mark: with all due respect to the pope, baby he will read the comments. maybe he will read the comments. ♪ good evening, earthlings. i am here in selleck city where anholdingmp and event. ted cruz is spending the day in arizona. he is holding two events including one at the u.s.-mexico border. this is the first day that the surviving trio of gop candidates

out campaigning. what have you noticed so far about the dynamics of this trump-cruise-kasich matchup? al: it is not much different kasich-rubiomp-cruz- matchup. the test will be after arizona next tuesday when there is two weeks the only one caucus going into wisconsin, we will see if can accomplish with the anti-trump fashion has dreamed about for months and one on one against donald trump. we will see how it works 211. i am a little bit dubious. mark: the majority believe that the party would be utter to stop trump if it was just ted cruz in the ted cruz people think -- they try to ignore kasich but

the ted cruz how you -- high command wants him out of the race. the data suggest they would win. kasich is slow starting. on wednesdaynt which was not particularly powerful but i think the interesting thing about the dynamic is so far, no one is getting a bead on trumpet and takers and kasich are talking as much about each other as they are about the front runner. al: i think that is right. the picture can be more mixed. particularlyces where there is proportional representation where may be more advantageous to have kasich in there and some states were ted cruz may not do as well but at other times it is better to take o a on mono mono -- man mano. they point to two primaries last week. if rubio was not in, ted cruz

would have beaten donald trump. super eager to see polling in some of the states in a three-way race to see if kasich is in the game, because he has not done what i thought he would do which is become the establishment favorite and cola's the vote. if we end up in some of these northeast states you could see one third, one third, one third. he could be a big player and get some delegates and for those who believe the only way to stop trump is to keep him from the majority, kasich could be a contributor to that for sure. wisconsin,divide up the otherhree and wins three. usually it is not work that neatly. mark: mitt romney plans to vote for ted cruz in utah. we will go past the bill for the latebreaking news. that could be an endorsement by

think by likely it is in keeping with the policy he laid out and asked republicans to follow which is to vote for the person who has the best chance to beat trump and here it is ted cruz. al: you would know better than i, does mitt romney have some pull in utah? mark: i think he probably does. his percentage of the electorate will be people in the more agenda. ted cruz is in arizona, not in utah. he is holding a press conference to talk about immigration at the mexican border and has a rally in phoenix later tonight. the ted cruz campaign is putting tv ads up in arizona including one featuring the father of a boy -- a young man who was killed by someone in the country illegally. arizona has the most delegates on tuesday. it is a winner take all state.

that donald trump is widely expected to win. why is ted cruz spending time and resources in the winner take all state as he did in ohio and florida, playing there even though he is unlikely to win the state and not get any delegates? al: it is the only game in town. i'm not sure he has any choice. when you are 250 delegates behind you have to play almost everywhere. the ted cruz people believe one-on-one they would have had a shot at winning arizona but a lot of those voters have voted over the last month. i am sure trump did very well there. i guess the best that ted cruz can realistically hope for is a decent respectable second. want the -- ted cruz oaks to make this a two-person race. they do not want a situation where trump win so big that ted cruz gets lumped in with kasich that kasichforbade

finish ahead of ted cruz. this week, arizona will get a lot of coverage. al: arizona will get the most average but -- because it is simple primary. north dakota had more delegates combined then either arizona or wisconsin and i think ted cruz has a good shot at both of those places. he can -- is competitive in both those caucuses. mark: the other reason ted cruz wants to play their -- play re, either they believe they cannot let donald trump on the cruz andon issue, ted his team feel like you have to go after trump on his strengths and immigration has been a big strength for him. al: lots of luck, ted. prettyonald trump has a

big lead in the gop delegate count and he will almost certainly expand on that when he competes here in utah and arizona next week. yet, his republican rivals have been saying team ted cruz privately, they can beat trump in an open convention scenario even if he shows up with the most delegates. is the anti-trump part of the gop, underestimating trump ability to win on a second ballot if he does not show up in cleveland with the majority? it is hard to say because we do not know who must of the delegates will be. most of them will be picked at state conventions and we're not quite sure what would influence ted cruz or trump or kasich would have on those choices. that i think that donald trump is a very weak general election candidate. there are smart people who think that might be wrong.

