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New Hampshire GOP Voters React To Trump's Historic Win In Iowa; GOP Race Heads To New Hampshire After Trump Dominates In Iowa; Bills Eliminate Steelers In Game Delayed A Day By Snow. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired January 16, 2024 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[05:31:11]
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NIKKI HALEY, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As we head to New Hampshire I have one more thing to say. Underestimate me because that's always fun. I love you Iowa but we're on to New Hampshire.
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POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Republican voters reacting to former President Trump's huge win in Iowa. Although Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley finished 30 points behind him. Some of their supporters in New Hampshire say they believe their candidate still has a fighting chance considering the last time Iowa chose a Republican nominee for president was in 2000.
Gary Tuchman reports.
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GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We watched CNN's coverage of the Iowa caucuses with some of the Americans next up in the presidential nominating process -- Republicans from Rockingham County, New Hampshire --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Bring on the great state of New Hampshire.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I would say that Iowa and then New Hampshire are kicking off a Republican revolution.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): -- all very enthusiastic Republican voters. Two of these 10 people are prepared to vote for Donald Trump next week, and regarding his Iowa victory --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I expected it and I'm happy with it.
TUCHMAN (on camera): And how do you feel about it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Very happy with the results.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): One of the 10 will cast a vote for Ron DeSantis.
TUCHMAN (on camera): How do you feel about this second-place finish?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really psyched by it. I think it's a great turnout -- a great result. But again, it -- for me, whoever wins the primary I'm supporting. So let's get to New Hampshire. Let's go.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Well, you heard Nikki Haley just say while we were watching that it's a two-person race even though she came in third place. Do you buy that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, not at all. I think what he showed is that he is a viable contender. And it's the first stop. So let's see what happens in New Hampshire. But no, I think he's going to do great.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Three people on our panel were undecided or not disclosing their vote. Nikki Haley will get the most votes among this group with four.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought she would be a close second to Donald Trump but I did not envision her losing by that much, so I'm disappointed in the results.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Nikki Haley supporter, how do you feel?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a little bit more optimistic with tonight considering how much time and money that Ron DeSantis spent in Iowa. I think she fared really well and now she's coming to New Hampshire where I think she's going to do very, very well.
TUCHMAN (on camera): If Donald Trump is the nominee of the Republican Party are you all prepared to vote for Donald Trump?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely, yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Anyone not definitive about voting for Donald Trump?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not definitive.
TUCHMAN (on camera): OK, tell me why, Bob.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I expect my president to act and conduct the prudential affairs of our government in a presidential manner. And I don't think he's been a good reflection of the kind of character I would like to see in the White House.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Are any of you also troubled with his character?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.
TUCHMAN (on camera): But you're still ready to vote for him because you're not going to vote for Biden? No one here is thinking of voting for Biden. Who are you thinking of voting for if it's Trump versus Biden?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think I'd look to an Independent candidate who came close to my Republican principles.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Like who?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe someone like Joe Manchin would be someone I'd considered.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is a Democrat who says he's not running for reelection but hasn't ruled out running for president as a third-party candidate.
All in all, these New Hampshire Republicans tell us this about the Iowa caucuses.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a good start.
TUCHMAN (on camera): You think it's a good start. Will you all be voting on Tuesday?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely.
TUCHMAN (on camera): Phil and Poppy, obviously, Donald Trump is in the driver's seat but the people in our group who support Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis all say they're keeping the faith -- Phil, Poppy.
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HARLOW: Our thanks to Gary Tuchman.
It's also so interesting but particularly interesting is the amount of voters that he talked to that raised their hand and say character matters.
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Right.
HARLOW: But those same voters, except for one -- Bob, there -- said still, if they're uncomfortable with Trump's -- some of the things he says and does -- still would get this vote.
[05:35:
MATTINGLY: It reminds me of your conversation that you had with the evangelical pastors yesterday.
HARLOW: Right, right.
MATTINGLY: It's the reality.
HARLOW: Character not the most important thing for --
MATTINGLY: No.
HARLOW: -- those voters --
MATTINGLY: It's the reality.
HARLOW: Even though Chris Christie said it should be.
All right. We have a lot ahead in the race for the White House -- that continues.
Kasie Hunt with us in Manchester. Hey, Kasie.
KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR, "EARLY START": Hey, guys. The big question this morning, does New Hampshire give Nikki Haley any chance to change the trajectory of this race? It might. We'll break down why. That's up next.
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MATTINGLY: Snow --
HARLOW: Yay.
