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Candidates Make Last Pitch To Voters On Eve Of Iowa Caucuses; London Police Fatally Shoot Man After Terror-Related Stabbings; Coronavirus Outbreak; Democrats Emphasize Electability Before Iowa Caucuses; Impeachment Closing Arguments Monday, Final Vote, Wednesday. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired February 02, 2020 - 14:00   ET

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

[13:59:48]

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: Alarmingly, the Global Health Security Index Report says that "international preparedness for epidemics and pandemics is very weak". Only four countries in the world have health care systems that are most prepared to treat the sick.

And considering the billions that outbreaks can cost the lesson seems to be let's pay the cost now to improve readiness or else we will be paying in money and lives in the future.

Last week in telling you the answer to the question, we mistakenly included Canada on a graphic of nations without paternity leave. New Canadian fathers do indeed get paid leave. Our bad.

Thanks to all of you for being part of my program this week. I will see you next week.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining us.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield alongside John Berman live from Des Moines, Iowa. This is CNN's special coverage of the Iowa caucuses.

Hi -- John. Welcome to Sunday.

So tomorrow we get our first real results from voters in the 2020 presidential race. The Iowa caucuses are now just one day away. For Democrats this is the first true test to see who can gain momentum in an effort to secure their party's nomination.

And on this Super Bowl Sunday, we are seeing an all-out blitz. Candidates are canvassing the Hawkeye State, their last chance to speak to would-be caucus goers. After months of town halls, rallies, hand shaking, it all comes down to this.

But how are voters in this critical, potentially make or break state leanings. If you listen to them, this race remains as close as ever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pete seems a little bit too slick. Joe Biden perhaps is aged. But it may come down to Biden. I'm unable to (INAUDIBLE). I am as undecided as other people are of their first choice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't understand why people can be undecided in this party. There's just no way to beat Trump without capturing the middle ground.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. So the stage is set. The candidates are swarming and in Iowa for it all, CNN's own Jeff Zeleny who is live for us in Des Moines.

So Jeff -- who stands to make the biggest impact potentially in these final hours before the caucuses begin?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: well, Fredricka -- the closing arguments have begun by all these candidates and it's met something else. A bit of February sunshine -- a beautiful winter day here in Des Moines.

I'm outside a rally for Pete Buttigieg. He was in eastern Iowa earlier. He's coming back here to Lincoln High School in Des Moines. You can see, you know, several dozen, maybe hundreds, of people are lining up here to get another chance to see Pete Buttigieg.

Of course, they have seen the South Bend, Indiana mayor -- the former mayor so many times throughout this year. He is making his final stand here.

But Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren -- they are making their case on the progressive side of the aisle. They are urging a revolution, in the words of Senator Sanders. Senator Warren is saying that she can unify both sides. Of course, Joe Biden is urging a more moderate approach, really pushing electability, Amy Klobuchar she is saying asking voters to focus on November. She is saying that the job of Iowa caucus goers is to find the candidate who can beat President Trump in November.

So all candidates are pushing a very strong electability message. Of course, there is no agreement what electability actually means. It means a lot things -- different things to different people.

But Fredricka -- the key now is actually not what is happening with the candidates, It is what is happening in the neighborhoods across Des Moines, across the larger cities and smaller towns across the state.

Caucuses are about organization. Of course, a caucus is a town meeting, if you will. There are almost 1,700 of them all over the state of Iowa on Monday where friends and neighbors come together to voice their preference. That is what is key. The campaign that's able to get out their supporters.

And the question is, if turnout is big, does that benefit Bernie Sanders? That's what he believes. If it is small, it might benefit a more establishment candidate. But no question, this is the beginning of the road, certainly not the end of it for most of the candidates. One more day -- Fredricka.

The clock is ticking. Jeff Zeleny -- thank you so much.

All right. Meanwhile, some of the more moderate members of this race are staking their claim on this key state.

CNN's Abby Phillip is following Pete Buttigieg's campaign now in Coralville, Iowa. So Abby -- you know, he's the youngest candidate in this race but he says he has the best chance to beat President Trump. Why is he so confident?

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right -- Fredricka.

