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Tornado Survivors Battle Grief; Limbaugh Not Hurting GOP; GOP Rivals Fight for Ohio; Newt Gingrich Confident; President Obama Addressed AIPAC; Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has Strong Opinions on President Obama and America's Relationship with Israel; President Obama Says No Quick Fix to High Gas Prices

Aired March 04, 2012 - 16:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We're going to look at the 2012 presidential contenders in this political hour. But first, an update on some of today's top stories.

A busy painful day of cleanup as survivors of a deadly storm system battled grief and immense piles of rubble. The death toll is 37. The National Guard is helping with the cleanup and providing security patrols in at least four of the hardest hit states.

A vintage helicopter in flight during the shooting of a television show crashes and amazingly no one is killed or even hurt. It happened in Coolidge, Arizona.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my god.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A pilot and crew men were on board the vintage military chopper and were able to walk away. The aircraft was being filmed for an episode of "Top Gear Korea." The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Former Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann says Rush Limbaugh's recent comments don't hurt her party. He used some nasty language to describe a law student who testified for expanded access to birth control. Limbaugh has since apologized, but Bachmann says the controversy has no effect on the GOP.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The Republican Party isn't tarnished at all. The Republican Party is amplifying the voice that says one person, one health care dictator should not be telling all Americans what we can and cannot do in health care. That's the problem with Obama care. And that's why it has to be repealed.

(END VIDEO CLIP) WHITFIELD: Bachmann also has strong opinions about how the U.S. should be protecting Israel with a threat from Iran and I asked who she thinks would be the best Republican nominee. More of my one on one conversation with Michele Bachmann coming up.

All right. Now to the 2012 contenders. Super Tuesday just 48 hours away. And the four Republican presidential contenders are racing across the country to whip up last minute support. Front-runner Mitt Romney is in Georgia today, a state with 76 delegates, the most of any super Tuesday state. And Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul all making the rounds on the Sunday morning talk shows today.

Ten states are holding primaries and caucuses on Tuesday with a whopping 419 delegates at stake. That's the most delegates up for grabs on any single day of the primary season. The contenders need 1,144 delegates in all to clinch the GOP nomination.

And here's where they stand. Romney has 182 delegates. Santorum has 79. Newt Gingrich with 39. And Paul with 38. Mitt Romney now has the backing of two top conservatives in Congress. House majority leader Eric Cantor and Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn. Cantor made his announcement and about his endorsement this morning on NBC's "Meet the Press."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ERIC CANTOR (R), MAJORITY LEADER: I look to super Tuesday, I look to Mitt Romney winning all of Virginia's delegates and, in fact, I cast my vote already in Virginia for Mitt Romney, and I'm here today to tell you that I'm endorsing Mitt Romney in his candidacy for the presidency of the United States.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Senator Coburn endorsed Romney today in an op-ed piece in the "Oklahoman." He said the former Massachusetts governor is the best person to solve the country's economic problems.

All right. Romney is also celebrating a victory in Washington state. He won that state's GOP caucuses yesterday, capturing 38 percent of the vote. Ron Paul finished second with 25 percent inching ahead of Rick Santorum who got 24 percent. And Newt Gingrich finished last with 10 percent.

Romney is also gaining momentum in the key super Tuesday state of Ohio. CNN political reporter Peter Hamby is live for us from Columbus, Ohio. So Peter, how is this race shaping up so far in that battleground state?

PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: You're right, Fred. Republicans here and the Romney campaign is quietly confident that the momentum is trending in Romney's direction. Take a look at a new NBC news-Marist poll that came out this morning. It's showing Rick Santorum with 34 percent of the vote and Mitt Romney with 32 percent of the vote, essentially a tie. But what is important here, this is why Republicans think Romney will win, he's got the momentum. Just a week ago, Rick Santorum was winning the state by double digits. Nationally the polls have been moving in the same direction toward Mitt Romney. People here still think it will be a close race, but the Romney campaign is quietly confident again that they can pull out a win here and really send a message to the Republican Party that we can win in a key battleground state in November.

This is a state that went heavily Republican in 2010, but if you look at the cross tabs in this poll, voters here are very concerned about electability, they're aware of the central role the state will play in November and voters that are concerned about electability here are breaking heavily toward Mitt Romney as they have in other states. So, Fred, it is going to be a close race here, but the Romney people think they can pull it out.

