darlene: my question is about the supreme court. president obama: i am shocked. [laughter] darlene: what recourse do you have if the senate blocks your supreme court nominee? what qualities are important to you and his diversity one of them? obama: i want to reiterate my condolences to the scalia family. hadice scalia and i different political orientations . there is no doubt that he was a giant on the supreme court,

helped to shape the legal landscape. he was by all accounts a good friend and loved his family deeply. it is important before we rush and all the politics of it to take stock of somebody who made an enormous contribution to the united states. the constitution is pretty clear about what is supposed to happen now when there is a vacancy on the supreme court the president of the united states is to nominate someone. the senate is to consider the nomination. either they disapprove of that nominee or that nominee is

elevated to the supreme court. this has not been viewed as a question. there is no unwritten law that says it can only be done on off years. that is not in the constitutional text. when i hear people who claim to be strict interpreters of the constitution suddenly reading into it a whole series of provisions that are not there. there is more than enough time for the senate to consider in a thoughtful way the record of a nominee that i present and should make a decision. with respect to our process we are going to do the same thing we did with justice kagan and justice sotomayor are. we are going to find somebody

who is an outstanding legal mind. some of you who deeply about our democracy end the rule of law rid it will not be any particular position on an issue that determines whether or not i nominate them. i am going to present somebody who indisputably is qualified for the seat and any fair-minded person, even somebody who disagreed with my politics would would serve with honor and we havey on the court almost gotten the customs to how becometionist senate has when it comes to nominations i have got 14 nominations that have been pending that were unanimously approved by the judiciary committee.

they all agreed that they were well qualified for the position and yet we can't get a vote on those individuals. this argument is just an extension of what we have seen in the senate generally. not just on judicial nominees. the basic function of government requires that the president of the united states and his or her duties has a team of people cabinet secretaries, assistant secretaries. that can carry out the basic functions of government. requires as aon separate branch of government. that we almost grown

accustomed to a situation that is almost unprecedented for every nomination is contested. everything is blocked. regardless of how qualified the person is. even when there is no ideological objection. weather is no disqualifying actions by the nominee that have surfaced. isn't that hard that we are even discussing this is a measure of unfortunately the venom and rancor in washington have prevented us from getting basic work done. this would be a good moment for us to rise above that. i understand the stakes and the pressure that republican senators are undoubtedly under. the fact of the matter is the

nowe here is the court is divided on many issues. this would be a deciding vote. there are a lot of republican senator school be under a lot of pressure from various special interests and constituencies and many of their voters to not let any nominee go through. that is not have the system is supposed to work. that is not how our democracy works. nominate in due time a very well-qualified candidate if we are following basic precedents that nominee will be presented before the committees ultimately they will be confirmed.

justice kennedy when he was nominative by ronald reagan in reagan's last year in office the i'm sure there are a lot of democrats who didn't agree with justice kennedy but they did the right thing. they confirmed him. him theyote against certainly didn't mount a filibuster to block a vote for meeting coming up. this is the supreme court. the highest court in the land. we wouldourt where expect elected officials to rise above day-to-day politics. this will be the opportunity for senators to do their job. your job doesn't stop until you are voted out or until your term

expires. i intend to do my job until january 20, 2017. mason: should we interpret your comments that you are likely to choose a moderate nominee? president obama: no. i don't know where you found that. you shouldn't assume anything other than they are going to be well-qualified. jeff mason: would you consider a recess appointment if you're nominee is not granted a hearing? president obama: we have more than enough time to go through regular procedures. i intend to nominate somebody and present them to the american people. i expect them to hold hearings. i expected to be about.

jeff mason: how do you respond youepublican criticism that were in the senate and you try to filibuster sam alito? obama: what is fair to how judicial nominees have evolved over time is not historically the fault of any single party. this has become one more extension of politics. there times when folks were in is senate thinking about this going to be problems in a primary. some people take strategic decisions.

i understand that. justice alito is on the bench right now. there has been a basic consensus each caucus is going to decide how they are going to vote. you let the vote come up. you make sure that it well-qualified candidate is able to join the bench. even if you don't agree with them. my expectation is that the same should happen here. this will be a test. whether or not norms and rules and basic fair play can function

at all in washington these days this is not just the supreme court. saying aonsistently breakdown in the functions of government. they will not vote on there isified nominees a certain mindset that says we're just going to grind a system to a halt. don't like the president we are going to not let him make any appointments. toughering to make it for the administration to do their basic job. we're going to make sure that ambassadors aren't seated.