Pete Buttigieg just left here in Coralville. He's headed toward Jeff Zeleny back in Des Moines. But here this afternoon he was making the case to some 900 Americans that this is do or die for his campaign. This is where they prove all of the work that they put in over the last year or so, that they have a viable campaign that can go on beyond these first four states.

[14:04:49]

PHILLIP: Now, the Buttigieg campaign has spent a lot of time and a lot of energy here in Iowa. And in New Hampshire where we'll go to in just a couple days and several of the other early four states. And I asked him how critical is it that he perform here for the viability of his campaign? And here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: These early states are absolutely critical. It's one thing to campaign for a year talking about why we believe we're the best campaign to go out there and beat Donald Trump. This is our first chance to begin to prove it. And it all starts with the caucuses.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP: So as Jeff pointed out, the question for a lot of Iowans is about electability. And the answer from Pete Buttigieg is that electability is going to show up on Monday night at the caucuses if his campaign is able to show strength here in Iowa.

He has not been willing to say however that he has to win in the state. He talked more about having a strong showing and they're going to be looking, he said, today at his showing in some of these urban centers in places like Des Moines, but also he spent a lot of time in the suburban and rural parts of the state focusing on districts that went from Obama to Trump in 2016.

And they're hoping that if there is a little bit of bump in terms of turnout, some of those that bump will be those people who might be coming back to the Democratic Party.

So we'll be looking to see if any of that materializes for the Buttigieg campaign tomorrow night -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Abby Phillip -- thank you so much.

All right. In Des Moines -- our John Berman. Ok, this is a big day.

Yes, it's Super Bowl Sunday, big for the NFL, but really, this caucus is the big dance that Iowans are so excited about and the candidates, of course.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Look, the Super Bowl is every year; the Iowa caucus is only every four years, so I can make a compelling case that this is bigger. And they don't put out yard signs for the Super Bowl. They're everywhere here, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: That's right.

BERMAN: All right. Before we get to what's going on the ground here, President Trump is spending the day before Iowa's caucuses going after the one Democratic candidate who isn't even on the ballot here.

In his pre-Super Bowl interview the President targeted Michael Bloomberg following a DNC rule change that could potentially allow the former New York City mayor to make his first debate appearance.

The President responded by attacking Bloomberg over his height. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: Michael Bloomberg.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Very little. I just think of little. You know, now he wants a box for the debates to stand on.

Ok, it's ok, there's nothing wrong. You can be short. Why should he get a box to stand on, ok? He wants a box for the debates. Why should he be entitled to that? Really. Does that mean everyone else gets a box?

HANNITY: I guess if they want to negotiate --

(CROSSTALKING)

TRUMP: Well, the other thing that's very interesting -- Cory Booker and all these people couldn't get any of the things that Bloomberg is getting now. I think it's very unfair for the Democrats.

But I would love to run against Bloomberg. I would love it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So in a statement the Bloomberg campaign responded saying, quote, "The President is lying. He's a pathological liar who lies about everything -- his fake hair, his obesity, and his spray-on tan."

So these attacks between the President and Michael Bloomberg come just hours before their dueling ads are set to compete during tonight's Super Bowl game.

So here to talk with me about, frankly, what's not going on in the Super Bowl but what's going on on the ground here in Iowa: Ryan Lizza who's the chief Washington correspondent for Politico; Julie Pace is the Washington bureau chief for the Associated Press; and Mark Preston, CNN senior political analyst.

And Julie -- I want to start with you here.

I'm going to pivot off of the President and Michael Bloomberg because neither of them are on the ballot in the Democratic caucuses which are tomorrow. But they do raise a point which I think is the central story line in the Democratic caucus here which is that each and everyone of these candidates is almost focused exclusively on sending the message that "I am the best candidate to beat Donald Trump".

We were both at this Amy Klobuchar event last night. And it's all she talked about at length in eight different ways saying that I'm the one who can beat Donald Trump.

JULIE PACE, WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF, ASSOCIATED PRESS: Because it is the thing that Democratic voters care about. Yes, of course, they care about health care. Yes, they care about the economy and America's role in the world. But most critically, , they care about beating Trump.

And they're really torn (ph) at that Klobuchar event, at other events I was at yesterday, voters in the state are still really torn over who is best positioned to do that.