WHITFIELD: All right. Meantime, you know, Peter, there was a problem involving Santorum in parts of Ohio. Something about not registering properly and so he - that may cost him delegates or delegate potential?

HAMBY: Yes, you're exactly right. All these delegate rules are arcane and Byzantine and frankly a little complicated. But the Santorum campaign did not file delegates in three congressional districts. They didn't file full delegate slates in six congressional districts, basically what this means is Santorum's name will be on the ballot regardless, so he could win the state, statewide. He could win the popular vote. But delegates here were allocated by those congressional district and he won't have delegates under his name in certain congressional districts.

So theoretically, Santorum could win the state, but he could lose out on at least 18 delegates. The Romney campaign is highlighting this as a sign that Santorum doesn't have the organization that's built to win against Barack Obama in November. They're saying that, "Hey, we do. We can go up against Barack Obama's political machine," you see the Romney campaign really starting to drill down on this delegate race, basically saying we're going to go congressional district by congressional district as long as we need to do pick up proportional delegates along the way. Who cares about state wide wins, although those are nice and symbolic. We're going to pick up delegates and Rick Santorum cannot.

That's their argument. So it could be a tough night in the delegate road for Santorum, remember, he's not on the ballot in Virginia. So that's 49 delegates he's losing out on right there. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much. Peter Hamby, appreciate that.

All right. Let's talk more about Ohio, all that is at stake. Let's bring in our political panel, CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser joining me right here in Atlanta. Good to see you. And Crystal Wright, creator of conservative blackchick.com and delegate for Newt Gingrich joining us from Washington. Good to see you as well.

CRYSTAL WRIGHT, BLACKCHICK.COM: Good to see you.

WHITFIELD: Let's stick with talking about Santorum now. Because we're talking about Ohio, a pivotal state whether it is the primary or whether it comes November. And Rick Santorum has really been trying to appeal to the Christian conservatives there. At the same time, blue collar workers, can he have it both ways regardless of whether there is a registration problem with delegates, et cetera. Paul, you first.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes, he can in a way. We saw it in Michigan. He was (INAUDIBLE) vote. Listen he is well known as to be a friend of social conservatives. So we get that. And also Ohio's large Catholic population, which will help him there. But at the same time, he's also trying to show his blue collar roots. Remember, he's from neighboring Pennsylvania. From a blue collar background -

WHITFIELD: But he's not a blue collar guy himself.

STEINHAUSER: Not anymore, no. He's making a little bit more money now. He has a white collar now you could say. But yes, I think he's trying to appeal to both. He was semi successful in Michigan. In Ohio, he will not have the problem of having Romney's home country or native state there.

WHITFIELD: OK. So, Crystal, you know, therein lies why Ron Paul was in large part calling him a phony, you know, that he's not a blue collar guy, but he's appealing to blue collars, blue collar workers in particular. But is this a problem for Rick Santorum to be authentic, to be real, to be appealing, especially to the people in Ohio?

WRIGHT: Well, I think Rick has been able to - this has been said earlier, he's been able to appeal to the working class voter as well as evangelical Christians. And as Paul just said, that's all going in his favor in Ohio. 44 percent of Republican voters in Ohio are evangelical Christians. Guess what, 27 percent don't have a college education and, oh, guess what, 80 percent make under $100,000.

So what we saw in Michigan is Romney did much better with higher earners, but he managed to pull it out, and win Michigan. So while I think Santorum has all these things in his favor, he is viewed as a fake, but I think on the trail in Michigan, he sold the case for the working class folks. He sold the case to union workers and he was able to sell the case to evangelical Christians, of course, even though as you pointed out, Fred, he has three degrees.

WHITFIELD: OK. So what is behind how Romney is gaining some momentum, that gap between Santorum and Romney and Ohio is narrowing.

STEINHAUSER: Yes, basically -

WHITFIELD: Is it big money? Advertising dollars?

STEINHAUSER: Let's talk about that. Because you're absolutely right, the Romney campaign greatly outspending the Santorum campaign on ads in Ohio and then let's throw the super pacs in there. Because that's the true story this cycle. And the pro Romney super pac, greatly outspending the pro Santorum super pac adds to that. People turn on their TVs, the see these ads, whether they're attack ads or positive ads, that is a factor on why Romney has closed the gap in Ohio.

