, character and integrity, not necessarily their experience on things but - or their past political experience. And I think that that was an effective way to go after Rubio to make the point that this guy, while he may be smart, while he may be a good politician, he just doesn't have the strength of character, depth of character yet that comes with experience.

BALDWIN: As we know, Donald Trump, I think he said yesterday to Dana Bash, you know, he will not be happy with number two. He's hoping for the win here in New Hampshire. But really the race is on for that number two spot. It's the governor's plus Ted Cruz. What do they have to do in the final 24 hours here?

WILLIAMS: Well, there are a lot of undecided voters right now who are making up their minds in the next -

BALDWIN: Lots of undecided voters here.

WILLIAMS: Tonight or tomorrow morning. And the candidates need to show why they're the best person to emerge in that mainstream lane to take on Trump and stop Trump. And Rubio had momentum I think coming into this state after Iowa, but he had a terrible debate performance. It slowed that momentum. And right now it's up for grabs. Governor Bush, and the other governors, are going around the state right now talking about executive experience, leadership, why they have the temperament and the experience that's needed to be a commander in chief on day one, and why Rubio really fell flat and just showed that he wasn't up to the job on Saturday night.

BALDWIN: Final thought from you.

SMITH: This is the time where campaign organizations can help, not necessarily get you over the top. But the Bush campaign, and I believe the Kasich campaign, have strong organizations that might help them out in these last couple days.

BALDWIN: OK. Andy Smith and Ryan Williams, thank you so much.

By the way, we'll talk to a Donald Trump surrogate minutes from now, get his take on why attack Jeb Bush specifically.

Meantime, Bill Clinton - Bill Clinton accusing backers of Bernie Sanders of sexist attacks against Hillary Clinton. We have that for you.

Also, Madeleine Albright telling female voters there is a special place in hell for women who don't support Hillary Clinton. We'll talk live from women for - with - from both sides.

And New Hampshire, as I mentioned, it is already pouring snow. More is on the way. Of course, this being the all-important eve before the primary. How might this affect voting? Stay with me. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin. And this is special live coverage.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:13:43] BALDWIN: A strong winter storm hitting New Hampshire and much of the New England area at this very moment. It is bringing heavy snow, winds and cold. Excuse me, ma'am, can you just - there we go. There we go. On the eve of tomorrow's primary, let's talk about this storm and another one, Jennifer Gray, potentially moving into tomorrow. It's all everyone's talking about, obviously, here, you know, in New Hampshire because of the voting. But, of course, if you live in New Hampshire, they're like, we got this. No problem.

JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Right. Yes, for people in New Hampshire, they're like, what, a couple of inches of snow, what's new? This is nothing. But, yes, we are getting snow in New Hampshire, but this system is moving out very, very quickly. So, Brooke, the good news is, by tomorrow things are going to be a-OK in New Hampshire. We aren't expecting much more than just a couple of flurries in New Hampshire for tomorrow.

So the snow still continuing, especially for the southern portion of the state. Of course, this is nothing compared to what areas like The Cape are getting where they're expected to get about a foot of snow. New Hampshire, a couple of inches. And by the time we get through tomorrow morning, maybe an additional inch or two at most.

But we still have those winter weather advisories out for all of Maine, including New Hampshire, all of New Hampshire, in that through tomorrow morning. That goes until the early morning hours of tomorrow.

So additional snowfall for today and say tonight. We're looking at maybe two inches for the majority of the state. Maybe southern sections of - maybe a little more than that, three inches, maybe four tops. But we're really not expecting much at all.

[14:15:05] The good news is, here's that system that you're seeing right now, Brooke. That's moving out. Here's the next system. We have one right on its heels. That one's going to pass south of New Hampshire, bring snow and rain to portions of the mid-Atlantic by the time we head into Tuesday. So, New Hampshire, perfectly positioned right now. The storm moving out today, one passing to its south tomorrow.

Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK, Jennifer Gray, thank you very much.

Meantime, Bill Clinton, back on politics here, accusing backers of Bernie Sanders of sexist attacks against his wife. We'll explore that.

Also ahead, Madeleine Albright telling women voters there's a special place in hell for women who don't support women like Hillary Clinton. Let's talk to the ladies, one of whom supports Bernie Sanders, one of whom supports Hillary Clinton, how this is going to go. We'll discuss, coming up.

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[14:20:26] BALDWIN: Welcome back. You're watching CNN on this Monday afternoon live here in Manchester, New Hampshire. Thrilled to be talking politics today.