And I think Donald Trump has really highlighted that concern. He's going to throw everything at his eventual opponent. Personal attacks, deep attacks on their record. Nothing will be out of bounds. And it's really difficult to know who will stand up best to that kind of pressure.

BERMAN: The famed box attack on Michael Bloomberg right there.

Ryan, you have written that there has been this unbreakable, unspoken rule so far in this primary which is these candidates don't want to attack each other. And if they do, there's consequences here.

I'm wondering if you're seeing that start to change a very little bit in these final days and/or if there's some sense that these candidates might regret that they haven't actually campaigned against each other. You have to win a primary.

RYAN LIZZA, CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, POLITICO: It's really -- first of all I want to say you wouldn't have said what you said to Fred about the Super Bowl if the Patriots were in it. Let's all be honest here.

[14:04:55]

LIZZA: It's very subtle. There's a little -- they're differentiating themselves in some ways but very rarely mention the other candidates by name. Much, much different, frankly, than 2004 when you had Gephardt and Dean destroy each other in the end.

Or 2008 even when Barack Obama, you know, he leveled some fairly personal attacks against Hillary Clinton. A lot of his messaging at the end was that, you know, she didn't have the character to be president and that she was essentially a liar. You don't have any of that going on right now.

You know, the fiercest attack in the last few weeks has been Bernie Sanders arguing that Joe Biden has not been consistent on defending social security. And they were very careful in Sanders campaign not to turn that into anything personal but to stick very religiously to the policy arguments.

You know, I've been out with Buttigieg, Biden, Warren, Sanders all week. They are not throwing elbows at their opponents. And there are two reasons for that.

One, everyone takes the lesson of 2004 with the Gephardt and Dean destroying each other and it allowed John Kerry to win. So you never know who's going to benefit when you attacked someone in a multi- candidate field.

And then two because the caucus is special, you get two votes, right. And second choice is very important because if your candidate doesn't make the cut on the first choice, you want to be able -- you're going to another candidate, you might not go to the candidate who has been calling your guy bad names all week.

BERMAN: So this is my sixth, I was counting, sixth Iowa caucuses on the ground here -- Mark. And it's different than any one I've been at before for a variety of reasons.

Number one, it's warm here. It's like 45 degrees.

(CROSSTALKING)

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: It was colder earlier in the week.

BERMAN: It's not only 10 below.

The second thing is that I don't think I've seen voters as uncertain as I've seen them here the last few days.

And the last thing is I don't think I've ever remembered so many possible story lines coming out of tomorrow night. It isn't just so much we don't know who will win, because there's four candidates who conceivably could, but how they win and the difference between first and fourth out of here, infinite possible story lines.

PRESTON: Yes, I agree with you.

Let's just go back even just four years ago when we were sitting here in Iowa. Democrats at the time of course, it was a big battle between Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders. However, there was this back talk about how the Democratic Party didn't ever mention (ph) who would be the person if Hillary Clinton lost or what happens, where would the Democrats going to go next?

Well, now their greatest strength has become in some ways a weakness certainly at this point because they're so diverse and they're so anxious and aggressive at trying to win and their supporters, quite frankly, are more aggressive than the candidates in many cases.

So that's why you have this dynamic, you know, Ryan is talking about that candidates are on the campaign trail. They're trying to take little pieces out of, you know, their competitors.

At the same time, though, they have to live for New Hampshire, ok. They have to live for South Carolina. They have to live for Nevada. And I just think that we're at this very strange time, you know, specifically the criticisms.

If you look at the Bernie Sanders criticisms of people saying Bernie Sanders is out there criticizing the candidates, he's not. He's actually become a victim of his own surrogates who are out there who have created headaches for him.

(CROSSTALKING)

LIZZA: But that's the exception. That proves the rule about the surrogates when they, the other night at the big rally at the Bon Iver concerts when one of his surrogates booed Hillary Clinton. It created all kinds of drama in the Sanders campaign. They were not happy about that.

And she -- the congresswoman did not show up last night although her colleagues did at Vampire Weekend, Bernie Sanders' concert in Cedar Rapids.

And so one thing about the Sanders campaign this time around, they are a disciplined operation.

BERMAN: Yes, except that they're having to apologize a lot for things that surrogates say.