WHITFIELD: OK. All right. So Crystal I wonder if this kind of - if some pressure is being relieved so to speak for Romney because this isn't a winner take all state, 63 delegates allocated proportionately. But as we heard from our Peter Hamby, Santorum could lose out on some of these proportional delegates.

WRIGHT: Yes, he could. But he's outspending Santorum by six to one. And we have seen this work effectively for Romney in Florida and it worked for him in Michigan and it is really also going to boil down to the economy. That's where we saw in the exit polls from Michigan, so, you know, I think that while it was an uphill slog, if you will, for Romney, I think in the end he's showing that money matters, organization matters, and people really want to hear about the economy. They don't want to hear about the wedge issues at the end of the day.

WHITFIELD: All right. Crystal, thanks so much. And Paul, we'll see you again later on in the hour. Got lots more to talk about. About 20 minutes or so from now. We're going to be talking about whether Mitt Romney can win the south and what happens if Newt Gingrich were to lose his home state of Georgia. Even he says it may change everything.

All right. But first, a separation of church and state has become a huge issue in this election and Michele Bachmann talks about being on the outside looking in. Earlier I asked her about the GOP campaign and her expectations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BACHMANN: I think we will see a clarifying of this race after super Tuesday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And what did she say when I pressed her for an endorsement? More on that straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": Rick Santorum thinks global warming, climate change is a hoax.

Oh, yes, Rick? Wait a minute. Let me ask you something, Rick, if you think global warming and climate change is a hoax, how do you explain those sleeveless sweaters?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back to the special hour of the "CNN Newsroom." we're taking this time out every Sunday to let you hear from the 2012 presidential contenders in their own words out on the campaign trail.

Rick Santorum continues to assert that Mitt Romney isn't a true you conservative. This week he attacked Romney's response to the failed conscious amendment, which would have allowed employers to opt out of providing health care coverage on moral grounds.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We saw an insight into - what is in the gut of Governor Romney yesterday when he was asked a question about the blunt amendment, which is about a religious liberty amendment, so not imposing Obama care's values on people of faith, not just churches, people of faith in this country. It was an amendment that was offered by Daniel Patrick Moynihan to Hillary care, was passed unanimously. At least that's what Roy Blunt told me yesterday. I'm not going to fact check it. This is what he told me.

He said it was consensus amendment, but now it is controversial. Having a conscience clause exemption, used to be something that democrats and Republicans all agreed to. Now it is not. When Governor Romney was asked that question, his knee jerk reaction was, "No, I can't be for that." Well, then after his consultants talked to him and he came back, "Oh, I said I didn't understand the question." Well, maybe he did, maybe he didn't, but I tell you, if I was asked a question like that, my gut reaction would be always, my gut reaction would be you stand for the first amendment, you stand for freedom of religion, you stand for the first amendment rights.

A lot will tell you what kind of president you're going to be when you haven't been properly briefed by your consultants and you're asked what's really going on here.

Ladies and gentlemen, you want someone who at the core believes and is willing to step up and fight, not put these issues on the back burner, conservative issues, not put them on the back burner and just focus on one or two things that may be popular, like cutting taxes. Look. I never voted for a tax increase. Don't believe in voting for tax increases unlike Governor Romney who has, I don't vote for tax increases. But let's be honest, running around and talking about cutting taxes is not the hardest political thing to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Consider this, Ron Paul on the same ticket as Mitt Romney? CNN's Piers Morgan talked to the congressman about the possibility of being the GOP vice presidential nominee.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PIERS MORGAN, CNN HOST: On the assumption at the moment that Mitt Romney may end up being the nominee, would you serve under him if he asked you?

REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, it depends on - he's not likely to do that. I mean, you know, we get along and friends and we talk to each other, but to be in a position, you know, I wouldn't think that would be likely to happen.

But, you know, there are certain issues that I feel very, very strongly about, you know. And I've been talking about it and trying to change people's minds on it for 30 or 40 years. So if somebody was serious, a president or anybody else asked me seriously, you know, now that the monetary crisis is much worse and it is going to get much worse, what do you think we ought to do, if they were honestly seeking my input, why would anybody turn that down? But as far as being in the administration, I have to wait and see, maybe I'll have to ask him whether he wants to help me out when I get in.