MATTINGLY: -- in New York. It's actually falling. Philadelphia and D.C. also set to see some snowfall. Kids either getting school canceled or delayed much to the chagrin of many parents. For the first time in almost two years, it is breaking the snow drought in New York City. One person in Memphis here taking advantage of the southern snow.
More than 120 million people will feel that bitter cold arctic blast from border to border. It could get negative 45 in some regions.
Meteorologist Allison Chinchar joins us now. Allison, what are we looking at today?
[05:40:00]
ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: A lot of snow and still a lot of cold. Unfortunately, it's not going anywhere for some of these places for at least a few more days. That arctic air still sitting in place across much of the central U.S. We've got this cold front sliding its way through. That's bringing rain, snow, and even a little bit of a wintry mix.
And it's all because of these temperatures. We have snow in places you wouldn't normally see it only because these temperatures are so cold across much of the country. Twenty percent of the lower 48 population looking at temperatures below zero. Eighty percent of that population looking at temperatures below freezing. And for some, it's still going to linger for several more days.
Right now, yes, it is snowing in New York. That snow headed up through Boston and areas of Providence, Rhode Island as well. Rain on the southern side there, and even a little bit of an icy mix for some southern states, too. That's why you've got these winter weather advisories that run from Louisiana all the way up through Maine.
Again, when we zoom in a little bit closer -- yes, you can see the snow coming down -- Hartford, areas of New York, up through Boston. Even areas of Upstate New York and Pennsylvania also looking at some pretty heavy snow at this time.
Now, this system is going to continue to make its way off to the northeast and then eventually out to sea once we get later on tonight, so this is going to be a very quick burst that comes through.
But yes, take a look at New York. So far, we're up to 701 days. That is likely to end today for the streak of not having at least an inch of snow there -- expected to get it. Right now, we are starting to see it come down but other cities have already broken it, including Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., which did finally end up getting at least an inch in the last 24 hours.
MATTINGLY: All right, Allison Chinchar. Big news for kids who like snow. Thank you very much.
Kasie, where you are there's usually some snow. It can complicate things heading into a primary as well. But you're also coming from, like, the coldest place in the history of the world, so it's probably kind of nice there.
HUNT: I got my iPhone forecast back here -- 21 degrees. It's --
HARLOW: Balmy.
HUNT: -- basically 35 degrees warmer here than it was when we spoke yesterday. I seriously took my coat off when we got off the plane. I was like this feels great.
But look, with the Iowa caucuses behind them, of course, there is much more than just the weather that's different here. Republican candidates are eyeing the state of New Hampshire. There's a different electorate here, there are different voting patterns here, and now there's going to be a slightly different candidate field as well.
So, here to talk about how this race is going to be different in New Hampshire are Michelle Price of the Associated Press. She is national political reporter for them. And, Annmarie Timmins who is senior reporter for the New Hampshire Bulletin and has covered this state for many decades. Ladies, thank you so much for being here so early.
ANNMARIE TIMMINS, SENIOR REPORTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE BULLETIN: Yeah, thank you.
MICHELLE PRICE, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS: Thank you.
HUNT: Michelle, let me start with you. What has been your sense -- I know you've been here reporting on the ground and we're only starting to get a sense of how Iowa has really affected how things are going to move here. But is there still, do you think, as much promise around Nikki Haley's campaign as some of her supporters thought that there might be here?
PRICE: I think there's still promise. I mean, she did do -- like, when she started there was not an expectation she'd be that close to Ron DeSantis in Iowa as she ended up doing. This is also a state that has not really taken its cues from how Iowa's caucuses turned out. So there's still -- there's still room for her.
I mean, some of the latest polling -- the CNN poll we saw last week showed that she has narrowed that gap with Donald Trump. That there is a real but very narrow path for her to kind of cut into that aura of inevitability. But the question is then what happens after New Hampshire?
HUNT: Right, of course.
I mean, Annmarie, you've covered the state for a long time. You have a good sort of feel for how momentum moves around here. What's your sense of how last night if going to affect things?
TIMMINS: I think it's very different here. We have such a different electorate. We have -- our undeclareds outnumber Republicans and Democrats. We saw so many people shift their registration from Democrat to undeclared in October. We think that's because they want to vote in the Republican primary. So I think the independent nature of our voters and -- were not religious, and that's a big difference here.
So I think -- I think Haley does have a lot of promise here. We'll see. I think attention right now -- Biden supporters are thinking about writing her in and we're seeing some tension between the Biden write-ins and the Biden -- take -- getting -- Haley taking away votes from that campaign.