LIZZA: The surrogates -- yes.

BERMAN: And if they're disciplined, they would keep them from saying it the first time. I will say that. It is happening here.

If you talk to the campaign, they're setting expectations -- Julie. And I think that two of the expectations that are being set by everyone right now is the campaign saying, Bernie Sanders has the momentum and maybe Joe Biden is fading a little bit.

Both of those things could be to their advantage and disadvantage in the expectations game here but that is I have heard at least on the ground.

PACE: Yes. I think that's exactly right. I think the Sanders campaign is openly and in sort of a surprising openly predicting success in Iowa. If things go south, I think that would really be damaging to him, but they feel like especially in these college towns here where you have a lot of young voters, they feel like they're going to be able to really run up the score there.

The messaging from the Biden campaign has been pretty fascinating to watch the last couple days. I was at a breakfast this morning with some advisers to that campaign, and they were saying, Iowa is the start, it's not the end.

BERMAN: Yes.

PACE: You have to look at the first couple of states in totality. What happens not just in Iowa, but in Nevada -- a much more diverse state? In South Carolina where black voters start to play a really powerful role.

So they are guarding against any overreading of Iowa. If they have a surprise, though, I think you could expect them to be really touting Iowa as the most important state in the --

(CROSSTALKING)

BERMAN: Oh sure, it will go from completely unimportant to absolutely crucial --

PACE: Exactly.

BERMAN: -- in 10 seconds less.

LIZZA: Yes.

BERMAN: All right. Ryan, Julie, Mark -- thank you very much for being here. We'll talk to you throughout the afternoon.

[14:14:58]

BERMAN: Now back to Fred for some breaking news.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thank you so much -- John.

We're following developments out of London. Metro Police have shot and killed a man after several people were stabbed in what authorities are calling a terror-related incident.

It all began unfolding in the past few hours on a busy shopping street in Streatham, a south London neighborhood.

For the very latest, let's bring in CNN's Hadas Gold.

Hadas, what are you learning about this?

HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred -- well, we are in Streatham High Street. Now this suburb -- it's just eight miles south of central London. It's very residential, there's not tourist attractions out here. This is a very unusual place to see any sort of incident like this.

Now what we know is that just before 2:00 p.m., first calls started coming in about an incident happening on the main street here. This is a street full of shops and restaurants. On a Sunday afternoon, it is packed with families and people going about doing their weekend shopping.

Now, what we understand is that at least two people were stabbed by an assailant who was then subsequently shot and killed by police. Now, we've been speaking to witnesses all evening here who say that they started hearing screams and then shots. They came out and they saw what they described as a very large man who they said was wielding a knife and had some sort of device attached to him. They said it looked like silver bottles or metal canisters of some sort.

I did speak to witnesses who said that they witnessed what seemed like just regular people, might have been plainclothes police officers shooting at him, but all we know is so far is that there have actually been three injuries. One of them has been life-threatening.

The suspect is shot and dead in what's being called a terror-related incident. The police say there are no other suspects right now and that the incident is completely contained. However, we still don't know who the suspect is, where they're from, what the motivations are. We're still trying to learn all of that right now -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Hadas Gold -- keep us posted from south London. Thank you so much.

Much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM.

First new developments on the coronavirus outbreak. New strict travel restrictions will begin in a matter of hours as the outbreak skyrockets to 14,000 cases killing more than 300 people. A live report next.

Plus, is enthusiasm lacking for the candidate once considered a clear frontrunner. Can voters get behind Joe Biden? We'll talk to a former senator that has now endorsed Biden, coming up.

You're watching CNN's special coverage.

[14:17:21]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The number of coronavirus cases continues to skyrocket. Since yesterday, confirmed cases around the world jumped from 12,000 to more than 14,000. 305 people have died. So far only one of those deaths has occurred outside mainland China.

In the U.S., strict new travel restrictions take effect today at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. It blocks any foreign national who recently visited China from entering this country. The Pentagon is preparing military housing for up to 1,000 people who may need to be quarantined on their return to the U.S.

CNN's Lucy Kafanov is at March Air Reserve Base in California where some 200 U.S. citizens are staying after being flown from Wuhan, China. So Lucy -- there is a second evacuation flight on its way to pick up the U.S. citizens in China. What can you tell us about that?