Hillary Clinton, by the way, is also here in town. She's stumping together with her husband, her daughter, and in her race against Bernie Sanders, it is not class but gender that's getting a lot of play today. Today, Senator Sanders in Nashua, New Hampshire, was hailing the progress of women.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Women and their male allies stood together and said, nope, sorry, women will not be third class citizens in America. Women will be able to have the jobs they want. Women will be able to control their own bodies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Might that be the counterpunch to what the pounding really he and his supporters got to Bill Clinton just yesterday. The former president lashing out at the, quote, "vicious trolling" supporters of his wife were hit with from backers of Sanders. He is the dominant frontrunner with just one day to go before the primary here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: People who have gone online to defend Hillary and explain, just explain why they supported her, have been subject to vicious trolling and attacks that are literally too profane often, not to mention sexist, to repeat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Senator Sanders has condemned the sexist comments. Clinton saying he doesn't want supporters to go that low. With me now, CNN's Jeff Zeleny, who is at the Clinton event in Manchester at this hour.

Jeff, any mention of any of these same sort of themes, sexism, from any of the Clintons at the rally?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, it was interesting. Hillary Clinton, for her part, actually called out Senator Sanders by name for what she said was raising some $200,000 from Goldman Sachs while they were in the room. And what she means by that is a story that our Eric Bradner (ph) had over the weekend about how Bernie Sanders talks a lot about not raising money from Goldman Sachs and other hedge fund folks and lobbyists, but he, in fact, has attended a lot of Democratic senatorial campaign committee events. And so she was calling him out directly.

That's what got Bill Clinton so fired up over the weekend about this. So a little bit in the weeds they're going back and forth. But Bill Clinton is frustrated, I'm told, by his advisors, that Senator Sanders is not getting the scrutiny or being as honest about his own record. And we actually caught up with him just a second ago and he said, look, I am not attacking Senator Sanders, I am just reporting what's in the press reports with these specific stories about him fundraising.

But, Brooke, it's all playing out against the backdrop of the Clinton campaign is trying to narrow the gap among voters, particularly women voters. They believe that if they can sort of draw more support among women voters, that that will be key for them here in New Hampshire. But we caught up with an interesting pair of voters, a grandmother and a granddaughter. They're both Bernie Sanders supporters. They were once Hillary Clinton supporters. And listen to what they said that gives you a sense of the dynamics that are going on inside this race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMILY SMITH, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: Well, I did start out this election supporting Hillary because I thought, you know, it's time to have a woman president. You finally just took a huge leap and bound electing someone who is African-American. Why can't we have a woman. But then Bernie ran for president and I love his ideas, you know. It's outrageous. I'm going to be $80,000 in debt. It's time for a political revolution and it's time to pay attention to the middle class because we are diminishing. ANN KAISER, NEW HAMPSHIRE VOTER: That ceiling will be shattered at

some time. And I just think it takes the right person to do that. And right now she is not the right person for me. I think that she'd be very vulnerable. She would be hit so hard in so many sectors that I think it would be tough for her to win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: So you heard Ann Kaiser there, the grandmother, who supported Hillary Clinton eight years ago. She said, look, I think she'll have a tough time in the general election if she would get there. So those are some of the challenges, the uphill battle that the Clinton campaign is battling here, trying to win over some of those voters.

Now, of course, there are plenty of supporters on the other side of the fence. We saw so many of them here just a few minutes ago in Manchester, Brooke. But that is the dynamic going into this primary tomorrow. It's why the Clinton campaign is trying so hard here to win over at least some of those voters.

Brooke.

BALDWIN: They are. They are. Jeff Zeleny, thank you so much.

Meantime, Bernie Sanders' supporters aren't the only ones offending female voters. Some big-name Clinton supporters are also in a bit of hot water today. What is more, the ones hurling the perceived insults are two icons of modern day feminism. "Ms Magazine" co-founder Gloria Steinem and former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright here. Albright used a saying she actually often repeats here, but this time it was at a Hillary Clinton campaign event and it didn't fly well with women who are not voting for Bernie Sanders.

[14:20:23] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MADELEINE ALBRIGHT, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: And a lot of you younger women don't think you have to - it's been done. It's not done. And you have to help. Hillary Clinton will always be there for you. And just remember, there's a special place in hell for women who don't help each other.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Gloria Steinem has already apologized for what she told to Bill Maher about young women who are choosing to back Senator Sanders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GLORIA STEINEM: When you're young you're thinking, you know, where are the boys? The boys are with Bernie or, you know -

BILL MAHER, LATE NIGHT TALK SHOW HOST: Ooh. Now, if I said that -

STEINEM: No. No, no, you can say -

MAHER: Yes, that's for (ph) Bernie, because that's where the boys are -

STEINEM: No, no, but -

MAHER: You'd - you'd - you'd swat me, come on.