HUNT: Right -- no, yeah. I mean, I think -- I think you may mean it's a little bit complicated on the Democratic side. Of course, President Biden is not on the ballot --
TIMMINS: Right.
HUNT: -- and he's mounted a write-in campaign to try to make --
TIMMINS: Right.
HUNT: -- sure he wins. There's no issues. But a lot of those voters really want to make a difference in the Republican primary instead, which makes sense to me --
TIMMINS: Um-hum.
HUNT: -- if you want to -- I mean, come up and be able to participate in this.
Let's talk a little bit, Michelle, about some of the messaging here because while Donald Trump was up on stage saying more magnanimous things about his opponents than I think any of us had heard in recent -- in recent weeks, he is still on the air attacking Nikki Haley.
Take a look at a little bit of his latest campaign ad.
[05:45:00]
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TRUMP POLITICAL AD: Americans were promised a secure retirement. Nikki Haley's plan ends that.
HALEY: What we do know is 65 is way too low and we need to increase that.
TRUMP POLITICAL AD: Haley's plan cuts Social Security benefits for 82 percent of Americans.
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HUNT: Effective?
PRICE: Well, I mean, we'll see. Last night, he was calling for unity. He was calling for the other candidates to drop out and to get behind him. But his campaign message is still a divisive one.
And Nikki Haley has also turned up the rhetoric on Donald Trump. Her word last night was the "Trump-Biden nightmare" of a rematch here.
As Annmarie said, this is a different electorate. They're looking a different issues. You've got to remember this is also just a different process than Iowa. It's not the most activist. This is a more general election that --
HUNT: Right.
PRICE: -- people can come out. And so, it's a different group.
HUNT: You mention that sort of message that Haley hit on. We showed what Nikki Haley had to say. But she's also put this up in an ad as well, which is telling because that means that they're putting money behind the message.
Take a look at Haley's latest ad here in New Hampshire.
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HALEY POLITICAL AD: The two most disliked politicians in America? Trump and Biden. Both are consumed by chaos, negativity, and grievances of the past. The better choice for a better America? Nikki Haley.
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HUNT: I mean, look at that. Those two -- the Trump-Biden face next to each other. I don't think I've seen anything like that so far in this campaign. And maybe she feels freed up after Iowa to be able to make that contrast more aggressively. How do you see New Hampshire voters reacting to it?
TIMMINS: I think there is a very strong anti-Trump sentiment here. You know, Gov. Sununu endorsed Haley. He's been such a voice against Trump. He's really been spoken out much earlier than these other candidates. So I'm not sure that's persuasive. They already know that's the lineup, probably, that we're going to see. So I don't -- I don't just see it -- I don't see it playing that strongly here, but we'll see.
HUNT: I mean, there's a reason -- there's got to be a reason they're putting it up, Michelle. What -- how do you see it?
PRICE: That's right. I mean, there's also -- you know, think about abortion here. This is an -- this is a state where the abortion issue is going to play differently than in Iowa. Donald Trump has been on the campaign trail taking credit for having overturned Roe v. Wade. That could really hurt him here.
We're starting to see Haley also snack on the age issue a little bit with Trump more than she has in the past.
But you've got to remember this is a state that voted for Trump in the past. And we even had Gov. Sununu say that he would eventually endorse him --
TIMMINS: Right.
PRICE: -- and support him. He has endorsed Haley right now but that might undercut that endorsement a little bit.
HUNT: Right, and it seemed even in the -- even in the event that Donald Trump is convicted, which really is kind of -- I mean, big picture, Michelle, just to put a button on it. I mean, Donald Trump came out of Iowa in as strong a position as he possibly could have.
What does that mean here in New Hampshire? Are there going to be more Republicans who are going to say he's going to be our guy and I'm going to go with it, or do you think it's going to spur -- I mean, one of the things I like about covering New Hampshire politics is sometimes they -- Nikki Haley said it somewhat inartfully -- like, they correct Iowa's results. Sometimes they seem to just kind of want to stick it to whatever the broader narrative is.
Do you see that happening here?
PRICE: I mean, they -- New Hampshirites relish their role. They're very serious about it. They ask tough questions of these candidates. This is kind of the last chance for them to pierce that aura of inevitability, but the question is whether they can really do that.
HUNT: Yeah, for sure.
All right, Michelle Price, Annmarie Timmins, thank you guys very much for being up early with us.
TIMMINS: Thank you.
PRICE: Thank you.
HUNT: We really appreciate it.
And tonight, Ron DeSantis is going to make his case and take questions directly from New Hampshire voters. Wolf Blitzer moderates a CNN Presidential Town Hall at 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN -- Poppy, Phil.