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right -- Fredricka. We know that the second evacuation flight is on its way to the city of Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. It should be ready for departure sometime on Monday according to the U.S. embassy there.

Now, remember that China is roughly 13 hours ahead of where you are. We don't know -- so it's already early Monday morning hours there -- we don't know what time this plane will depart or how many Americans it is expected to take.

But according to one U.S. official who is familiar with the matter, there could be more than one additional evacuation flights out of Wuhan because of the high demand there.

Now the folks who are still in Wuhan, the Americans, are largely ordinary citizens. Most of the diplomatic staff got out on that first flight. They're housed at the March Air Base behind me. They've been here for a few days now.

The Pentagon as you mentioned, has prepared four additional locations, two more bases here California, Fort Carson in Colorado and the Lackland Air Base in Texas. They are expecting or preparing for up to 1,000 Americans to be quarantined which has now been bumped up to 14 days. And that is because we're learning that folks infected with this virus could be contagious before symptoms even appear.

Now, I have been in touch with one American who is located -- he's been under quarantine at this air base here -- I spoke to him this morning as they were having breakfast. He said folks are largely in good spirits. They have most of what they need from the outside world.

He has his own business so he's been able to get a laptop computer to be able to do work while under quarantine. He says that the base was actually organizing a Super Bowl watch party for the 200 or so Americans who are under quarantine here.

They're eager he says to get home to their families, to get out of there, but almost everyone understands the importance of remaining under quarantine in order to prevent this disease from spreading -- Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right. Lucy Kafanov at March Air Reserve Base in California. Thank you so much.

All right. A growing list of U.S. companies with operations in China are feeling the impact of the spread of the coronavirus. Apple, McDonald's, Disney and Starbucks have all closed down some of their retail operations in China. Tesla and General Motors are among the companies that have closed factories and actually sent workers home to help curb the spread of the virus while airlines are cutting flights to and from the country.

Cristina Alesci is following the impact for us. So while these companies are obviously putting health concerns first, how big could the financial impact be?

CRISTINA ALESCI, CNNMONEY POLITICS AND BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Fred -- no one has an exact number at this point, but let me give you the context that does matter right now.

[14:24:54]

ALESCI: China accounts for a much greater part of total global economic growth than it did the last time it experienced an epidemic like this.

For example, take a look at these numbers. China in 2003, when the SARS virus was at the height of the epidemic, China accounted for about 4 percent of economic growth versus last year which shows that China accounted for 16 percent of economic growth.

And there are three main ways that, you know, a slowdown in China could directly impact U.S. growth. And they're all tied to, as you mentioned, people staying home from work, not traveling in China and outside of China, and not spending money.

The first is the most direct way, the one that mentioned which is companies that have business operations in China, either are having to shut down stores like McDonald's and Starbucks, for example. Those companies have had to shut down stores in the country.

Apple, Tesla -- they have big manufacturing presence in China. They are bracing for a shutdown in production if they haven't shut down already.

And then the other way that this could impact is global tourism. China accounts for a major part of global tourism and Goldman Sachs, a major investment bank here in the U.S. said this lack of tourists coming in to China could shave about 0.4 percent off of the GDP here in the U.S.

And if you think that's not a lot, well just ask Donald Trump. He is trying to get to 3 percent growth to fulfill a campaign promise, so that 0.4 percent could actually make him miss that target.

That said, it's only impacting the first quarter so far, according to estimates. We'll have to see how the rest of the year and this epidemic plays out -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Potentially a lot of money, a lot of lives impacted.

All right. Cristina Alesci -- thank you so much.

All right. Still ahead, Pete Buttigieg says if you're looking for a candidate who can beat Donald Trump, look no further, insisting his chances are better than Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders. Next, we go live to Iowa on the eve of the crucial caucuses. [14:27:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:30:00]

BERMAN: Democrats are making their final arguments in Iowa today as caucus-goers decide who they think is the best fit to take on President Trump. Former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg told Jake Tapper on State of the Union this morning that he is best positioned to win in November.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FMR. MAYOR PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I certainly think that I am better positioned to beat Donald Trump than any of my competitors.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you think Biden can win, can beat Trump?

BUTTIGIEG: Look, I'm going to support the nominee of my party, of course.