MORGAN: I think you should certainly be rewarded. I know I'm making an assumption here that you're not going to be a nominee and that may be unfair at this stage, but you know, given that people seem to think it might Mitt Romney now, I would be staggered if he didn't reflect your popularity, particularly with young people, on social media, the energy and drive you brought to your campaign, I mean, I think they would be mad not to use you in some serious way.

PAUL: You know, and, you know, this - you know, these last couple of elections, you know, I was third or fourth, we didn't do all that well, but somebody sent me a note, you know, you always look for the positive thing and almost every state, I think essentially every state I always win between the 18 and 30-year-olds. I always win that.

So I think your point is well taken. If they're thinking about the future or the fall election, I mean, young people are very, very important, and I'm the one person that can take young people away from Obama.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: On super Tuesday, March 6th, at 12:00 Eastern time, Wolf Blitzer and CNN's political team will host the CNN election round table on cnn.com. It is a live insider chat about the day's implications for the presidential race. Go to cnn.com/roundtable for that.

All right. Before you vote on super Tuesday, check out the candidates' specific proposals on the issues most important to you. Our Josh Levs is here to show us about them.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, because we got to be looking at the promises already, right? I mean we hear a lot of talk, which is great. But they do have some specific proposals. And we have an interactive way for you to learn exactly what the candidates are saying they'll do about the economy, health care, the environment, immigration. I'm going to show you right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. We continue to delve into the issues on the presidential campaign. Every Sunday we're spending this hour of the "CNN Newsroom" to allow you to hear from the contenders as they spell out their future for the United States.

By now you've probably developed a sense of who the candidates are, but do you know exactly what they plan to do if elected to office? Josh Levs has a few ideas and an interactive way in which you can find out.

LEVS: Yes, and it's a real good time to because Super Tuesday is coming up. Millions of people are deciding today or tomorrow how they're going to vote. I want to encourage you, go to cnnpolitics.com. It's a really good time for you to take some time and look at what we have there. Because there's a good breakdown on all these different issues and up to date quotes from the various candidates on what they would do in different cases.

So here, just take one example for you, I'm looking at what they have said they will do about the economy. We'll go through alphabetical order here, using promises on the candidates' web sites and in our coverage.

So let's start off with Newt Gingrich. Let me show you a couple of things he's talking about. He's talking about dropping the corporate income tax to 12.5 percent, also moving toward an optional flat tax of 15 percent. Now, look at Ron Paul. Couple specific examples from him. He talks about eliminating the fed, the Federal Reserve. He also wants to return to what is called the gold standard. Let's go ahead to Mitt Romney. A couple of examples from him. He's calling for an across the board 20 percent cut in marginal tax rates. That's a pretty a new call for him. Also regulatory cap of zero dollars for federal agencies. No spending in that respect.

Finally, Rick Santorum, a couple of examples from him. He wants to triple the deduction for children and bring a corporate flat tax of 17.5 percent. Now there is no way to memorize that. But the key is these candidates have given us some specific examples of what they say they would do and it's a really good time for you to take a look at that. There is also this web site that I want you to see that we linked to from cnnpolitics.com called vote smart which does a really similar thing, Fred. They take a look at these measure issues, they look at what the candidates have said on the issues, what the promises are, and they dig in and say, "OK, how would this play out?"

Now is a good time to think through all of this. Hopefully people get a sense of the specifics.

WHITFIELD: That's a good resource. People need all that kind of information before making a very important vote.

LEVS: Yes, and the truth is ultimately as we know, not every promise turns out to be what a president does in office; however, one of the GOP candidates or President Obama will be the president, we'll be holding their feet to the fire saying this is what you promised. So now before you place your vote in the primary, it makes a lot of sense to say, "Hey, this is the platform I believe in." For that you need specifics and for that you need the web.

WHITFIELD: Perfect. Thanks so much, Josh, for bringing that us to. LEVS: You got it.

WHITFIELD: Good options to have.

All right. Front-runners Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum are spending a whole lot of time in the south as Newt Gingrich fights to hold on to his home state of Georgia.