those duties are critical countries and may have an effect on our national relations. justice roberts himself has pointed out there are emergencies and courts around the country and the system is breaking down. this is become a habit and the gets worse and worse cheese cheer. it is not something i expect a huge amount of time talking this is thee supreme court. is going to get some attention. have to ask yourselves as a society the fundamental question

are we able to make this democracy work the way it is supposed to. where founders envisioned it. i would challenge anyone who purports to be adhering to the foundersintent of the and many who believes in the constitution coming up with a plausible rationale as to why they would not even have a nominee made in accordance with the constitution by the president of the united states with the year [in office. it is pretty hard to find that in the constitution. >> last year and president putin

was about to enter syria you said he was doing so from a position of weakness and that he would only get himself involved in a quagmire there. isseems like president putin getting one of his goals which is to bolster aside. have you respond to critics who say the you've been outfoxed like putin. what is your plan if aleppo does fall. do plan to step up military actions. you said of the key to taking on isis. if you look back at the russia has been propping up beside this entire time.

that putin finally had to send his own troops and his invest this massive military operation was not a strengths isgreat a testament to the weakness of the sun's position. if somebody is strong you have to send in an army to prop up your ally. they have legitimacy in their country and they can manage the cells. army when theur horse you are backing is not effective. that is sacrilegious happened. i said it would involve itself in a quagmire.

absolutely well. if anybody thinks that somehow the fighting ends because russia and the mid-regime has made some initial advances. about three quarters of the country is still under the control of people other than aside. that is not stopping anytime soon. pleasure thish no is not a contest between the how do we stop the suffering and stabilize the region.

there's nothing there is happened over the last several weeks that points to those issues being solved. putin may think that he is prepared to invest in a permanent occupation of syria. that is going to be very costly. that will be a big piece of business. if you will at the state of the russian economy that's probably not the best thing for russia. bet would be smarter would for russia to work with united states and other parties in the international community. to try to broker some sort of transition john kerry working with his russian counterpart has on paper said there is going to be a cessation of hostilities in a few days. this will test whether or not that is possible is hard to do because there has been a lot of bloodshed. if russia continues

indiscriminate bombing of the russia've been saying has a major military. rebels are not going to be able to compete with the hardware of the second most powerful military in the world. that doesn't solve the problem of actually stabilizing syria. we will what happens over the next several days. we will continue to work with our partners who are focused on defeating isis. try to bring about a more lasting political solution than aerial bombardment of schools

and hospitals are going to achieve. it is hard. the country has been shattered. aside has repeatedly missed opportunities to try to arrive at applicable transition. russia has been party to that entire process. the real question we should be asking. that russia thinks if he gets a country that is been completely destroyed. it now has to perpetually spend billions of dollars to prop up.

that is not that great a prize. it has spillover effects that are affecting everybody. one thing that i do want to add we continue to press them hard both in iraq and syria. that will not stop. if we can get a political transition in syria that allows to focus on pose the greatest threat threat to the united states. andrew: do you think military intervention will be necessary in libya?

do you think by the end of your presidency the islamic state will still have geographic strongholds? what did you shoot on the stadium course. [laughter] obama: it was a very nice golf course. very difficult. my score is classified. [laughter] with respect to libya, i have been clear from the outset that we will go after isis wherever it appears. the testament to the fact that we are doing that already is

that we took out one of the most prominent leaders in libya. whether we have a clear operation and a target in mind we are working with our other coalition partners to make sure to prevent isis from digging in in libya. working diligently with united nations to try to get a in libya. in place that is the problem. poweragedy of libya is

plays. a broad middle among oppo-taco leadership that it makes sense to unify some semblance of the state there. there are extremes on other side there is still making it if we can get that done that will be a norm because our strong preference is to train the libyans. thatood news in libya is they don't like outsiders coming in telling them what to do.

they don't follow isis sort their perverted ideology. they have to be organized and can be fighting each other. that is probably as important as anything we're going to be doing in libya over the coming months. carol: the democratic race to replace you has gotten pretty heated. hillary is casting herself as the rightful heir to your legacy. sanders hasbernie been disloyal to you. is she right? that is theama: great thing about primaries is that everybody is trying to differentiate themselves when in fact bernie and hillary agree on disagree with and just about everything the republicans stand for.

that we can let the primary voters in caucus-goers have their say for a while. see how this thing plays itself out. i know hillary better than i know bernie because she was outstanding secretary of state in my administration. that on certain issues she agrees with me more than bernie does. there may be a couple of other issues. i haven't studied the positions that closely. here's what i have confidence in. believe invoters certain principles. making sure in every kid in this country gets a

fair shot. growthsure that economic is broad-based and everybody benefits from it and if you work hard you not in poverty. they believe in preserving a strong safety net. social security and medicare. a foreign policy that is not reckless. protects the market people. change.ieve in climate they think science matters. they think it is important for us to have some basic regulations to keep our air clean and our water clean. to make sure banks aren't engaging and excesses that can result in the kind of thing that how youn 2007 2008 at