TAPPER: But do you think he can do it? Do you think he can beat Trump or is he going to turn out not be sufficient?

BUTTIGIEG: Here's my concern. If you look at the lessons of history over the last half century, every time that we have won, every time my party has won the White House, it has been with a candidate who is new in national politics, who doesn't work in Washington or at least hadn't been there very long, and was opening a door to a new generation of leadership.

TAPPER: Carter, Clinton, Obama, they're fresher faces.

BUTTIGIEG: That is the best way to win. And at a moment like this, why would we take a chance on anything else? Let's put together the best campaign to beat Donald Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: That was former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

Joining me now, former U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, he is a Democrat from Florida and a surrogate for Vice President Joe Biden and his campaign. Senator Nelson, great to see you, great to have you here.

FMR. SEN. BILL NELSON (D-FL): Thanks, John.

BERMAN: So how do you respond to that, because Vice President Biden can say a lot of things? One thing he can't say is that he's a fresh face or an outsider.

NELSON: What Pete just said, when I was in my 30s, I was talking about a new generation of leadership as well. But the question is performance. Who can bring the country together? We're hurting so badly because we're so divided, and everybody is disgusted with that. That's number one.

But number two is, who as a Democrat can win the swing states? Mine is one of the most prominent swing states, Florida. And I know that Joe Biden can win in November.

I'm not sure that's true for the rest of the Democratic field, and so I hope these Iowa voters are going to think about that when they vote tomorrow night.

BERMAN: You are not sure it's true for the rest of the candidates?

NELSON: Indeed. I'm not sure. For example, if it's Bernie or Elizabeth, in Florida, they're going to be open to attack. You're going to take away my private health insurance? That's not going to go over very well.

BERMAN: What does Vice President Biden need to prove here in Iowa? Because, look, the only elections he ever won on his own were in Delaware, three counties. He's never won an election outside of Delaware. How does he need to do here tomorrow night?

NELSON: He needs to be in the top tier. The vice president doesn't have to win Iowa, but he needs to be up in the top tier, same thing in New Hampshire. He's going to win Nevada, and he's going to blow the doors off in South Carolina, and that's only three days before Super Tuesday.

BERMAN: And what's the difference between Nevada and South Carolina and Iowa and New Hampshire?

NELSON: Well, obviously, Nevada has a big Hispanic population. Obviously, South Carolina has a huge African-American population. And so it's more representative of the country as a whole.

BERMAN: Do you think it's a problem, or how does it affect a campaign when so much focus is on Iowa, which is a very white state?

NELSON: Well, that's the problem. Here is the good part. This is retail politics at its best.

[14:35:00]

This is one-on-one. These folks are accustomed to sitting down and having the answers directly from the candidates or some of their surrogates.

You should have seen who I was talking to yesterday. And it's the best of American democracy. You're getting it face-to-face, but you can't do that for over 300 million people.

BERMAN: Did you close the deal with any voters yesterday?

NELSON: I think so, yes.

BERMAN: Look, how much has impeachment factored in to the last week for former Vice President Biden, because his name came up a lot? Is that something you heard about as you were talking to voters?

NELSON: I did not hear about it. But I think what has happened in this whole soiree on the impeachment is that the constant attacks by the president, it has underscored that the president doesn't want to run against Joe Biden, and I think that's helped Joe.

BERMAN: I don't know if you heard the exchange between the president and New York City -- former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, where President Trump talked about Michael Bloomberg's height, and the Bloomberg campaign responded by talking about the president's hair and weight. Is that, do you think, a successful strategy?

NELSON: No. I think at the end of the day, those kind of little tit- for-tat stuff, the American people don't want that. They're getting serious now. They are concerned about the direction of the country. They don't think it's going in the right direction. They want it redirected.

And I believe all of these little sleights and innuendos, I think that might be good for folks that are pundits to talk about, but I don't think at the end of the day that's going to be important.

BERMAN: I was at an Amy Klobuchar event last night, and one of the things she said was, we can't screw this up. How concerned are you that that's a real risk?

NELSON: Well, because I believe so firmly that the American people want a healer, a uniter, I believe that's going to be the absolute prevailing wish coming out of this election. And I think that inures to the benefit of Vice President Biden.