But first, remember Mitt Romney's NASCAR gaffe from earlier this week. Well, here is "Saturday Night Live's" take.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: While campaigning at the Daytona 500 this past weekend, Mitt Romney may have hurt his image when he said that he doesn't closely follow the race, but he does have friends who are NASCAR team owners. It also didn't help that he kept referring to the drivers as chauffeurs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Now back to the big political event on the horizon. Super Tuesday. Less than 48 hours away and Republican contenders are crisscrossing the country. Ten states holding primaries and caucuses Tuesday. Ohio and Georgia are getting a whole lot of attention right now. The contenders need overall 1,144 delegates to win the nomination. And here's where they stand right now. Romney with 182. Santorum with 79. Newt Gingrich with 39. And Ron Paul with 38. So Romney is hoping to capitalize on his momentum and increase his delegate lead on super Tuesday. John King takes a look at Romney's team strategy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You bring it up here, here is the 10 states. Ohio is the biggest prize. Santorum is leading now. Romney has been gaining every day in the polling. They think they can win it. Close battle with Santorum. They hope to win five and they also hope though to make the (INAUDIBLE) delegates to come out of Georgia and Tennessee with some delegates as well. Win Vermont, Massachusetts, they hope to win Ohio, think they'll win Virginia, think they'll win Idaho and get delegates in North Dakota, Tennessee and Georgia. That's their hope.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. That's the hope. So Romney is also looking beyond the GOP nomination, setting his sights on a match up against President Obama. Fresh off a caucus win yesterday in Washington state, Romney is telling supporters that he and the president couldn't be more different when it comes to military spending.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ROMNEY: This president's planning on cutting our military by 500 billion, probably another $500 billion later. His plan is to slow down the purchase of ships, to slow down the purchases of aircraft, to reduce our active duty personnel by 50 to 100,000. And you've seen he's also cutting benefits for our veterans. That's the course he's taking. My view is that a strong - a strong America is the best ally peace has ever known.

We have -- we have fewer ships in America today in our navy than any time since 1917. Rather than cut the purchases of ships, I will take it up, we'll go from 9 to 15 ships a year. Aircraft, our aircraft and our air force are older and fewer than any time since 1947. I'll increase the purchases of aircraft. And rather than cut our armed services by 50 to 100,000, I will increase them by 100,000. We'll keep America strong.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, Newt Gingrich is focusing most of his time in his home state of Georgia. While in Savannah, he spoke directly about his opponents and his mission.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: My two primary opponents, Governor Romney and Senator Santorum, one is a fine manager in the business world who frankly didn't change Massachusetts at all. He added Romney care on top of everything else in this big government and sufficiently to left of Teddy Kennedy. So he fit the world of Massachusetts.

Senator Santorum is essentially a big government, big labor conservative who is a team player, said so in the last debate. That's fine. I'm not a team player. I am a change agent. I'm not --

(Applause)

I'm not, you know, unlike Governor Romney, I'm not going to Washington to manage the detail and unlike Senator Santorum; I'm not going to Washington to join the team. I want to create a new team called the American people who force dramatic, bold change on Washington and I want to force Washington to decide do you want to be on the American people's team or do you want to get fired and go home?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk more about the Super Tuesday southern states in particular. Joining me again, Crystal Wright, creator of Conservativeblackchic.com and a delegate for Newt Gingrich. And here in the studio is CNN political editor Paul Steinhauser.

All right. Good to see both of you again. Crystal, I want to begin with you since you're a delegate for the Newt Gingrich camp, how confident is he about Georgia?

CRYSTAL WRIGHT, CREATOR/BLOGGER, CONSERVATIVEBLACKCHIC.COM: He's very confident and all the polls show that Newt is ahead, but even if he wins Georgia, Georgia is a proportional state. So Romney has a chance to pick up delegates in Georgia as well does Santorum. And I think what Newt's got to do, you know, I'm a Newt supporter, but Newt has got to show he's more than a one trick pony in the south.

I mean he won South Carolina, he's probably going to win Georgia, but, you know, he's got to show that he can be competitive in the swing states like Ohio, and otherwise there is no -

WHITFIELD: What if he can't do that?