i think that will affect any chance to win a second ballot because of he does not win in the first and he is perceived as a week candidate he will pick on the first ballot. goinghe has three things charming guys a one-on-one and you can bet that trump will get on the phone and try to work some of those delegates. he has very -- he has barry bennick. lastly, you could spend money to win this fight. you could spend not very much money by the standards of a billionaire and try to influence folks by presents or other inducements. al: being much able -- older than you i was able to cover an

older convention. they were trying to pick him off one by one. gerald forduy as was, ronald reagan was more charming. ford could offer more but there was a perception and the key vote they had earlier on the rules as to who was more likely to win and i think that probably pulled jerry ford through although ronald reagan's persuasion would top donald trumps or anyone else from today. in the last few days i have heard from folks including some who do not want trump to be the nominee who say that in the kind of schmoozing, courtship rituals that would be required to win over delegates who are up for grabs, that trump would be the superior schmoozer to those other two guys. we could be in those

rooms. mark: we will try to get in there if it comes to that. amongis a growing sense the gang of 500 that donald trump will be the nominee whether the republican convention ends up being open or trump wins on the first ballot. that has the lifeblood of the republican astonishment -- establishment by which we mean the donors wondering how they can protect pelicans and other races when it comes to -- republicans and other races. how hard will it be for incumbents and challengers, those going for open seats to run with trump? al: i think it is going to be difficult in certain places. it depends on where it is. i think the great regret of republicans is that the senate senate2014 is not the map of 2016. if it were in places like louisiana and arkansas and kentucky, no problem.

it may be a big problem in new hampshire and in illinois and pennsylvania. it depends on whether trump can enlarge the electorate and reach to working-class democrats. i am skeptical of that. but if he cannot it will be a very delicate balancing act. he is going to have a big element of voters they will need. if trump is the nominee you will have the mother of all instances of democrats and republican candidates having scheduling conflicts on the day trump comes to their state. every time term goes to ohio, rob portman will be busy that day and it does make it uncomfortable. you recall that when president bush 41 was running for reelection and ed rollins was running the house campaign committee he urged his candidates to distance

themselves from the top of the ticket. you will see instructions leaked out or announced that they are not running with donald trump. al: a lot of unbreakable dental appointments. mark: that is right, busy that day, they have got that thing. is bernieme back, sanders helping hillary clinton by staying in the race? intriguing question. we will explore after this. ♪

mark: bernie sanders did a couple of press interviews, his first since that loss he suffered on tuesday. he was asked about those alleged comments that present as president bush allegedly made

when he reportedly said the vermont senator's campaign is reaching its end. sanders dismissed the notion and said he would be "outrageously undemocratic" for him to drop out now. sen. sanders: i do not want to te on what he said or did not say. the bottom line is that when only half of the american people have participated in the political process with some of the largest states in this country, people in the states have not yet been able to voice their opinion on who should be the democratic nominee, i think it is absurd for anybody to suggest that those people not have a right to cast a vote. bush,i said president president obama is the one who made the quote.

gets pulled more to the left, she has to spend more money fighting off sanders focused or preparing for a general election but there are other voices saying a longer race against sanders makes hillary clinton a better candidate and keeps her in the news and allows her to keep winning contests week after week and it does not allow the press to start focusing on her weaknesses or republicans to do that with the same intensity. which of those two arguments is the stronger, is burning in the race for hillary or bad for hillary? al: she had a terrific tuesday. i cannot find a whole lot of democratic politicians who believe she has become a better candidate. that is still a work in progress but this is really by competitive standards not an especially bitter race. i do not think it is hurting her much. maybe she has pulled left on a couple of issues but that is where the public is anyway, minimum wage, anti-wall street.