STEINEM: But it's not - no, I wouldn't. I wouldn't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Let's bring in two very different unique perspectives. Here with me now, Clai Lasher-Sommers is a gun safety advocate with the group Every Town For Gun Safety and a supporter of Hillary Clinton. And Gabrielle Greaves, a student at the University of New Hampshire, studying English and women's studies, who plans to vote for Bernie Sanders.

Ladies, hello. Nice to see both of you.

GABRIELLE GREAVES, BERNIE SANDERS SUPPORTER: Hi.

CLAI LASHER-SOMMERS, HILLARY CLINTON SUPPORTER: Hello. Good to see you.

BALDWIN: I have been wanting to do a segment like this for so long, and especially now with what Secretary Albright and Gloria Steinem have said, it gives me really this opportunity. Here's what I want to ask you first.

GREAVES: Yes.

BALDWIN: I was at this huge Bernie Sanders rally last weekend in Iowa and what fascinated me, as a woman, is that so many young women believe that they will see a female president in their lifetimes. Therefore, they don't feel that they have to vote for Hillary Clinton.

GREAVES: Right.

BALDWIN: Is that your case?

GREAVES: No, that's not necessarily, like, my case.

BALDWIN: Tell me.

GREAVES: My case is, one, history will be made regardless of if it's Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton. Bernie Sanders would be the first non-Christian president that we'd have in the White House.

BALDWIN: Correct.

GREAVES: So either way history will be made.

But I think one of the things is that, it's not just about having a woman president. You want somebody that embodies all of your principles and the morals that you stand for. And I think a lot of the young voters, and especially in Iowa you saw the majority of the young women voters voted for Bernie Sanders, is because he talks about - he gives a voice to the young voters. And I think Hillary centers - she - you know, she says a lot about continuing the President Obama's legacy, but what Bernie Sanders wants to do is he wants to do a change. And you saw that in the young voter who said a political revolution, which is I think why - what has captured a lot of the young voters, particularly me. So, yes.

BALDWIN: I'm looking at your face, listening to her, as a Hillary supporter, as someone who's lived maybe a few years longer than Gabrielle has, tell me why you - do you understand this interest from young people, especially young women, and how do you feel, Clai?

LASHER-SOMMERS: Well, I think I do understand it. Young women - I - I mean I have been working with young women for a very long time. I just took a semester off from school, getting my masters in environmental studies, where there are a lot of young women talking about these issues. And for me I find it incredibly disheartening that some of the comments that you have talked about were made. I also know -

BALDWIN: You mean the special place in hell comments?

LASHER-SOMMERS: Yes. Yes. Oh, yes. But I also know that for me young voters I think are talking about what they see and what they feel needs to happen right now. And I think for me the issue is, I have been watching policy for a really long time, and especially policy over racial justice, environmental justice and gun violence. And women have been working incredibly, incredibly hard for these kinds and around these issues. So I don't see it as a young/old. I see it sort of as a place in time in history. And there's a lot of things that are being said in the media that I don't think are actually very true. I think that Gloria Steinem, back in the day, you would say something like, well, women should know better, you know, and it didn't - it didn't come out right. Everybody gasped. People were horrified that she said it. But the issue really is, for me is, as looking - it's not that Hillary Clinton per se is a woman and that's what's coming out in the media, what is important to me is that -

BALDWIN: But she does talk about that, to be fair.

LASHER-SOMMERS: Right. Right. Right.

BALDWIN: I mean she - today or yesterday she talked about how she does feel like there's a double standard.

LASHER-SOMMERS: Right.

BALDWIN: Barack Obama had this great line about walking backwards in heels.

LASHER-SOMMERS: That's right. That's right.

BALDWIN: It's acknowledged.

LASHER-SOMMERS: That's right. And I think that there has been a double standard actually because I think some of the things that Hillary has been attacked for would never go - they wouldn't be the same issues - you wouldn't ask, you know, a male candidate some of the things that she's having to stand up for. And in terms of trolling -

BALDWIN: Yes.

[14:30:03] LASHER-SOMMERS: Just because I have talked a little bit in public, I - excuse me - I cannot believe what has showed up on my - on my pages.