WRIGHT: Right, if he can't do that, there is no path for Newt to the nomination. I hate to say it, but truth be told, that's the reality. And it is kind of like survivor, you know. If he doesn't win Georgia, Newt has said he's done; he's going to have to get off the island. I mean that's a reality.

WHITFIELD: All right, Paul, so all eggs in one basket or no? Is he being a realist about that? If he doesn't win Georgia, then he's got to reconsider.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: He has said that. He was on the "State of the Union" with Candy Crowley today and he sounded pretty optimistic that you know he was going to do well in Georgia. The polls indicate he is going to do well here, he thinks he could do well in Tennessee and the polls indicate that as well. I think that Mitt Romney would love to see Newt Gingrich stay in the race because then you have Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum dividing up that conservative vote. That helps Mitt Romney.

WHITFIELD: So would Mitt Romney kind of surrender the south then? If it is going to be up against Santorum and Gingrich for the south, Oklahoma, for Georgia, for Virginia, should Romney kind of, you know, just surrender and just, you know, wave the flag or what?

STEINHAUSER: Can't do that for two reasons. A because he wants to be the presumptive nominee. So he has to prove that he can play all over the country, not just in one region or another. Also, we have been talking about this; this is a battle for delegates. So yes, he is going to win delegates here in Georgia, Tennessee, and Oklahoma. So he can not give up this region.

WHITFIELD: All right. Crystal, you laughed.

WRIGHT: Yes, I mean, Paul is exactly right. Romney is not surrendering one inch or a delegate in this race. He has you know, the thing about Romney is Romney has outspent everybody because he's well funded and he's methodical organizer. Remember, in Virginia, he turned in all his paperwork well ahead of everybody else. He's going to win Virginia, he's going to pick up -- he's already spent his -- his Pac spent a million dollars in Georgia. I feel like a little bit we're talking about the Civil War, but that's probably not the best analogy, but Romney is not going to concede anywhere, period. I think at the end of the day, that's his strength.

WHITFIELD: OK. Well let's talk about how maybe Romney and even Santorum have tried to appeal to the southern voters. Let's use NASCAR as an example most recently. Saw that "SNL" skit, you know Romney saying you know I know NASCAR owners. Santorum having a vehicle with his name on it during the Daytona race last weekend. However, are they both kind of struggling to connect with people, to come across as really authentic, Crystal, you first?

WRIGHT: Yes, I think they're struggling to connect with folks in different ways. Santorum is polarizing Republican voters because he's so desperate to connect with Evangelical Christians and the working class that he totally forgets everybody else. And people find that a real huge turnoff, especially Republicans who are physical conservatives and really want to talk about the economy.

Then there is Romney who can't seem to talk about -- he needs to stay away from the gaffes about I'm just a rich guy trying to make it, you know? I got -- I got NASCAR owners. And that's just crazy. He needs to be the -- everyone's man, everybody's man. And he's just shown a real inability to do that. And I want to say, Mitt, stop talking about the Cadillac, stop talking about the speaker fees, yes.

WHITFIELD: Paul, real quick, five seconds, sum it up for me or punctuate it for me.

STEINHAUSER: Mitt Romney had some gaffes when it comes to reaching out to the average person no doubt about it. But he's still right now the front-runner going into Super Tuesday, hands down.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much, Paul, Crystal, thanks so much, good to see you this hour. I know we're going to be seeing much more of both of you over the course of the next couple of days, maybe during the election round table, something special and new on CNN.com live this Super Tuesday, I should say, Tuesday, at 12:00 Eastern Time. Paul, we might be seeing you as part of the best political team on television along with Wolf Blitzer there exploring the issues affecting this year's presidential election. Very unique and special on super Tuesday. Go to CNN.com/roundtable for that lively discussion.

All right. Michele Bachmann, well, she's out of this year's GOP presidential race, but she says she still wants to be an influential uniting force for her party. Next, what she has to say about President Obama and his position on Israel.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: President Obama addressed the pro Israeli lobby group APAC and took some of his GOP rivals to task for raising doubts about the U.S. relationship with Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: During this political season, you hear some questions regarding my administration's support for Israel. Remember it is not backed up by the facts. And, remember that the U.S./Israel relationship is simply to important to be distorted by partisan politics. America's national security is too important. Israel's security is too important. (END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is out of the Republican presidential field, but she has strong opinions on President Obama and how she sees America's relationship with Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN, (R) FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've been very disturbed about the president's relationship with Israel. No president in modern times since Israel became a nation in May of 1948 has had more distance between the United States and Israel than President Obama. That message didn't go unheard among the hostile Arab nations surrounding Israel. And that's further emboldened Iran.