i do not think bernie will be affected by the numbers. he is not in this for a cause, and i do not think that is going to change the matter what the delegate map. mark: that leads to the real answer. it is not almost matter. the notion that she would be better off if he got out would not much matter. it is a false choice even though i posed the question. good for her as long as she performs well and i agree, those who say she has gotten to be a better candidate, she is still a work in progress. sanders provides opportunity in or out of the race. unless she is doing well enough to take advantage of those opportunities i do not think it much matters either way. in four days, it is super tuesday. number four, the quattro. it is not that super day. just do -- you taught and arizona and idaho voting on the

democratic side. two weeks from tuesday is wisconsin. that is an important state for both parties. that primary has mattered. john kasich and ted cruz are trying to plan their flag there. many believe they could he had good safer bernie sanders which would be part of his march-april come back. then again, it is hard right now to stop clinton momentum and moment trump. if thee the chances that front runners win in wisconsin that one or both nomination fights could and two weeks from tuesday? side as wedemocratic said a moment ago i do not think bernie will drop out no matter what. of students -- it dents his credibility. we will see what a three-way race looks like and that is one

that is decided by congressional district and if donald trump is able to do in illinois and i believe in missouri, suite most of those congressional districts because kasich and ted cruz are splitting the opposition, it really will be a much more significant step closer to his nomination. mark: i agree. what is interesting in wisconsin is john kasich could say there is a lot of voters and ted cruz could say there is a lot of voters of his there and every state is good for trump pretty much. it will be interesting to see how that shakes out. it is possible that trump could win the state and one of the other two guys could do so poorly that they are when no doubt and the other gets his one-on-one race. ted cruz will go forward but if trump and ted cruz finish strong, cruz could use wisconsin to get what he wants which is a two-person race.

al: if john kasich is getting 10% in arizona and finishes a distant third in wisconsin it is hard to make a case for continuing. mark: absolutely. the other thing about wisconsin, it has some big cities and a diverse population at it has that political tradition. you're going to see a lot of media coverage, a lot of national focus. it will be an interesting contest. with the exception of some caucuses, a two-week run up there. next, the sheriff and the socialist. bernie sanders' run and with the law in arizona after this word from our sponsors. ♪

♪

sen. sanders: she was met by the sheriff who kind of ambushed her. but my wife is a tough lady and she does not take ambushes. she asked him about racial profiling. and he did not have an answer. she asked him about the conditions in tent city and the other abuses that he has not haveed, and he did an answer. he cannotow what, have an answer because what he is doing is un-american and uncivilized. that was last night, speaking in flagstaff, arizona.

he was referring to a confrontation involving his wife, jane, and demand some people called the toughest sheriff in america, joe arpaio, and presiding over the blazing hot tent city in arizona. at that rally and joins idaho.by phone from let's talk about this event before we talk about bernie sanders' reaction to it and the clinton campaign reaction. what happened earlier between jane sanders and joel pardo -- joe arpaio? >> she went there with immigration reform advocates. over the course of the day, sheriff arpaio found out she was going to be there and showed up uninvited and unannounced and engaged in a dialogue with her at the tent city and that became

the subject of greater controversy. the tone, tenor, and substance of that is what we are playing off of but that was the plan for -- was for jane sanders to go to the tent city and make some progressive remarks about the need for immigration reform and arpaio but joel pardo -- did sort of ambushed her. mark: clinton's allies are making much of this and being critical. been out there as an attack figure. what is the argument the clinton allies are making? congressmanent that gutierrez is making is jane sanders should have denounced joe arpaio to his face and there is video having a relatively polite conversation. tough asking him some questions and he is more or less not answering them.

gutierrez suggests she should have called for his resignation, she should have gotten up in his face, she who -- should never have engaged in that dialogue or granted him a form. i agree with you, you may say it is bad staff work on the sanders campaign part not to anticipate thererpaio would show up and have a dialogue and jane sanders would be ready for that. the idea that she would stand there and denounced joe arpaio to his face is out of character. she is not a professional politician and to hold her to that standard seems unfair. replicais is on a level. -- raw political level. is this a state where they think they can win? stay they thought they could win before tuesday. now they are saying -- trying to tempt down expectations. saying we know we are behind.