deal with a republican party that is moved so far to the right that is often hard to find common ground. that is the debate is taking place right now. it is a healthy debate. will probably have beingnion on it based on a candidate of hope and change and a president who has got some nicks and cuts and bruises from getting stuff done. over the last seven years. for now i think it is important

for democratic voters to express themselves and for the candidates to be put through their paces. i am not unhappy that i'm not on the ballot. [laughter] allen: let me continue the 2016 questions. a lot of your guests are intrigued that we had a candidate who called for a ban on muslim immigration. obama: intrigued is an interesting way of putting it. ron allen: you have explained anger and insecurity is out

there. how much responsibility you have for that? you told matt lauer the donald trump would not win the presidency. do nothing he will not win the nomination as well? obama: i think foreign observers are troubled by some of the rhetoric that has been taking place in these republican primaries and republican debates. i don't think it's restricted to mr. trump. trumpody is focused on primarily because he just says and more interesting ways what the other candidates are saying as well. he may up the ante in

anti-muslim sentiment. if you look at the other candidates of said that is pre-troubling to. he may express strong anti-immigration sentiment but you heard that from other candidates as well. your candidate who sponsored the to finally supported solve the immigration problem and he is running away from his face as he can. they are all denying climate change. countries count on the united states being on the side of science. and reason. and common sense. states does not act on big problems in smart

ways really well. this is not just mr. trump. look at the statements that are being made by the other candidates. there's not a single candidate in the republic primary the things we should do anything that takeste change it seriously. that is a problem. looks of thatrld and says how can that be. i continue to believe that mr. trump will not be president. the reason is that i have a lot of faith in the american people. recognize that being president is a serious job. not hosting a talk show or reality show is not promotion.

it is not marketing. it is hard. it is not a matter of pandering and doing whatever get you in the news on a given day. it requires working with leaders around the world in a way that reflects the importance of the office. thatives people confidence you know the facts. you know their names.

you are not just going to play the crowd back home. you try to solve problems. it seems like entertainment and sometimes it is reported like entertainment. as you get closer reality has a .ay of intruding these are the folks who i have faith in. they ultimately going to say whoever standing mimes standing right now. has the nuclear codes with them. into aer 21-year-olds firefight and have to make sure that the banking system doesn't collapse. and is often responsible for not just the united states of

america the 20 other countries that are having big problems are falling apart and are going to be looking for us to do something. the market people are pretty sensible. they will make a sensible choice in the end. thank you everybody. [applause] >> that was president obama's news conference. that the united had aand asean conference on u.s. soil. the u.s. is committed to a strong framework for prosperity in that region. he talked about security in the region. there was a veiled reference to china in the south china sea and

territorial issues there. at least four nations also claimed territory in the south china sea. on the topic of politics, let's get over to with all due respect is already in progress. bernie sanders: they are running one of the most negative campaigns of the world. that is very annoying. we will do our best. you to beople want not just yelling and demagoguery and attacking your opponent. they want you to understand what

they are going through. addressing their issues. john: donald trump is basely calling everybody a liar. you feel as though secretary clinton or her campaign has lied about you or your stances? sanders: the answer is yes. but i think to compare our campaign to the republican campaign. that's what you're trying to do. is a strong word. o. a strong word. the application at some of the implication that some of you like me who was four for health care reform his whole career that i would do away with children's health care medicare

is ridiculous. what medicare for all is about is providing health care to all of our people without deductibles by the way. stronger health care for all of our people. the secretary puts an add-on implying the bernie sanders is attacking planned .arenthood i think planned parenthood is one of the great organizations in this country. i am not attacking them. i want to increase funding for them. protecting the gun lobby? really? i got a d-from the gun lobby. lost an election early in my career because of opposition from the gun people. i think it is thankfully not reach the level of the republicans. mark: your campaign does put out press releases on a pretty regular basis. back andght participate in the back and forth?

bernie sanders: if we get attacked we get attacked we're going to respond. if summary says i am attacking planned parenthood when i happen to think it is one of the important organizations of america. of course we will respond. i would hope and believe that what the american people deserve is a discussion of the issues of importance to them. differences of opinions that the secretary and i have. she voted for the war in iraq. i voted against it. if i make that point to you and my being negative? are you also proving to voters that you are tough enough to fight back politically? sanders: you are looking

at something was taken on every special interest in the united states of america. i don't think people have to be worried about my toughness. but to run an ugly negative campaign, that is something else. john: what do you fear right now. sanders: what is amazing is that in my whole life i have run for office in the state of vermont. you work hard in the election is over. we had a virtual tie in iowa. that night we run the plane and we had a rally at 5:00 in the morning in new hampshire. we win the new hampshire. now were going to nevada and michigan and minnesota and south carolina. it is a never-ending process.