Another fatal mistake that the president made early on in his presidency is that he was willing to meet with Iran with no preconditions and talk to the Iranians about the nuclear weapon program. What the president did with that is give Iran the luxury of time to continue to develop their nuclear weapon program. We all know that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon program and they're bragging about the fact that they're developing their own nuclear fuel rods, and they are developing with their centrifuges enriched uranium.

This is very concerning for the world. And what we need to do is step up our involvement with Israel and give Israel the refueling tankers, the bunker busting bombs, and we need to put ships -- the aegis and the patriot missile systems into the Middle East region and let Iran know that we will not allow them to continue their nuclear weapon program.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Of course, we also talked about the race for the White House. I asked her who she is ready to endorse. Her answer next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: We continue to delve into the issues on the presidential campaign each Sunday this hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. It is devoted to the contenders as they spell out their future for the United States. So more now of my conversation with Michele Bachmann. We covered a lot. We talked about foreign policy, health care, and life after suspending her own presidential campaign. So who is she ready to endorse for the nomination? Well, here is more of my one on one conversation with Congresswoman Michele Bachmann.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN, (R) FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think whether or not two candidates choose to drop out, I think we will see a clarifying of this race after Super Tuesday because we'll see the candidates go -- the voters go, I think one way or another. The primary voters recognize we need to have a candidate and we need to have our message soon. And I think we're just going to see -- I think it is very natural, organic process and I think we'll see the voters coming together and then I think you'll see us uniting. There won't be necessarily a perfect candidate, but we'll have a superior candidate and that candidate will lead our party.

WHITFIELD: Will it be up to that candidate to be that uniting voice, and if so, of the four thus far who has that unifying voice?

BACHMANN: Sure, they will be a unifying force. I think you're exactly right. And we won't know until after Super Tuesday who that person will be. But I think --

WHITFIELD: You don't have a gut feeling about somebody you like, all this time you've gotten to know them, whether it be on the campaign trail and now outside looking in, there isn't one that you lean toward, one that you really like his message in.

BACHMANN: Fredricka, I think I was the perfect candidate during the race. But I can certainly get behind any one of these four candidates. And I think Tuesday will let us know who that individual likely will be.

WHITFIELD: So what are you waiting for? What is going to be that criteria?

BACHMANN: I think the people need to speak first. I think it is very important that the people speak first and that the right time and then I'll add my name to the chorus as well.

WHITFIELD: So why are so many so reluctant in a leadership role as yourself, why are you so reluctant to say, I like this particular candidate right now. Why wait to hear what the American people are saying as opposed to in terms of primary caucus votes, why not say, you know what, I love, you know, what Ron Paul is saying, I love how Newt Gingrich is handling himself, I love that Mitt Romney seems to be the leader thus far as it pertains to four straight wins?

BACHMANN: Because my focus hasn't been on being a pundit. My focus has been on trying to be a part of the larger message.

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WHITFIELD: All right, coming up in the next hour, radio host Rush Limbaugh apologizes to a Georgetown law student after his remarks drew sharp criticism. What Michele Bachmann has to say about his apology.

And gas prices are a huge talking point for all the candidates and President Obama. Coming up, find out his plan to keep the cost at the pump down.

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WHITFIELD: Welcome back to this special hour of the CNN NEWSROOM. We're taking this time out every Sunday to let you hear from the 2012 presidential contenders in their words out on the campaign trail. All right, so if you drive, you've probably seen and have been seeing higher prices at the pump, spending more money every time you fill up. Well gas prices are over $4 in some places. And President Obama says there is no quick fix to the rising prices, but says he does have a plan to avoid the problem in the future.

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PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't need to tell you why fuel efficiency is so important, especially right now. Most of you filled up your gas tanks in the last week or two, am I right? It hasn't been a happy experience. You've seen the prices go up almost every day. And you've already felt the pinch, whether you own a car or maybe you own a small business and that uses energy, some of you have no choice but to drive a long way to work. And higher gas prices are like a tax, straight out of your paycheck.