-- ahead.nd in the young vote is not showing up and a lot of early votes [indiscernible] older whites, looking to stay and play especially after tuesday where clinton has a lot of momentum, i do not think the sanders campaign is thinking they can win, they are trying to keep it close. mark: thank you. of next, -- up next, the effort to stop arnold trump after this. ♪

>> i don't care about race. i just believe in the love and i see trump as love. >> don't worry about it. let's just talk. look, it's a bernie person. hey, bernie. get your people in line, bernie. and i think bernie's finished. ut you never know. mark: that is a clip from the upcoming episode of "the circus" which will air on show time this sunday at 8:00 p.m. eastern time. that's our show time program. inside the greatest political show on earth. it's getting hot out there on the trail. as that clip shows. joining us now from washington is veteran republican pollster strategist and all-around big thinker, ed. formerly an advisor to scott walker's presidential campaign. who is now working with the anti-trump forces. what is the state here as the

week closes of the efforts to stop donald trump from being your party's nominee? guest: i think you're going to see, if you haven't heard already, we went on air today in arizona and utah. i think you're going to be seeing a lot more of that. the bottom line here is that trump would have to win 100% of the delegates to finish this by april 10. with 1/3 of those delegate being proportional. this thing is going all the way to california. it's far from over. and i think you may very well see it go to a convention -- to the convention, a contested convention. i didn't think so early on. but increasingly it is looking that way, when you look at the real numbers. mark: i'm always in awe to be on the set with a big thinker. >> give me some big thoughts. but first, let me ask you, is the main argument you're making against trump a political arguement? you think he can't win? he's not a republican? or is it basically a philosophical argument? guest: it's interesting.

this is the first time in 40 years of doing this, i've worked on an operation, if you will, that is trying to work against someone as opposed to work for someone. i think we're looking to take votes away from trump. we're not. trump has about 1/3 of the electorate, republican electorate, that is voter for him. if you look at the popular vote, he's gotten on all the races so far, he's under 40%. so a lot of what we're doing is just holding that ceiling down. but we can only act as a wedge. the campaigns then have to act as a magnet for those 60% that are left over to pull them to them. there's some that have done it very well. john kasich did it very well in ohio. cruz has done it well in a variety of areas. florida didn't work out quite that way. >> what do you say to those who say, yeah, he's getting 35%, 40% in the primaries but he can enlargen the electorate, he can bring out people that didn't come out before, he can attract

some more working class democrat, unlike any other republican? guest: we've done a lot of analysis of this increased turnout in the republican primaries and up until florida, he had lost had two of the close primaries with just republicans and had barely won in louisiana, much to the surprise of the polling that was showing him 20 points ahead. i think that what is not talked about or what we have seen in terms of the numbers is that the people that are coming out to these primaries, the increased primaries, number one, is being driven by the high competition amongst all the races. it's not just trump. second of all, where we've been able to track these down, these are general election voters that tend not to participate in primaries, who are now coming out in the primaries. so it's not like he's bringing huge numbers of people to register to vote for the first time and participate for the first time. they may be participating in primaries but not the general election. that's one of the things that we really look at, is that when you look at the total electorate, he started off with

a very high unfavorable rating and that number has only gotten worse. the good for the spin, to say he's doing that. but in fact his numbers got worse with the general election. >> let me ask you this. he's had a lot of negative stuff tossed at him. none of it seems to work. what works against donald trump, if anything? guest: again, you have to take a look at it. the numbers that i look at, you have almost as many republicans who say that they will not vote for donald trump and we see this in all the exit polls, as saying they will vote for him. it's one of the concerns we have about the fall election. the interesting thing about those voters, as much as he talks about now wanting to kuhnify and getting the national leaders -- to unify and getting the national leaders and the quote-unquote establishment voting for him, the voters negative toward him are not establishment voters. they're everyday voters across the country. we're seeing him take a nose dive with republican women, particularly married republican women. and what a lot of these voters are doing is they're not turning against him because of