at the end of the day what it is about is not just winning or losing. it is accumulating delegates. we are figuring out how many delegates we need to win this thing. i guess i am not afraid. it just means there's a lot of work that we have to do. you are juggling many things. 15 elections simultaneously. it's hard enough to just run in vermont. simultaneously is not easy. i hope and believe that our team is doing a great job. we're going to work on it. i'm not afraid. but it is an awesome challenge.

john: our thanks to bernie sanders who is not afraid. the questions you want to ask about the supreme court were afraid to ask. you can listen to us in at 99.1 fm onn bloomberg radio. ♪

: greg joins us from

washington to talk about the supreme court. is going to be a 4-4 tie on the supreme court for a while. one of the invocations of that? greg: the court has a very big issues on its plate. abortion and affirmative action and immigration and some other things. conservatives are not going to win any sweeping victories on those issues. it depends on the case. in the union fees case, a 4-4 split would leave intact a pro union decision. tied vote would leave intact a lower court decision that struck down obama's plan. john: what if obama makes a nomination and somehow overcomes the public in opposition. how bad is that for conservatives?

greg: it is pretty big. we're talking about one of the most conservative justices on the court. even getting a moderate on the court really swing the issues. we're talking about citizens united. the second amendment. voting rights. school integration plans. perhaps the death penalty. mark: coming up we deconstruct the palmetto state and yes vinegar will be involved. we will be right back. ♪

what is going on the south carolina? bernie and jane sanders took a nice walk in charleston in an attempt to woo black voters. hillary clinton gave a fiery speech but in new york city. he is flying to atlanta tonight. it is crunch time for bernie sanders. mark: we see how much momentum is helping him in nevada. is it helping them here? jamie: i understand he is making

inroads with the african-american vote. but can he close the gap before the primary? i do see some support among young people. he is built a coalition among voters.rican-american historically the clintons have had a good relationship with african-americans. after the 2008 primary that was not really the case. now it is a years later. why does this loyalty returned to the clintons. on the issues bernie sanders is not that different. jamie: a lot of older women told me they were all for hillary being nominated 2008. then barack obama came along and presented a historic opportunity to put an african-american in

the white house. and they switch to him. a number of them have said that now it is her turn. mark: sanders could do very well and beat expectations. what if she blows it out. what do sanders do? he gives her another run for her money but doesn't quite win it could be like iowa. they know they're going to have a serious hurdle. theof my questions for senator's is how are they expanding across a map that is about to get much bigger. they have the money to be on television. have yet to see solid evidence that they are working hard on the ground in enough places actually lifted us off the ground. is there a superdelegate strategy? that will become much much harder if those things come

true. mark: they would only need such a strategy if they really overwhelm her in march. bernie is going to spend a day in burlington. what is going on there? is he very tired? casey: he has had a persistent .ough you guys know more than anybody that this process is extraordinarily grueling. you have to balance the risk you are taking when your candidate out there when he is not going to perform at his best. taking the time off. i know they went back and forth a little bit on that decision. mark: donald trump had a debate performance that was controversial.

the public polling doesn't suggest he was hurt by it. jamie: the polls still show him with a commanding lead. they are looking at how well the other candidates can do to break into take cruises second-place status. i spent the day yesterday with rubio. talk to some voters there. she said she loved rubio but she's actually thinking about voting for ted thinking hebased on might have the best shot at beating trump. we still needce to look at polls coming in the next couple of days to see if the debate hurt him. so far it doesn't appear that has. john: jeb bush has made no state

move in this state at all. casey: the bush campaign is surprised by how difficult things have been. they thought his to make all requirements very strong but they got no bump out of that. with the john kasich leaving the state to go to be a little bit helpful. it is a pile of the way new hampshire was. just how far behind is he? if they all end up in this pile up can he keep going through these initial states. the sense i get from the bush campaign is more and more pessimistic. carson only because he has got one of the strongest campaign efforts that could eat

into take cruises share of the vote. i'm not sure if i know anyone lower than ted cruz is really hot right now. he is the one who is closest to cruise. john: we will be back with who won this day in history. ♪

rk: who won the day?

hillary clinton by injecting race into the discussion on the supreme court she won the day. mark: donald trump won the day. people are been suggested he was fading after the debate. the public polls do not show that at all. a story about how bernie sanders might just be gaining on hillary clinton in the silver state. our full interview with bernie sanders as well. we will be back here in columbia tomorrow. sayonara. ♪

president obama: is pretty clear what the constitution says about what is supposed to happen when there is a vacancy on the supreme court. the president of the united states is to nominate someone. the senate is to consider that nomination. either they disapprove of the nominee or that nominee is elevated to the supreme court. historically this has not been viewed as a question. any republicans say nominating a replacement for scalia by obama would not