BERMAN: Senator Bill Nelson from Florida, you have brought the warm weather with you. We thank you for that.

NELSON: I can't believe it. I was dressed as an Eskimo, and here I don't have to wear all those clothes.

BERMAN: Nice to see you. Thanks for joining us today.

NELSON: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: All right. President Trump, as we're just talking, is setting his crosshairs on Michael Bloomberg, mocking the New York Billionaire's height just hours before the two will square off in a pair of dueling Super Bowl ads. CNN's special coverage continues in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:40:00]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back. Closing arguments in President Trump's impeachment trial begins tomorrow morning. Both sides get two hours to make their cases to senators one last time. It's widely believed the president will be acquitted on the charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Well, today, a few Republican senators are criticizing the president's actions to warn Ukraine in explaining their decisions to vote to acquit him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LAMAR ALEXANDER (R-TN): What I believe he did, one, was that he called the president of Ukraine and asked him to become involved in investigating Joe Biden. The second thing was, at least in part, he delayed the military and other assistance to Ukraine in order to encourage that investigation. Those are the two things he did. I think he shouldn't have done it, I think it was wrong. Inappropriate was the way I'd say, improper, crossing the line.

And then the only question left is, who decides what to do about that?

CHUCK TODD, MSNBC HOST: Well, who decides what to do about that?

ALEXANDER: The people. The people is my conclusion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. With me now, Walter Shaub, the former director at the Office of Government Ethics, David Swerdlick is a CNN Political Commentator and the Associate Editor for The Washington Post. Good to see you both.

DAVID SWERDLICK, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Hey, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Walter, you first. Senator Lamar Alexander's explanation for acquitting the president essentially is one that's being echoed by other Republicans. And Alexander says, the president was wrong to ask for a foreign government to investigate a political rival and it was inappropriate to withhold money and to encourage an investigation on Biden, but says it's up to the voters to decide his fate and not the Senate.

So will that be the premise of the White House closing arguments? I mean, they said it a few times, but will we hear it again, and if so, does this help change potentially the balance of power?

WALTER SHAUB, FORMER DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETHICS: I think this goes somewhat further than the White House closing argument will go, which is that he admits it was inappropriate, and I don't think they'll do that. I find this admission though even more disheartening, because he's ultimately saying, it's okay to engage in a quid pro quo, it's okay to use hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayer money to bully a foreign country into interfering in our election. And the idea that that's not impeachable is really absolutely shocking and it's a terrifying message, because what is left? This goes to the heart of the very thing that makes us a republic.

And so I'm not heartened by the fact that he's admitting some wrongdoing. And it's troubling that he says this is what elections are for, because what that amounts to is saying there is no impeachment, because the founders wouldn't have put impeachment in the Constitution if elections were the only mechanism for addressing abuses of power.

WHITFIELD: So it sounds like you're also saying it also means that it kind of devalues or takes away the power of Congress.

SHAUB: Yes, it's a tremendous surrendering of power.

The other thing that's troubling is what he's really saying, because he and others voted not to hear witnesses, is we should let the election decide this even though the president has been caught trying to sabotage that election in his favor, and we should deny the American people who are going to go and vote in that election all the information they need to make up their minds about who to vote, because they blocked the witnesses who could tell them more about this.

WHITFIELD: And, Walter, just yesterday, there was a new court filing, you know, from Friday, really, from the Justice Department revealing internal government emails showing President Trump had discussions about military aid to Ukraine as early as June of last year. And it also shows that the White House is blocking dozens of emails about the Ukraine aid freeze, including the president's role.

So what are the implications of these emails coming to light? Is it just simply headlines, or can something actually -- can there be a consequence for the president, ultimately, as a result of this being publicized, being now public information?

SHAUB: You know, in its filing, the Justice Department squarely places this in the president's area of knowledge and involvement. They say it involves directly hammers and mediate advisers who are formulating recommendations for him and that's the predicate for relying on the exception that they're relying on the privilege.

The problem for the Republican senators who are trying to engage in this cover-up is that this is the first of many things that are going to come. This is a harbinger of what they're going to face as more and more comes out over time. And I think they're going to live to regret having at least blocked letting people hear the information. Because people are going to hear some of this information, some may never get out. But every bit that does get out is going to be one more example of why it was wrong to block this information and block these records from the American voters.