his politics. although that may be questionable. they're turning against him because of his character and his style. they're basically taking a measure of the man, they've come to the conclusion they don't like him. that is a whole different kettle of fish that he has to fry. as opposed to the traditional let's get a united republican party behind him. i think it's a deep, deep problem for him. mark: you're from oklahoma so you don't quit. but as you know full well, a lot of your donors, a lot of your fellow consultants, strategists, and a lot of elected republicans have quit trying to stop donald trump even though they think he'd be a disaster. what do you say to those people currently on the precipice of quitting and giving up and saying, the impossible to stop him, let's stop attacking our event nominee? -- our eventual nominee? guest: it's not about the attacking the eventual nominee. he's doing the damage to himself. i think one of the things that he doesn't understand is that as a businessman, if you get 10% of the market share, you're doing fine.

you're doing great. you can talk about what a great company you have. in politics, if you don't get a 50% or more of the market share, which he's never had, you lose. and right now he's on a path to lose that in the general election. i think there are some in the cruz camp that thinks he can still win the nomination. there are certainly people in the kasich camp that think he can go to the convention. at this point i think there is a strategy, that if this goes to the convention, he doesn't have enough votes. i think you're looking at a whole different ballgame. as you know, the people that go to the conventions are not foot soldiers for those individual candidates. they're committed to vote for him on the first ballot. but if they go to a second ballot, if he does not win this before he gets to the convention, the things they're going to think about is who can best win in november? and that's when you look at the numbers, the memo that you and i have talked about, on him not being electable. in the fall. that's going to become more and

more important to these delegates, if in fact it's a contested convention and what is put on their shoulders who who can get win in november versus hillary clinton. mark: i like both fish fries and ballgames. thanks so much. up next, the supreme court scuffle continues. president obama goes on the offensive after this. ♪

>> president obama has officially commenced his aggressive campaign into getting senators to hold a confirmation vote for maric

garland. albert: today in an interview, he said the g.o.p. shouldn't block his pick because it would set a dangerous precedent. president obama: at that appointment the judiciary becomes a pure point of politics. that damages people's faith in the judiciary. because everybody understands that there's some politics involved in appointing judges. but we also expect that the judicial system can rise above the political process. al: joining me now to talk about this brewing battle are two of bloomberg's -- no, they're the best anywhere. white house correspondent margaret and supreme court reporter greg. margaret, let me start with you. does the white house think they really have the upperhand in this fight with senate republicans over whether to even hold a hearing on judge garland? guest: they do. because even if they don't get him confirmed between now and the election, they feel it will certainly energize the democratic base, drive turnout, help obama to get himself replaced by a democrat, which

is his main goal all along. and, hey, perhaps even a bank shot in the lame duck session. al: what's their sense of how the nomination has been depicted so far? guest: well, their sense about how the nomination has been depicted by republicans is nobody is taking issue with garland. they're taking issue with whether or not they should, you know, play ball with the president in his last year in office and -- al: because he's gotten rave reviews from the press and elsewhere. guest: he had unanimous support, the support of several sitting republicans right now and even senators who say they're not prepared to vote for him now are not taking issue with him. they're saying, it's not personal, it's about the process or the timing or what you have. so president obama feels pretty good about his pick in that sense. al: i'm struck of the number of genuine conservatives who have said that garland ought to be confirmed. ken star, alberto gonzalez, bush's attorney general, one of the most important federalist

societies, a man who rejected himself by the senate. is this going to continue? are most conservatives of this view? judicial conservatives, i mean. guest: i'm not sure i would say most. certainly within the world of appellate advocates, supreme court advocates, the world here in washington, yes, he has an awful lot of support and is very well regarded. when you go farther out where people know him less, perhaps there will be a little less support. al: and what is the -- if i'm a real staunch conservative, and i want to make this substantive, not the political case, against maric -- merrick garland, what would it be? guest: one thing they've talked about is guns. there's a couple things he did on the appeals court, only one of them had to do with the second amendment. but he's being portrayed as anti-gun. probably the more significant thing is, if you remember how the big heller ruling from the supreme court, when they said the constitution protects an individual right to bear arms, the court that handled that