And in the winter, the rising price of oil is also making it more expensive to heat your homes. Now, I know this is hard to believe, but some politicians are seeing higher gas prices as a political opportunity. You're shocked, I know. But it is true, right in the middle of an election year. Who would have thought. So recently the lead in one news story said, and I'm quoting here, gasoline prices are on the rise and Republicans are licking their chops. Licking their chops. Let me tell you, only in politics do people respond to bad news with such enthusiasm. That doesn't happen anywhere else.

And so as a consequence, you can anticipate we're going to be hearing a lot about how people have this magic three-point plans to make sure you're only paying $2 a gallon gas. Just like we heard about it in the last election, just like we heard about it for the last 30 years. And you know what the essence of their plan is going to be, which step one, drill is, step two, drill, step three, and keep drilling. And, by the way, you know, we'll drill in your backyard. Wherever it is, we're just going to put up more rigs.

Now, if there is one thing I know about New Hampshire, it is that your political bull detector is pretty keen. It is pretty sharp.

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You know that we can't just drill our way to lower gas prices. There are no quick fixes or silver bullets. If somebody tells you there are, they're not telling you the truth. If we're going to take control of our energy future, which we have to do, if we're going to avoid high gas prices every single year, where a lot of politicians talk every single year, but nothing happening, if we're going to avoid that, then we have got to have an all of the above strategy that develops every single source of American energy. Not just oil and gas, but also wind and solar and bio fuels. We have got to keep developing the technology that allows us to use less oil in our cars and trucks. Less oil in our buildings and factories.

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WHITFIELD: Newt Gingrich calls Obama's energy policies baloney. Candy Crowley with some of the odder moments on the campaign trail next.

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WHITFIELD: All right. Super Tuesday only 48 hours away, but it is not all serious. There are some lighter moments on the trail. Candy Crowley has this week's "Trail Mix."

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN HOST, "STATE OF THE UNION:" Hey, Fred, some odds and ends on this week's "Trail Mix," mostly just odd. Candidates speak for hours a day on the trail, sometimes they do ramble off the rails. Case in point, Newt Gingrich, he called the president's energy policies baloney and then this.

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NEWT GINGRICH, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Trying to figure out how to design some kind of picture of what does Obama baloney look like. It would be all left wing, maybe made of the left wings of turkeys. I don't know.

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CROWLEY: Perhaps that's why the president likes his teleprompter. Props on the campaign trail are not new. President Obama occasionally busts out a chart. Rick Santorum likes the pocket constitution. As does Ron Paul when he's not shaking silver coins at the Fed chairman. And Newt Gingrich likes chickens. Off Broadway, the possibilities are endless. Rhode Island Senate candidate Barry Hinckley went the adorable route.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know the gas that my mom uses to bring me to school; it is a lot more expensive now. This is when I was born. This is what it is now. This is real bad. Tell your mom and your dad to vote for my dad Barry Hinckley because he's going to balance the budget.

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CROWLEY: Cute and potentially effective. But the problem with this kind of prompt it talks.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you worried about our debt? Can you hear me, buddy?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you worried about paying back the money?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

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CROWLEY: That's OK, Hudson. Only 4 percent of Americans want to hear presidential candidates talk about the national debt, so you're on to something. Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much, Candy. Be sure to watch Candy Crowley every Sunday morning as she's the host of CNN's "State of the Union," 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Here is a look at where the 2012 contenders will be throughout Super Tuesday. Mitt Romney will be in Ohio and his home state of Massachusetts. Rick Santorum is focusing entirely on Ohio. Ron Paul will stump in Idaho and North Dakota. And Newt Gingrich is staying in the south, campaigning in Tennessee and his home state of Georgia.

And President Barack Obama has a pretty busy week as well. Monday he meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House. On Wednesday, he heads to North Carolina to talk economy at Daimler Trucks North America. And then Thursday, the president meets with the president of Ghana in the oval office. And then Friday, the president will be in Virginia delivering a speech on the economy and then heads to Houston for some campaign events. Pretty busy week for everybody.

All right. Watch the CNN election round table as well. A live insider chat comes Super Tuesday, March 6th, at 12:00 Eastern Time not just on the television set but this special program on CNN.com.