WHITFIELD: All right, Walter Shaub, thank you so much.

David, I want you to stick around. I've got some more questions for you. The president does appear to be kind of shifting his focus right now to the 2020 race. In a clip from an interview that will air during the Super Bowl, Trump actually targets the Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: Michael Bloomberg.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Very little. I just think of little. Now, he wants a box for the debates to stand on. Okay, it's okay, there's nothing wrong. You can be short. Why should he get a box to stand on, okay? He wants a box for the debates. Why should he be entitled to that? Really? Does that mean everyone else gets a box?

HANNITY: Well, I guess if they want to negotiate boxes --

TRUMP: One thing that's interesting, Cory Booker and all these people couldn't get any of the things that Bloomberg is getting now. I think it's very unfair for the Democrats. But I would love to run against Bloomberg. I would love it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So, David, nobody really believes that the president is worried about the fairness among the Democratic candidates. He took that opportunity to really go beyond that.

Meantime, Bloomberg's campaign has already responded to the president's comments with an insulting return jab, if you will, saying, the president is lying. He is a pathological liar who lies about everything, his fake hair, his obesity, his spray-on tan. I mean, David, this is very personal now and Bloomberg is taking on the president to also try to make it personal.

Bloomberg's $100 million campaign ads are targeting Trump as well. It seems to be getting under the president's skin. So, you know, Bloomberg has even bought a commercial for Super Bowl, blasting the president. What does this say? I mean, does this say that, A, Trump really does see Bloomberg as a serious threat, and then Bloomberg is able to say, as he did, you know, long ago, that gloves are off with the president. He does not hold back in any way.

SWERDLICK: Yes, good afternoon, Fred, a lot to unpack here. First of all, you've got two iconic New York guys going after each other, two guys who know each other. There's photos you can find on the internet of them golfing together, have been talking to each other at events before President Trump was in the public sector. So this is a feud I think we're going to see go on.

In terms of the president, that clip you played of him talking to Sean Hannity, he is, nothing else, an expert concern troll (ph). He had that very serious, stern, serious concern look on his face about the rules of the debate and whether someone could stand on a box. It was an elaborate wrapper around a short joke, essentially, and I think you'll see President Trump go for that over and over because that's what President Trump does, calling people little and pencil neck and the like. He goes after people's looks.

In terms of Mayor Bloomberg's response or his campaign's response, I think it's a double-edged sword, Fred. On the one hand, you don't always have to, it's not always the best strategy to take the when they go low, we go high approach as a --

[14:50:03]

WHITFIELD: But why does Bloomberg feel like he does need to do that? Because, remember, it was during the DNC Convention where he called him a con.

SWERDLICK: Yes, he did. So here's the thing, just real quick. A colleague of ours once said to me, and I agree with this, sometimes you don't have to be nice. Sometimes people just need to get fussed out, and I think that's the approach that Mayor Bloomberg's campaign is taking.

The danger for him is though that no one is better at the insult game than President Trump. So if they want to go deeper into this, they should study the game film from Senator Rubio's campaign from 2016 and realize that if you're going to get into an insult grudge match with President Trump, you better be prepared to go all the way.

I think President Trump -- Bloomberg gets under his skin because Bloomberg is actually really rich, a billionaire many times over, and Trump is more of a T.V. billionaire, and that, I think, is why Trump is going after him. Plus he wants to take out a campaign rival.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much. I'm sorry to cut you off. We've got to roll. All right, I appreciate it. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:55:00]

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Welcome back to Newsroom. I'm Coy Wire live in Miami, the site of Super Bowl LIV between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. Are you excited? Because the hype down here is real. $6,500 is the highest average ticket price in Super Bowl history according to TicketIQ, and it's one of the most evenly matched Super Bowls ever. Only three other Super Bowls have had spreads more than two points.

The Chiefs have a slight advantage today. And they are led by the reigning league MVP, Patrick Mahomes, who is just the seventh African- American quarterback to start in a Super Bowl. And he can make history today with a win, becoming the youngest player ever to have league MVP and a Super Bowl ring.

More NEWSROOM with Fred coming up after the break.

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