case was garland's court. the d.c. circuit. that court agreed with the supreme court before the supreme court ruled and garland said, i want a bigger panel of that court to reconsider that -- al: he wanted it to go -- that was not a substantive position. guest: he didn't say anything substantively. he just said, i want to reconsider that ruling. there was a republican appointee who joined him in saying that. al: you would agree that basically he's going to be much closer to the so-called liberal block than the conservative block. guest: in general he will be. although we haven't seen, he hasn't ruled -- he hasn't ruled in a lot of the social issues because the d.c. circuit has a very distinct set of cases. he certainly will be -- the one area where i might say, maybe not, is criminal law. he's generally got a pretty pro-prosecutor reputation. al: that d.c. circuit has been a spawning ground for supreme court, including the chief justice. guest: certainly has. al: you mentioned a lame duck. i think that's the most likely scenario. if hillary clinton wins this

election, and if she supports judge garland in november, the senate would do a lame duck. guest: the chances are pretty good. he was after all a bill clinton appointee to the court to begin with. for hillary clinton, this is a better deal than justice scalia, right, if she's trying to make the court go her way. al: some of the little bits would really like -- libyas would really like something more to the left. guest: an african-american or further to the left or both or all of the above above. when president obama went with garland and brought him in the rose garden, everyone thought, poor guy. as it turns out, this may be exactly the person who gets confirmed. because the republicans are now betting that if they lose, the presidential election, he's the most moderate they'll get. al: one of the things that bothers some democrats is he's old. not by my standards, mind you. but he will be 64 at the end of the year. guest: right. in some senses that could make him a little less threatening

to republicans. he's not going to serve for three decades. maybe he'll serve for two. you're right. the train has been towards nominating younger people, the other two finalists that obama considered both in their late 40's. al: 76 is the new 96. whatever. thank you both. this is a really interesting discussion. and when we come back, we talk to a man who has been mentioned as a possible hillary clinton runningmate. u.s. labor secretary tom perez will join us. ♪

al: with us now is someone who might be catching up on episodes of "veep." tom perez, who endorsed hillary clinton in december, he joins us now from new york. thank you, mr. secretary, for being with us. guest: pleasure to be with you. al: and what do you make of all this perez for vp talk? have you been scouting massachusetts avenue for that? guest: i have been scouring the nation to help workers who need a job and businesses who want to grow their business. that's why i am here in new york today. talking about the minimum wage and talking about how we lift up and create shared prosperity in our economy. al: you showed your skills by ducking that question very well, mr. secretary. let me ask you just one question about wages and minimum wage, with you which you mentioned. bernie sanders says, let's take the minimum wage to $15. and over the course of i think four years. could you do that? and secondly, how many -- will

it have any affect on wages? guest: the president and i and many others support a $12 minimum wage proposal that was introduced by senator murray and congressman scott, supported by the likes of elizabeth warren and many others in the senate. and we also support efforts to go further in states. i was here today in new york talking about the need to establish a $15 minimum wage here in new york state. i was out in seattle last year when their $15 city minimum wage went into effect. and so, we're going to continue to support that federal floor and then go higher elsewhere. the issue of wage stagnation is a big part of the unfinished business of this recovery. and the issue of stubborn growth in wages is something, as you know, that predates the great recession. for really the last 30 years, with the exception of the late 1990's, productivity growth and

wage growth became effectively decoupled. in other words, workers worked to bake the pie of prosperity, but they didn't get to share in its benefits. and that is why you see the angst. we have a wind at our back on the one hand because of six years in a row of private sector job growth and a 4.9% unemployment rate, at the same time we have to build shared prosperity for everyone, an economy that works for everyone, making sure the rising tide lifts all boats and not just the yachts. that's what the issue of stubborn wages is about. that's really a big part of the unfinished business. that's why we're advocating for the minimum wage increase. that's why we're doing a regulation on overtime which could potentially help millions of people. that's why we invest in skills, because one of the best ways to improve your lot is to improve your skills. mark: is there a state you'd point to in terms of the issues you just mentioned, minimum wage, worker training, other issues related to income, education, is there a state you'd point to to say, that