HARLOW: Thank you, Kasie. We'll get back to you soon.
Well, from a big caucus win in Iowa to a courtroom right here in New York, a jury set to determine how much Donald Trump must pay in damages for defaming E. Jean Carroll. The former president -- he says he's going to be there in court today in person.
MATTINGLY: And if you're friends with an Eagles fan -- oftentimes (PH) they're insufferable -- you can give them a hard time today.
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JIM MORA, HEAD COACH, UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT: Playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs? I just hope we can win a game.
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[05:52:50]
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NFL ANNOUNCER: Oh, there he goes. No one's going to get him! Incredible -- breaks it for the touchdown!
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MATTINGLY: That reminded me of San Fernando.
HARLOW: I know.
MATTINGLY: A resident Buffalo Bills fan. No, the running -- the sprint -- the town -- the athletic town.
The plunging --
HARLOW: Congrats, Sam and Wolf.
MATTINGLY: The plunging temperature -- and Wolf, and Harry Enten. Extreme weather may have delayed the game but the Buffalo Bills had a lot to celebrate last night after the team overtook the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-17.
HARLOW: Take a look at this picture of fans in the stadium -- at the Bills' stadium. They are completely surrounded by snow. What a great picture. Kickoff happened some 27 hours after it was supposed to, giving fans enough time to dig their way out.
Andy Scholes joins us now. Good morning.
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yeah, good morning, Poppy and Phil.
You know, they had all those freelance shovelers making $20.00 an hour working tirelessly to dig out Highmark Stadium from the 40 inches of snow they got over the weekend. Now, they didn't get all the snow, as you saw right there, but it was good enough for Buffalo Bills fans.
And Josh Allen gave them plenty to cheer about in this game. He'd already thrown two touchdowns when he takes off here. And the six- foot-five 240-pounder goes 52 yards for the score. The Bills up 21-0 at that point.
The Steelers -- they made a game of it in the second half. Khalil Shakir, here, breaking the tackle somehow and he takes it in for the touchdown. That put the game away. Bills win 31-17. They move on to face the Chiefs.
The season over now for the Steelers and head coach Mike Tomlin -- well, he did not want to discuss his future after his team's loss.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anyone?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mike, you had a year left on your contract.
MIKE TOMLIN, HEAD COACH, PITTSBURGH STEELERS: (Walks away from microphone).
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SCHOLES: All right.
It was a rough day all around for the state of Pennsylvania as the defending champs NFC champion Eagles are also out. Battling rib and ankle injuries, Baker Mayfield throwing for 337 yards and three touchdowns. The Bucs just dominated the Eagles late in this one. They ended up winning 32-9.
Philadelphia started the season 10-1 and finished 1-6. Just an incredible collapse. Now there's questions about if its head coach Nick Sirianni will be back.
Tampa, meanwhile, now moves on to face the Lions in a rematch. Detroit winning that game back in October.
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BAKER MAYFIELD, QUARTERBACK, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: We worked extremely hard to get a chance to be in the playoffs. And we just wanted an opportunity and our guys came out and played really, really well. We're happy but we've still got more to go.
TODD BOWLES, HEAD COACH, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: We know we're underdogs and we'll be underdogs next week, too. We understand that and we embrace it, and we like it.
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SCHOLES: All right. So here's a look at the divisional round of the playoffs. The action is going to get started Saturday with C.J. Stroud and the Texans taking on the Ravens, followed by the Packers and Niners in prime time.
And on Sunday, you've got the Lions hosting the Bucs in the early game, with the Chiefs and Bills, 6:30 Eastern. That's going to be Mahomes versus Josh Allen in the playoffs, round three. The last time they faced off, guys, 2022. It was that epic game where the Chiefs were down three with 13 seconds left and came back and won. So looking forward to that one.
MATTINGLY: It was an all-timer. C.J. Stroud went to Ohio State.
Andy Scholes, thank you as always, my friend.
SCHOLES: All right.
HARLOW: It seems like it wouldn't be excited about that.
MATTINGLY: It's always the same answer.
HARLOW: Only if it's Minnesota am I excited.
MATTINGLY: All right.
HARLOW: Andy, thank you.
It is on in New Hampshire, also a very exciting place, especially for the next seven days. Will we see a replay of Iowa or is Trump beatable there?
This is CNN's special live coverage. Stay with us.
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HALEY: I can safely say tonight Iowa made this Republican primary a two-person race. Our campaign is the last best hope of stopping the Trump-Biden nightmare.
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