state's doing it right? guest: i think washington state is a good example of a state that really has done a lot of things right. and defies all of the calamity hollers' claims about minimum wages, etc. washington state had the highest minimum wage in the country for a long time. i think a couple states may have passed it in the last year. for 15, 20 years, highest minimum wage. no tipped wage. so if you're a tipped worker, you get the same minimum wage. very good work force system. real investment in skills. and you look at washington state, they have had above average, well above average economic growth, they've managed to build, i think, a state economy where you have a lot of shared prosperity. do they have challenges? of course, every state does. but when i look at washington state, and i hear the calamity howlers say you can't raise the minimum wage, you know, frankly the evidence of washington belies that.

mark: what do you think the proper role for a vice president is? our government today? -- is in our government today? guest: you look at what the vice president has done and he has been a principle advisor to president obama. i've had a front row seat. vice president biden is there for so many issues, whether it's domestic policy, foreign olicy, he's such a font of wisdom and just really represents those middle class values that the president is all about. mark: there's no doubt president obama's given him a big role. is your view that future presidents should give whoever their vice president is that kind of big role on all issues? guest: i think jimmy carter started that trend when he brought walter with him and you see other presidents as well who have done that. my main observation has been with joe biden. he's been a mentor of mine, he's been a great friend.

mark: but do you -- i know you say historically that's been the role, since walter. do you think that's the right way for government to function? that kind of role? guest: absolutely. al: mr. secretary, do you think could you pick someone for vice president who has never run for political office? guest: whoever is the nominee, that will be a judgment that they will have to make. al: is there a sense that this is too important a job to turn over to someone who has never en involved in the electoral political system? guest: again, you look at where things have been historically and people who have been -- vice presidents have tended to be -- have had experience running either for the senate or for governors. some of those have excelled as vice presidents. some of those haven't. whoever is the nominee, they're going to have to make that judgment.

it's really a unique judgment for them. al: thank you very much for being with us, mr. secretary. we'll be right back with who won the week after this. ♪

mark: it being friday, got to ask. who won the week? al: stephen curry. that's what i'd like to say. look, obviously trump and clinton. on obama v. mcconnell on the supreme court, i think the w goes to the president.

mark: the president, huge incremental progress. clearly as the week ends, they're closer to getting a hearing than they were when it started. they're still a long way. senator grassley, senator mcconnell still seek pretty dug in to me. al: yeah. i agree. look for it in the lame duck. mark: all right. check out bloombergpolitics.com for all your campaign tracking. delegate counting and other needs. if you're watching us in washington, you can now listen to us on the radio, on bloomberg 99.1 f.m. coming up on bloomberg tv, "bloomberg west." emily chang talks to the head of daniel o'brien. our thanks to al hunt for sitting in. john heilemann out on the road. we'll be back on monday. until then, thanks for watching. ♪

mark: you're watching "bloomberg west." first word news. after an intense four-month international manhunt, police today captured the top fugitive in the paris terror attacks.

he was cornered by security forces during a raid in the same brussels neighborhood where he grew up. he was shot in the leg and detained by police. two other suspects are also in custody. multiple explosions were heard as officers with riot shields cortened off the area. drp the european union and turkey has have reached agreement to curb migration across the sea. under the new deal, turkey's required to take back people who make the crossing illegally. turkey also receives more than $6 billion to help organizations look after the nearly three million refugees already there. former republican presidential nominee mitt romney will vote for texas senator ted cruz in utah's caucuses next tuesday. romney made the announcement in a facebook post. he said he's working to unite the republican party around an alternative to donald trump. and lawmakers in brazil are moving forward with proceedings to impeach the president there as a corruption crisists